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Jakkers

Author: Jakkers

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Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Go Guardians!

August 5, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 1 Comment

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Everyone knows about the Road to the Show baseball players travel. But what you have to remember is there is not just one road to take to get to The Show.

This week the Top Dynasty Keeper spotlight falls on Tanner Bibee and Gavin Williams – two players who took those different roads to both wind up in Cleveland.

The Overlooked Draft Choice Road

Bibee is having an outstanding rookie season for the Guardians, and it is somewhat surprising when you realize where he was drafted. Unlike many top pitching prospects, Bibee was not a first- or second-round selection. Instead, he was drafted in the fifth round of the 2021 draft out of Cal State Fullerton. And Bibee headed to Fullerton because he wasn’t even drafted out of high school.

While at Fullerton, Bibee had a decent, but not spectacular, career as he actually had a losing record and a career 3.82 ERA. That is good in the majors, but not very eye popping if you are a college pitcher hoping to have a major league career. Even more pedestrian was his career 7.8 K/9 rate. Pitchers with those numbers are the ones who are drafted in the fifth round or lower. But pitchers with those numbers also don’t enter the season ranked as a top 100 prospect by Baseball America, MLB Pipeline and Baseball Prospectus only two years after being drafted.

The Look at Me Draft Choice Road

This is the road we are used to seeing top pitching prospects take. Williams was actually drafted out of high school in the 30th round by Tampa Bay in 2017, but he decided not to sign and instead attend East Carolina.

Once in Greeneville, N.C., Williams was used more as a reliever his first three seasons until making 12 starts out of 15 appearances in 2021. That season he dominated opponents to the tune of a 10-1 record with a 1.88 ERA and 0.959 WHIP. In 81.1 innings, he struck out 130 batters for a 14.4 K/9 rate.

The Guardians loved what they saw from Williams and selected him in the first round with the 23rd overall pick – four rounds ahead of Bibee. The selection was a wise one as Williams entered the season ranked as the No. 20 prospect in Baseball America, 42nd by MLB Pipeline and 26th by Baseball Prospectus.

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Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Soderstrom And Miller

July 29, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 8 Comments

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Another work week is in the books, so let’s start the weekend off with another dive into Top Dynasty Keepers.

As I mentioned last week, this time of year is when you start to dig a little deeper to find some gems who will help you perhaps this year but with more of the future in mind as well. That leads me to the two players on the Oakland Athletics who I want to feature this week – catcher Tyler Soderstrom and right-hand pitcher Mason Miller.

Soderstrom, the top prospect for the A’s, was recently called up from the minors by Oakland, making his debut on July 14th. It should not be surprising for me to mention Soderstrom as a Top Dynasty Keeper. He is a former first round draft pick, selected 26th overall in 2020 out of high school.

Since signing with the A’s, he has climbed the prospect rankings and was ranked 35th by Baseball America, 39th by MLB Pipeline and 78th by Baseball Prospectus. Despite his prospect credentials, he is currently rostered in only 11% of Yahoo leagues, 1.8% of ESPN leagues and 45% of Fantrax leagues.

Meanwhile, Miller, considered the No. 2 prospect, has actually been with Oakland most of the year – just on the disabled list. Making his debut April 19th, Miller made four starts before landing on the Injured List with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

This is the first time for me to recommend a player who is currently injured, but when looking for that next diamond in the rough, you need to look everywhere. Because of his current status, Miller is pretty available to immediately add to your roster as he is rostered in 12% of Yahoo leagues, 3% in ESPN and 46% in Fantrax leagues.

Enough with the banter, let’s take a look at Soderstrom and Miller.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Manning And Skubal

July 22, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 8 Comments

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After a needed two-week break from life, I’m back and ready to go with another edition of Top Dynasty Keepers.

Let’s be honest, at this point of the season the actual TOP dynasty keepers are long gone. They were gobbled up in fantasy drafts or auctions at the start of this season or last year or the year before that depending on your dynasty league. If a top prospect was still out there this season, they have likely now been snagged off the waiver wire.

But that doesn’t mean there still aren’t good players to go after – you just have to be a little more discerning and probably have to dig a little deeper into the mud to pull out a few gems here and there. But that is the fun part of dynasty leagues, finding those players who may or not help you this year but become key players over the next two or three years.

