In fantasy baseball, categories like home runs and strikeouts require overwhelming raw talent that is hard to find on the waiver wire. However, stolen bases operate under a completely different set of rules and looking at raw speed isn’t enough. Garrett Mitchell is one of the fastest players in baseball but is only 12-for-17 on the basepaths. Meanwhile, Josh Naylor is the second slowest player in all of baseball and is 24-for-31 in steals (went 30-for-32 last season). It remains the most volatile and movable category in both rotisserie and head-to-head (H2H) leagues.

While elite, high-draft-capital speedsters provide a safe statistical floor, you do not have to rely solely on blockbuster trades to win the category. Instead, sharp managers use a weekly MLB stolen base report to stream speed. With base stealing relying on so many different factors; exploiting a slow pitching delivery, a catcher with a poor pop-time, or team strategy, you can add stolen bases to your team from some under-the-radar roster additions. 

The strategy requires anchoring your roster with proven speed while identifying the optimal windows to stream role players from your fantasy baseball waiver wire. Grounded in data up to August 17, 2026, this comprehensive blueprint highlights the trends, leaders, and targets to help you dominate the basepaths. Let’s dive into who are good stolen base options for the upcoming week. 

 

 

 

MLB Stolen Base Leaders as of August 17th, 2026

The elite tier of speed features players who possess a permanent green light regardless of the matchup. In rotisserie formats, these anchors keep you competitive, while in H2H leagues, they can single-handedly win you the category in any given week.

We had a little bit of movement on our stolen base leaderboard from last week’s MLB Stolen Base Report. Chandler Simpson had another big week getting within 5 steals of Nasim Nunez at the top of the board. Jose Caballero also climbed a bit getting himself up to 20 steals. Josh Naylor, Otto Lopez, CJ Abrams, and Jackson Merrill all sit just outside this leaderboard all at 24 steals a piece on the season.

MLB Teams Attempting the Most Stolen Bases

To project future speed production, checking individual player talent is only half the battle; understanding managerial philosophy is just as critical. It doesn’t matter how fast a player is, if the team doesn’t like to run, they just won’t get the opportunity to get your steals. Teams that sit at the top of the MLB stolen base report for total attempts show an organizational commitment to aggressive baserunning, and at this point in the season if they have shown a commitment to run (or not run) that is unlikely to change. 

Miami holds at the top of this leaderboard with Nationals still leading with the most total stolen bases with better efficiency than the Marlins. The Yankees saw a big jump this week climbing up to 5th on the leaderboard and not far behind the teams ahead of them. It isn’t likely that anyone besides these teams will make their way onto this leaderboard this season. You can check the match-ups against specific teams/catchers using our Daily Stolen Base Prop Finder as well as the daily stolen base prop article.

 

MLB Teams with the Highest Stolen Base Success Rate

High volume is excellent for counting stats, but poor efficiency can stall an offense and prompt a manager to turn off the green light. Fantasy managers must prioritize players on teams that maximize their opportunities. Efficient base running teams can be a great place to look for steals because they likely be more overlooked than the teams with high volume. 

The Washington Nationals dropped off this leaderboard to 6th place but still remain in elite stealing team with how much they run along with their efficiency. The Guardians saw a bit of a drop as well falling from 2nd to 4th on the leaderboard with the Cubs and Pirates climbing up ahead of them. The Diamondbacks also jumped up onto this leaderboard, they don’t run a ton, but they continue to have great success rates. I wouldn’t be surprised if we continue to see the volume keep going up a bit for these teams trying to be more aggressive with having great efficiency. If you need some steals these teams that are in the playoff hunt could continue to be the more aggressive teams that try to push the envelope and win games any way they can. 

 

 

 

Pitchers Allowing the Most Stolen Bases

Savvy fantasy managers understand that base runners frequently steal off the pitcher rather than the catcher. Tracking slow deliveries, high leg kicks, and subpar pickoff moves highlights the ideal matchups to exploit. These starting pitchers have surrendered the most stolen bases across the major leagues this season:

You can see how often these pitchers have been targeted in the daily stolen base prop article. Some more than others, but keep in mind that their catchers play an even more important role. Below you’ll see the best and worst of catchers but also take note of the pitchers’ talent levels. Targeting against pitchers like Burns, Ryan or Rasmussen can be difficult, simply because they don’t allow many baserunners so it can be hard to predict if players will get any opportunities to steal against them. This can also help you see teams to target that have multiple players up on this list like the Cincinnati Reds and the San Francisco Giants. 

 

Catchers With the Best and Worst Caught-Stealing Percentage

When validating an individual MLB stolen base report, checking the defensive metrics behind the plate serves as your final layer of security. Statcast metrics illustrate a stark divide between elite defensive anchors and catchers struggling to limit opposing runners. Our new stolen base prop finder will reveal exactly who to target and who to avoid. (minimum of 10 SB attempts against):

Best Caught Stealing Percentage

Worst Caught Stealing Percentage

 

 

 

MLB Stolen Base Trends and Fantasy Implications

It doesn’t take a lot of digging to see that stolen bases are easier to come by than ever, with some of the highest stolen base success rates that we have ever seen. The rule changes of the pitch clock, limited pitcher disengagements, and widening the bases have made stealing bases easier than ever and with teams embracing analytics they have gotten much better at knowing when to run to keep their efficiency at an all-time high while still running more often.  

For fantasy managers this means stolen bases are easier to find than ever before, but this also means you need way more stolen bases than you used to. You can no longer rely on 15 stolen bases from your roster to keep you afloat in rotisserie standings. With efficiency up across the league, managers are giving more players the freedom to run if the matchup dictates it. This creates a perfect environment for streaming tier-two or tier-three speed options who sit on your league's waiver wire.

Top Teams to Target for SBs This Coming Week:

To gain an edge for the upcoming matchups beginning August 17, 2026, we look at the intersection of aggressive team tendencies and vulnerable opponent defense. Looking closely at the MLB stolen base report allows us to pinpoint the best teams to target for streaming speed:

  • New York Yankees (vs. Baltimore Orioles/Toronto Blue Jays): The Yankees offense has been started to show some more life after the trade deadline, and they continue to run a lot. Facing Baltimore and Toronto this week should both give them plenty of opportunities to keep running wild.  
  • Tampa Bay Rays (vs Toronto Blue Jays/Baltimore Orioles): So, you know how I just said the Orioles and Blue Jays will be good opportunities for the Yankees to run wild? Well, the Rays get the exact same matchups this week and should also take advantage and run a lot. 
  • Arizona Diamondbacks (vs Cincinnati Reds) The Diamondbacks have been starting to run a bit more and they are extremely efficient. They face the Red Sox to start the week which makes things tough with Adley behind the dish, but then the get to face the Reds who are arguably the easiest team to run against this season.
  • Washington Nationals (vs Texas Rangers/Miami Marlins): The most successful stolen base team this season will likely remain so this week. The Rangers and the Marlins are both teams that they will keep running against. The Marlins have Joe Mack who is tough to run against, but he is the only of the catchers that the Nationals face this week that really poses any threat.