I’ve heard some fantasy baseball people suggesting Diamondbacks SS Jordan Lawlar was called up to be the short side of a DH platoon, but I think it’s pretty safe to ignore that noise. Some players are too important to get wrong, and very few organizations (cough cough Colorado) play fast and loose with the development of those guys, sacrificing their progression to fill a big league bench role.
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Graduated from Stash List #2: Horton, Can You Hear Me?: Cade Horton, Coby Mayo 1. Diamondbacks SS Jordan Lawlar (22, AAA) In addition to slashing .340/.417/.597 with six home runs and 13 stolen bases, Lawlar is further refining his plate skills, striking out at a 17.4 percent and drawing a 9.3 percent walk rate […]
Please, blog, may I have some more?Complex League games have begun, so there’s about to be a run on pop-up prospects such as Prince Fielder’s son. You read that right; I didn’t mean to say Cecil. Time remains undefeated.
I don’t have super big feelings after three games, but I do think you should consider adding young Fielder (Jadyn), Royals SS Yandel Ricardo, Dodgers SS Emil Morales, and Cardinals SS Yairo Padilla if they’re available in your league. Fielder should be lowest on that list, priority-wise.
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Prospect News: Do You Believe in Zach Agnos?
May 4, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 21 Commentsby: The Itch
Rangers 1B Blaine Crim (28) signed for $5,000 after Texas took him in the 19th round of the 2019 draft, so it’s nice to see him working toward his first big league game check while Jake Burger tries to recapture his flavor in Triple-A. A right-handed hitter at 5’10” 200 lbs, he’s far from the prototypical first baseman and has had to smash his way through any number of questions blocking his path. He’s always had power but has fine tuned his plate skills throughout his journey and was striking out at just 16.7 percent clip through 28 games. His walk rate is down a tick, but the aggression is paying off, leading to seven home runs and a slash line of .313/.365/.565. Has kind of a Christian Walker vibe. Better to add him now and ask questions later, I think.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Dodgers RHP Ben Casparius is a FAAB focus point this week. He’s been excellent in a swing role on the strength of two plus breaking balls he commands pretty well. The team is forever searching for innings and will give Casparius a chance to stretch into the starting rotation. I like his chances.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: Stash List #2: Horton, Can You Hear Me?
April 27, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 28 Commentsby: The Itch
1. Red Sox OF Roman Anthony (20, AAA)
Doing typical Roman stuff, conquering his contemporaries, slashing .313/.451/.588 with five home runs, two stolen bases, 21 strikeouts (20.6 percent) and 21 walks in 23 games. Ceddanne Rafaela has tripled his walk rate in the early going and has a 128 wRC+ since April 6. He’s an 80-grade defender in center field, so I don’t think he’s going anywhere, which I suppose surprises nobody who regularly reads this space. It’s gonna be interesting though. Wilyer Abreu can’t stop won’t stop hitting, and Jarren Duran is a core player. Can Rafael Devers play first base yet? Could Triston Casas be in trouble? He hit two homers this week, both of the three-run variety, but that’s all he’s done this week, and last week. Since April 6, he’s slashing .151/.286/.283 but with interesting plate skills: 12.7 percent walk rate and a 17.7 percent strikeout rate. If you’re playing a video game, you probably make that move today: call up Anthony and trade Casas. Rumor mill over the winter said the Red Sox were trying to swing a Casas trade, maybe even before the Bregman signing came through if I remember right. Tricky situation. Good problem to have though, especially in a video game.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: Colonel Kurtz Brings The FAAB Apocalypse
April 23, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 27 Commentsby: The Itch
The Athletics are officially promoting 1B Nick Kurtz to the rank of major leaguer, and like the winding journey into the heart of darkness we find in Apocalypse Now, things are about to get a little weird in Sacramento. Good weird though, like the early Rockies teams that leaned all the way into the collect-mashers advantage of playing half your games in Coors Field. I don’t know if you have to avoid the A’s the way you had to avoid trips up the mountain, but I’d rather not throw any of my starters in their park if I could avoid it. A lineup composed of Kurtz, Soderstrom, Rooker, Butler, Langeliers, Bleday and Jacob Wilson presents a lot of tough outs with nasty consequences for misplaced pitches. My AL Only squad is stoked to see him. They’re in first place despite losing Grayson Rodriguez and Luis Gil before the season started, and their only chance to hold the top spot is to mash like a mixed league club.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: Mazur Finds His Way
April 16, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 27 Commentsby: The Itch
Marlins RHP Adam Mazur (23, AAA) struggled as a rookie with the Padres last season and found himself and his 7.49 ERA on a flight to Miami. He’s been much better as a Triple-A pitcher this year than he was last year, posting a 1.29 ERA and 0.63 WHIP in three games covering 14.1 innings. He pitched to a 4.73 ERA and 1.19 WHIP in 93.1 innings last year, so an off-season with a new organization has done him some good. Miami has Cal Quantrill and Connor Gillispie in the rotation right now, so you can’t exactly say Mazur is blocked. They’re actually playing .500 baseball right now in South Beach at eight-and-eight. Probably not wise to bet on that continuing, but I thought it might take them until May to collect eight wins. Griffin Conine, Kyle Stowers, Xavier Edwards and Matt Mervis are all playing well and creating some optimism in the Wins category for investors in fishy pitchers.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: Stash List #1: Whisper The Dream Of Rome
April 13, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 55 Commentsby: The Itch
1. Athletics 1B Nick Kurtz (22, AAA)
I have no idea how or when he’s going to crack the lineup, but I feel more confident in him as an impact hitter during his rookie year than I do about pretty much anyone else left in the minors. Feels like a dominant hitter in search of a level that can challenge him.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: Feel The Peña Everyone or Take Zac Veen
April 9, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 14 Commentsby: The Itch
At the risk of overstating the reality, I’m happy to see the Zac Veen era is underway in Colorado. My bold predictions article says he’ll steal 40 bases this season, so that’s pretty much a lock at this point. Or perhaps he’ll be back in the minors a month from now. I’m betting against that, obviously. I think it’s more important for the organization to get Veen right than it is for them to, for example, get Jordan Beck right.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: Remember Paris or Tawa Bunga
April 6, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 44 Commentsby: The Itch
Diamondbacks 1B Tim Tawa (25, AAA) had three walks, three home runs, two steals and zero strikeouts in his first four games, a monster start in all of our Triple-A fantasy leagues. Have to take his Salt Lake outcomes with a grain of . . . skepticism . . . but Tawa has produced throughout his career, which you kind of have to do to make your way as a 5’11” utility type, and the organization has enough confidence in him to use him at the keystone in Ketel Marte’s absence. If he hits, they might try to find room for him off the bench.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: We Might Actually Get To See This Blade
March 30, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 16 Commentsby: The Itch
Guardians 1B Kyle Manzardo is at 0.4 WAR already thanks to a double, triple, homer and walk in his five plate appearances. Seems high for a day’s work, but that’s a good day. I still think they should’ve held onto Naylor, but it’ll sting slightly less if Manzardo becomes a capital-g Guy.
Tigers OF Ryan Kreidler appears to be Detroit’s short term solution for center field while Wenceel Perez takes “at least a month” to convalesce. Bad backs can linger, as you probably know, dear reader, so Kreidler might have quite a bit of runway in front of him if he performs. On the other hand, the club traded for Brewer Hicklen Saturday, and he stole 44 bases last season, so we should keep an eye on him, too.
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