Two players who I think can both help you this year and beyond are a pair of Tiger hurlers who have had their careers slightly derailed due to injuries. Those two pitchers are 25-year-old Matt Manning and 26-year-old Tarik Skubal.

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Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Fishing With Perez And Garrett

July 1, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 11 Comments

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There are certain players who you know are a top dynasty keeper is an obvious choice. Take for example Elly De La Cruz in Cincinnati or Josh Jung with the Rangers. Then there are the players who slowly work their way into the conversation of being a top dynasty keeper.

This week, we are going to focus on both types of players – and both of them are pitchers for the Miami Marlins.

Eury Perez is the obvious choice as a top fantasy keeper. A former top 20 prospect, he is dominating the competition at this point of the season.

The second player is Braxton Garrett, a former top 100 prospect who kind of fell off the radar. But given a chance to cement a spot in the Marlins rotation this year, Garrett has proven to be a solid pitcher and one worthy of being considered a top fantasy keeper.

Let’s get right to it and dive into a deeper look at Perez and Garrett.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Yainer Diaz

June 24, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 4 Comments

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When George Springer signed with the Toronto Blue Jays ahead of the 2021 season, it was assumed by many Houston Astros fans that speedster Myles Straw would be the team’s center fielder for years to come.

But that assumption  came to an abrupt end on July 30, 2021, when Straw was traded to the Cleveland Indians (now Guardians). Coming back to Houston was relief pitcher Phil Maton, who filled an immediate need. and a young 22-year-old catcher who was playing in Class A.

The Real Centerpiece?

Because Maton had major league experience and immediately moved into the Astros bullpen, he appeared to be the centerpiece of the trade. But that may not be the case as Diaz was showing talent at a level greater than being just a throw-in for organizational depth.

Diaz, who signed for $25,000 out of the Dominican Republic when he was 16, hit .355 with a .503 slugging percentage in the Rookie-level Arizona League at the age of 18 during his first season as a pro in the United States.

Since then, all he has done is hit for average as his career minor league batting average of .321 proves. But he not just a player who hits for average. As he has grown into his body, his power has developed as well.

Let’s dive more into Yanier Diaz.

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Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – MacKenzie Gore

June 17, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 2 Comments

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On Aug. 2 last year, the Washington Nationals sent Juan Soto and Josh Bell to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Luke Voit and a host of prospects in MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, Robert Hassell, Jarlin Susana and James Wood.

Voit is no longer with the Nationals and was never considered a key part of the trade. The last three players listed are still in the minors. Hassell entered the season ranked as the 57th best prospect by Baseball America, 35th by MLB.com and 66th by Baseball Prospectus while Wood is ranked 11th, 17th and 3rd, respectively. Susana is only 19 years old, so it will be a while to see if he ever makes it to the Nationals. much less as a top 100 prospect.

Key Piece

Gore and Abrams are currently playing for the Nationals and were key parts of the deal. I like Abrams, and for deep dynasty leagues, he is a keeper. But I like Gore a whole lot more.

Selected as the third overall pick in the 2017 draft out of Whiteville High School in Whiteville, North Carolina, Gore was already a top 100 prospect in 2018, ranking 26th (BA), 19th (MLB) and 29th (BP). By the end of 2021 Gore was a top 10 prospect.

Now in his second season in the majors, has Gore lived up to the lofty prospect rankings? Not really. In ESPN and Yahoo leagues, many players don’t consider Gore worthy of a roster spot as he is rostered in 21% of ESPN leagues and 48% of Yahoo leagues.

Does that mean he is not a solid dynasty keeper?

Those roster percentages don’t take into account dynasty leagues. In Fantrax leagues, Gore is rostered by 94% of teams, a number that about right as I think Gore is only scratching the surface of what he can do.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Reds, Reds And More Reds

June 10, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 4 Comments

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Could the Big Red Machine be making a comeback in Cincinnati?

OK, maybe I am putting the cart in front of the horse, but when it comes to young players who are exciting to watch, the Reds are one of the top teams to keep an eye on. This week I am shining a spotlight on three young Cincy players. But spoiler alert, I am NOT going to talk about Elly De La Cruz.

