Braves RHP Didier Fuentes debuted Friday night and looked okay for a guy who turned 20 just a few days ago (June 17). He allowed four runs in five innings but walked just one Marlin against three strikeouts. Pitchers a lot further along in their development have had much worse big league debuts, so while the statline isn’t impressive on its own, Fuentes is a rocketship of a pitching prospect in an organization that tends to coach these types into orbit. He started this season in High-A and has now pitched at four levels mostly as a teenager. His fastball velo was in the 81st percentile Friday night, and his 6.8 foot extension was in the 76th percentile. The heater got hit around in his debut, but I think it’s going to work against major league hitters as he grows into his early 20’s. Pretty good chance this was a spot start, and he’ll go back to Triple-A to get more than the one start he logged at that level.
Please, blog, may I have some more?
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Prospect News: Boston Loves Goodbyes
June 18, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 50 Commentsby: The Itch
Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
Those were my initial thoughts regarding this Rafael Devers trade.
The Red Sox treated real baseball like a video game during the off-season, signing Alex Bregman before discussing the possibilities with Rafael Devers, a player they had recently signed for $313.5 million. I’m not saying a team should run every transaction by their third baseman, but if you’re going to sign an All-Star at your franchise player’s position, you might want to lay some groundwork within the clubhouse.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Graduated from Stash List #5: House Party or Moore Is Better: Roman Anthony, Christian Moore, Jacob Misiorowski
Note: Anyone promoted during the current season is ineligible for the stash list.
1. Reds RHP Chase Burns (22, AAA)
Made his Triple-A debut this week and walked four batters but still surrendered just two runs in 5.1 innings and struck out seven Iowa Cubs. I wouldn’t give him more than five starts at the level, and I doubt the Reds will. They paid the man $9.25 million to sign on the dotted line. No good reason to spend a pile of pitches in the minors.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Promotions are flying fast and furious like Vin Diesel behind the wheel, so we’ll discuss a few key ones before drifting around the bend toward some happenings throughout the minor leagues.
Big news first though of course you’ve seen it by now: Red Sox OF Roman Anthony is on the march. An interesting piece is Alex Cora suggesting OF Wilyer Abreu will require the minimum ten-day stay on the injured list. We’ll finally get to see how they plan to juggle the hitters. Should’ve been doing it earlier and giving guys days off, but hindsight and whatnot.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Graduated from Stash List #4: Boston Needs A New Mayer: Marcelo Mayer, Jac Caglianone, Carson McCusker, Daylen Lile
Note: Anyone promoted during the current season is ineligible for the stash list.
1. Red Sox OF Roman Anthony (21, AAA)
I had speculated about a Jarren Duran trade in this space before, and the team has made comments over the past week about their willingness to trade both Duran and Wilyer Abreu. Seems like Anthony might be stuck in Pawtucket until such a deal clears his path.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Lotta movement to cover this week. The Royals lineup looks pretty different these days with Jac Caglianone beefing up the middle. Vinnie P is heating up with the weather, posting a 167 wRC+ over his last 16 games. Maikel Garcia and Bobby Witt Jr. are both in rhythm right now, so this team could go on a nice summer run. They’re 32-and-29 despite scoring six fewer runs than the Chicago White Sox this season.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Format = Team Position Player | Age | Level | ETA
1. Red Sox OF Roman Anthony | 20 | AAA | 2025
2. Athletics 1B Nick Kurtz | 22 | MLB | 2025
3. Brewers SS Jesus Made | 18 | A | 2028
4. Royals 1B Jac Caglianone | 22 | AAA | 2025
5. Rangers SS Sebastian Walcott | 19 | AA | 2026
6. Padres SS Leo De Vries | 18 | A+ | 2027
7. Reds RHP Chase Burns | 22 | AA | 2025
Interesting times at the top. Made and De Vries both feel like a smart place to put your money during these volatile economic times. Kurtz and Caglianone get these spots partly for floor, but they’re also closer to the Torkelson-Vaughn vortex than anyone in the lower minors. Gotta try to account for all facets of reality, and in doing that, I can see Chase Burns making a Skenesian impact over the final stretch this season. The pitcher penalty felt pretty outdated as I watched him dominate. The only thing most people can agree on here is that Anthony represents the best combination of proximity, probability and potential.
Please, blog, may I have some more?If you look around my minor league rosters, you’ll find a few organizations extremely well represented, especially the Red Sox, Brewers, Mets, and Dodgers. My favorite way to play this game is to identify competent developmental teams and lean into that. It’s not like I refuse to roster someone from a bottom-feeder; I just zoom in more closely on great organizations and give tie-breaker preference in that direction. Perhaps that understates the reality of how my rosters end up looking. For example, I have five minor league pitchers on my Razz 30 roster: three Red Sox (Yordanny Monegro, Juan Valera, Eduardo Rivera) and two Dodgers (Sean Linan, Christian Zazueta).
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: Jac In The Box or Denzel In Training
May 25, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 15 Commentsby: The Itch
Earlier this week, the Rangers signed Korean high schooler Seong-Jun Kim and announced they will develop him as a two-way player. I’ve only seen the hype video the org posted, but he looks best at shortstop, then on the mound, then with the bat. I’ve noticed he’s getting added in a bunch of Fantrax leagues, but I’m probably not spending any spots on him. Feels like every FAAB run these days involves several young players I really want to add and hold for the long term, but Kim would fall into a trade-chip bucket for me because I’m not patient like that. Kim won’t join the club until January, making him something like a half-decade away from impacting our game in the categories.
Please, blog, may I have some more? Prospect News: A Rising Tide or Hope and Burns
May 21, 2025 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Featured | 33 Commentsby: The Itch
I’m rearranging the rankings this week, so I figured I’d highlight the players that are rising so fast it’s hard to place them.
10. Padres SS Leo De Vries
11. Brewers SS Jesus Made
12. Giants 1B Bryce Eldridge
It’s more than just attrition: these guys have locked in their place among the top ten prospects in baseball until proven otherwise.
De Vries has a 132 wRC as an 18-year-old in High-A, which puts him on track to join the Double-A club this summer before he turns 19 in October? Sorry, that’s not a question. I just . . . it’s hard to put a period there. That means he’s 19 in Triple-A to open 2025 if everything just stays peachy keen? Short list. Wouldn’t find many failures on that one, I’d guess.
Please, blog, may I have some more?1. Red Sox OF Roman Anthony (21, AAA)
Turned 21 on May 13th, so Happy Belated Birthday, Roman! I wonder how he celebrated. The city of Boston would’ve been happy to throw him a big party, but that can wait, apparently. Tough to argue with their outcomes across the outfield this season. Cedanne Rafaela (87) has a higher wRC+ than Jarren Duran (84) this season, in case anyone cares. Gonna hit this drum just one more time and then let it rest: Rafaela has provided 1.1 Wins Above Replacement according to Fangraphs, while Duran has posted a 0.3 WAR. What is good for? Absolutely nothing. Just sayin. Does anyone remember Jack Cust? How did Grey used to spell Cust kayin’? Just like that, I guess, as confirmed by a quick giggle search.
Please, blog, may I have some more?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.
Please, blog, may I have some more?