We have PROSPECTS, baby! The best time of the year is already here. MLB teams across the league realize their retread veterans suck, and their teams need juice. Hope you saved some of that FAAB or waiver wire priority because there is likely more to come.
This week’s batch, along with some veterans, was worth the wait and will be discussed extensively below. Have at it!
2B Travis Bazzana (CLE)
The Guardians called up their former first-overall pick last week, and he has paid early dividends. Travis Bazzana has one home run, seven runs, four RBI, and six stolen bases in nine games. His .200/.368/.300 slash-line is not special, but he has more walks than strikeouts, and a .382 xwOBA.
This start for Bazzana bodes well for his rest-of-season fantasy value. His speed was graded a high-end 60 by scouts, yet he did not run much in the minors before this season.
2024: 5 SB in 27 games
2025: 12 SB in 84 games
2026: 14 SB in 33 games (between minors and majors)
Bazzana has played every day since getting called up. Assuming he continues to play without a platoon, this is bordering on a must-have player in fantasy baseball, but specifically in OBP leagues.
His hitting will improve with some regression, and the potential to slot in as a leadoff hitter exists, given Steven Kwan’s slow start. AVG leagues should roster Bazzana, but only if they are 12+ teamers.
FACT
OF J.J. Bleday (CIN)
The Reds have rejuvenated Nathaniel Lowe. Why not J.J. Bleday, too??
Bleday’s start to the season is electric. He has four HR, six runs, and seven RBI in 12 games, with a .250/.362/.600 slash-line. The former fourth-overall pick is reeling everyone in once more.
His 2024 breakout had many (including myself) eager to see what he could do in the Athletics’ Sacramento bandbox last season, yet he fell flat and lost playing time. Bleday was so bad in 2025 that he was demoted!
Ironically, three of Bleday’s four HR this season have come away from Great American Ballpark. He has two in Wrigley Field and one in Pittsburgh. The obvious issue for most hitters struggling to take advantage of HR-friendly stadiums is ground-ball issues, but Bleday does not struggle with that. He hits fly balls roughly half the time, thanks to his extreme launch angle.
However, Bleday struggles to hit with his barrel, resulting in low average exit velocity and occasionally, infield fly balls. He has performed well this season with a cut strikeout rate (14.9%) and an increase in barrels, but projecting that to sustain is a bad bet.
Bleday is in his fifth MLB season and is 28 years old. He could reasonably be better than before, but his profile is a good, not great, hitter who is likely platooned. He offers no speed or batting average boost, making him a streaming play in most leagues when facing multiple right-handed pitchers in a row.
FICTION
OF Ryan Waldschmidt (ARI)
The Diamondbacks called up top prospect Ryan Waldschmidt this weekend and should play him every day going forward. The right-handed OF is a skilled bat with a patient profile, some pop, and some speed. He is not a “wow” player, but a potentially consistent bat who could work his way up to the leadoff spot.
Waldschmidt did not strike out above an 18% rate in the minors until his Triple-A stint this season. He has a walk rate above 12% at every level and performed very well as a 21-year-old in A-Ball and a 22-year-old in Double-A.
With a hitter-friendly home park and a talented offense consisting of Ketel Marte, Corbin Carroll, Geraldo Perdomo, and Gabriel Moreno, Waldschmidt could produce immediately in fantasy. If you expect more Bryan Reynolds than Carroll, Waldschmidt should be a stellar pick-up for 12+ team leagues.
FACT
DH Bryce Eldridge (SF)
The Giants called up Bryce Eldridge earlier this week, but do not have a definitive spot for him in their regular lineup against RHP. Between Rafael Devers, Willy Adames, Casey Schmitt, Luis Arraez, and Matt Chapman, the Giants have their infield and DH occupied regularly.
Eldridge has played three games thus far and struggled. He has a single, a walk, and four strikeouts in 10 PA. This is similar to his poor 2025 showing, but a tiny sample to analyze nonetheless. If the Giants were a serious organization, they would have kept their top prospect shelved until a regular role was ready or manufactured, but alas, they are not serious.
FICTION
SP Janson Junk (MIA)
Naturally, I would completely ignore an SP named JUNK, but Janson has my attention this season. His average fastball velocity is up to a career high 94.6 MPH, and he is posting an excellent 47.4% groundball rate.
Junk cut his fastball usage down to 30.9% and made his changeup a significant part of his mix (20.6%) this year. He has a similar profile to the Braves’ former JAG back-of-rotation SP Bryce Elder. Ok velocity, occasional strikeouts, low walks, and plenty of grounders. This resulted in a tough outing Saturday against the Nationals, but he gets the Rays and Mets in two of his next three starts.
Junk is not a superstar SP, yet that does not matter for fantasy. He is good enough to consider in your regular fantasy rotation with the advancements he has made to his arsenal.
FACT
SP Nick Martinez (TB)
Nick Martinez has the fourth-best ERA in baseball among qualified starters. He is achieving this despite owning the worst strikeout rate in the top ten, aka, he is getting very lucky. Martinez’s ERA is backed by a 3.90 xERA, 4.34 xFIP, and 4.49 SIERA.
There is not much difference in Martinez’s profile from past years. He has a groundball rate just under 40% (38.8%) and a similar average fastball velocity (93 MPH). While Martinez has produced an ERA below 3.50 in multiple seasons, he has done it while oscillating between the rotation and bullpen. He has not been a full-time starter in baseball since 2021 in Japan’s NPB.
Martinez could have a few more lucky outings, but regression is coming. His .236 BABIP is well below his career .280, while his 90.2% left-on-base rate is also far off his career 73.6% rate.
FICTION
SP Keider Montero (DET)
The Tigers need Keider Montero to keep up his stellar start to the season, but is that attainable?
Casey Mize (groin) is on IL, Tarik Skubal is out for at least the next two months due to elbow surgery, Framber Valdez continues to blow up randomly (and let his emotions show on the field), and Jack Flaherty is somehow worse than last year. Montero is the only consistent aspect of the Tigers’ rotation with a 3.18 ERA and 0.96 WHIP.
Unfortunately, Montero’s breakout is suspicious. He struggles to generate strikeouts and is allowing more fly balls than ever. His 4.60 xFIP and 4.49 SIERA are gaudy, yet there is some hope thanks to a 3.34 xERA.
Montero has turned into a quasi-Bailey Ober. He allows soft fly balls and does not allow walks (5.2%). This profile is not terrible for an AL Central with no park ranking top ten in HR park factor (via StatCast). Detroit’s Comerica Park is 17th on this list, with a HR park factor six percent below the league average in 2026.
While Montero may be trusted at home and against slap-hitting lineups, he should remain benched in any HR-friendly park or offense adept at the long ball.
FACT (somewhat)
RP Gregory Soto (PIT)
The Pirates have their closer. Dennis Santana began the season in that role, but his struggles (two blown saves and horrible peripherals) have given way to Gregory Soto. Soto has three saves this season, with two coming this past week. He earned the role. Not only a 1.42 ERA thus far, but also excellent stuff.
Soto’s ERA is backed by a 1.87 xERA, 3.03 xFIP, and a 2.46 SIERA. He is posting an elite 25.7% K-BB, marked by a career-high 35.7% strikeout rate. The former Tigers’ closer has reinvented himself and should be rostered in all formats.
FACT
Time to move on from Nola? Couldn’t get to 5 IP with a two run lead. Just because the Phils got duped into an ill advised expensive extension doesn’t mean I have to bite the bullet too. Poor guy doesn’t look like he’s got the ballz he was born with.