If you play in dynasty leagues, then you should already know all about De La Cruz. The man is a stud and we all know it. If you are new to dynasty league baseball then all you need to know about De La Cruz is he is a player everyone wants on their team. If you can get him, do so. If you already have him, keep him.

Prospects Galore

Entering the 2023 season the Reds had six prospects listed on the MLB.com Top 100 list – De La Cruz, Noelvi Marte, Edwin Arroyo, Cam Collier, Matt McLain and Andrew Abbott. It appears the Reds love to collect middle infielders as De La Cruz, Marte, Arroyo and McLain can all play shortstop while Collier is a third baseman and Abbott is a left-handed pitcher.

But I am not here to talk about all six of those players. Out of that group, only McClain is featured this week. Joining him is former top 100 prospect Jonathan India and Spencer Steer, who finished the 2022 campaign as the Reds’ No. 7 prospect, according to MLB.com.

Let’s get to the breakdowns of each player.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – A Pair Of Rookie Hurlers

June 3, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 4 Comments

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Welcome back to another edition of Top Dynasty Keepers.

The past two weeks have featured two young hitters in Nolan Gorman and Christopher Morel. So this week I am going to focus the spotlight on two rookie pitchers. The first is Eury Perez of the Miami Marlins and the second is Bobby Miller of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

If you have been reading my articles for a while, then you know my love of young hitters over young pitchers. But in dynasty leagues you still need young pitching to help build your staff for future seasons. Perez and Miller are both pitchers you can build a staff with.

Time to Shine

The Marlins signed Perez out of the Dominican Republic in 2019, and thanks to COVID it took until 2021 for him to make his professional debut. When Perez finally made his first pro pitch, he had added close to four inches and 45 pounds to his frame.

Despite being only 18-years-old, an age in which he would be in high school if he grew up in the United State, Perez dominated hitters on two different levels of A ball that season.

As for Miller, after being drafted in the 38th round by Baltimore out of high school in 2017, he decided to attend Louisville and didn’t join the starting rotation until midway through his sophomore season. He then only made four starts in 2020 when COVID shut down the college season.

Despite few starts in college and some concern about his delivery, the Dodgers jumped at the chance to draft Miller, nabbing him with the 29th overall pick in 2020 and handing him a bonus of more than $2 million.

Let’s dive more into each player.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Christopher Morel

May 27, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues |

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Welcome back to another edition of Top Dynasty Keepers.

Last week I wrote about Nolan Gorman, a top 100 prospect who entered the 2022 season with high expectations. After being promoted to the majors he performed well only to have opposing pitchers adjust their game plans, leading Gorman to ultimately fall short of the high expectations people had of him only to rebound this year and now living up to those expectations.

This week I am going to focus on another player who has followed a similar path in Christopher Morel of the Chicago Cubs. Morel burst onto the scene last year only to ultimately struggle greatly down the stretch but is now performing well.

Road to the Show
Powerful Bat

Morel was signed by the Cubs in 2015 out of the Dominican Republic for $800,00 but had his pro debut delayed until 2017 after suffering a cut arm in a household accident after he signed. After spending the 2020 COVID season at the Cubs’ alternate training site and the Instructional League, he was added to the 40-man roster ahead of the 2021 season.

One of the main reason’s Chicago signed Morel was the power he saw in his bat due to excellent bat speed that produces a lot of high exit velocities – and home runs. The power was not immediately apparent when he first started his career in the minors. But since 2021, he has shown off his power in both the minors and majors and doing so to all fields.

Speed and Versatility as Well

While Morel’s power is a great tool, he also has the ability to swipe a bag. An aggressive base runner, he stole 58 bases in 356 career minor league games and has added another 11 in 127 major league games.

In the field, Morel has displayed a strong arm and the ability to play multiple positions. With Chicago he has played in left field and center field as well as second base, shortstop and third base.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Nolan Gorman

May 20, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues |

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Every year there are rookies everyone is looking forward to see make their major league debut. Some of these top prospects immediately live up to expectations. Julio Rodriguez, for example, is one of those prospects who have lived up to the hype.

Other top prospects, however, don’t immediately hit the ground running upon their arrival in the majors. Sometimes they need a little more seasoning before they really start to produce for their team.

