Prospect News: Colonel Kurtz Brings The FAAB Apocalypse

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. 

Brewers 3B Caleb Durbin too has a job lined up if he hits. Milwaukee cycled through all its third base options while Durbin found his rhythm in the minors. Durbin rewarded the team with a home run in his debut. I think he’d have to collapse to lose the gig considering the team is heavily invested in Durbin as the return for Devin Williams. 

Brewers RHP Craig Yoho is a major leaguer this week as well, taking the spot vacated by RHP Logan Henderson. Pretty clear that Henderson will be back soon after tossing six excellent innings in his debut, and maybe Yoho will find himself on the option yo-yo to extend Milwaukee’s bullpen depth, but he should be a ratio stabilizer with strikeouts early in his career. His long-term arc probably involves pitching in the ninth after the team trades Megill. After they trade Uribe at the latest. 

The Marlins recalled C Agustin Ramirez, and it’s easy to see him running away with this job. The primary return for Jazz Chisholm, Ramirez is hitting .833 with a 461 wRC+ through two major league games, which seems like a pretty good start. 

Angels 3B Carter Kieboom (27, AAA) might be earning a new lease on baseball life out west in a land of abundant opportunity. Through 14 games, he’s slashing .375/.407/.643 with four home runs and three stolen bases. Half of his kebooms have happened on the road, for what it’s Weurtz. I’ve added him in the Razz 30. No whammies! 

Giants 1B Bryce Eldridge (20, AA) made his season debut on the night he stood to inherit the mantle of best first base prospect in the minor leagues and christened the occasion with a home run. Might be time to stash him in my NL Only league. 

Dodgers RHP Sean Linan (20, A) is listed at 6’0” 185 lbs but looks much thicker than through the television, which, yeah, I realize that supposedly adds ten pounds, especially for a pitcher. Because you’re mostly looking at his . . . trunk . . . while he’s doing his job. Kind of weird. Anyway, Linan has quite the trunk. A 2022 signing out of Colombia, Linan has 29 strikeouts through 15.2 innings this season. Math isn’t always complicated. Anyone can see how that might work. Linan has a 1.15 ERA and 0.57 WHIP in the early going. Probably time to get him where you can fit him.  

Speaking of guys I’m adding everywhere I can, Mets 2B AJ Ewing (20, A) is off to a flashy start but might still be available in your leagues as he was in mine. His 14-game line of .400/.500/.596 with 12 walks and nine strikeouts suggests he’s ready for High-A. An athletic lefty bat listed at 5’11” 160 lbs, Ewing has just one home run so far but has plenty of twitch to add power as he ages. 

Thanks for reading!