One player who appears to have fallen into that category is Nolan Gorman of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Looking the Part

Gorman was one of the top power-hitting high school players in the country ahead of the 2018 draft. When he was still on the board when the Cardinals were selecting in the 19th spot, St. Louis jumped at the chance to add him to their organization. After signing, Gorman immediately showed everyone why the Cardinals drafted him as he hit 17 home runs in 63 combined games at Rookie ball and Class A.

The rankings services took note of Gorman’s production. Baseball America ranked Gorman 75th on its prospect list ahead of the 2019 season while MLB.com had him ranked 61st and Baseball Prospectus 34th. In 2019 and 2021, Gorman combined to hit 40 home runs and drive in 137 runs in 244 games. By the start of the 2022 season, Gorman appeared in two Futures Games and was ranked 34th by Baseball America, 33rd by MLB.com and 28th by Baseball Prospectus.

In 2022, Gorman would finally get his chance to show what he could do on the major league level.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Bryce Miller And Josh Jung

May 13, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 4 Comments

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Welcome back to another edition of Top Dynasty Keepers. This week we are going to focus on rookie pitcher Bryce Miller of Seattle and Josh Jung, a young third baseman for the Rangers.

Both players are currently trending up in ESPN leagues, as Miller is now rostered in 40 percent of leagues, an increase of 31% over the last week. Meanwhile, Jung has seen a 9.2% jump in ESPN leagues he is rostered in and now sits at 31.9%.

Texans Making Their Mark

Miller, who is from Mount Pleasant, Texas, was drafted in the 38th round out of high school. Wisely, he decided to not sign with Miami and instead attended Blinn Junior College for a year before heading to Texas A&M.

His first season with the Aggies was spent pitching out of the bullpen and he made eight appearances out of the bullpen in 2020 before COVID ended the college season. In 2021 he appeared in 13 games and made 10 starts, striking out 70 hitters in 56.2 innings of work.

Miller battled control problems while at Texas A&M, walking 4.6 batters per nine innings and 5.9 per nine innings his last season on campus. However, the Mariners liked what they saw from Miller and drafted him in the fourth round of the 2021 June draft.

Jung, who hails from San Antonio, ventured to Lubbock after high school to attend Texas Tech where he starred for the Red Raiders. During his three-year career, he slashed .348/.455/.577, leading the Rangers to draft him with the eighth overall pick in the 2019 draft and giving him a $4.4 million signing bonus.

Jung would have likely been with Texas in 2021 but suffered a stress fracture in his left foot and then went through COVID protocols, leaving him to finish his year in the minors. He would have likely been the starting third baseman on Opening Day last year but suffered a torn labrum in his left shoulder while lifting weights in February, thus delaying his debut with Texas to late in the season.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Jakkers

Top Dynasty Keepers – Hunter Brown

May 6, 2023 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Keepers, Keeper Leagues | 2 Comments

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When putting together a dynasty team, you should always have a blueprint to how you want to build that team and maintain it. But that doesn’t mean you sometimes make exceptions to those plans.

I tend to shy away from young pitchers because they are so volatile as they get their feet wet on the major league level. But some pitchers quickly show they deserve a spot on your roster. Hunter Brown is one of those pitchers.

I had Brown ranked at 198 in the preseason Top 200 Dynasty Keepers, so his performance is not a total shock. However, he is making me eat my words about avoiding young pitchers until they are proven. While he has only two full months of major league experience along with a month of postseason experience, he has more than shown that he can get major league hitters out.

Very Good, Not Great

Brown didn’t race his way to the majors. After not being drafted out of high school, the right-hander went to Wayne State University in his hometown of Detroit. While there he showed off his great fastball but also his propensity for not being able to command the strike zone.

In three seasons at Wayne State he appeared in in 41 games and made 25 starts, going 14-3 with a 3.33 ERA. He had an outstanding 10.0 K/9 rate, whiffing 178 batters in 159.2 innings of work while allowing only 139 hits. But he also walked 72 batters, or 4.1 per nine innings and had a 1.322 WHIP.

Obviously, scouts weren’t demanding that Brown be drafted as he lasted until the Astros selected him in the fifth round in 2019. Perhaps the fact Brown went to a small college instead of a power school played a part in him dropping to the fifth round. But it appears the Astros struck gold in Brown.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
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