Prospect News: Dynasty Breakthrough Team, Early 2023 Edition

The guidelines that built this team are pretty fluid, but in a general sense, a player must have significantly enhanced his dynasty profile to qualify. 

Catcher

Orioles C Samuel Basallo has slowed down some since a steamy start but is still slashing .299/.340/.489 with four home runs and two steals as an 18-year-old in Low-A. He looks solid behind the plate, too, especially for a 6’3” teenager. 

Honorable Mentions: Dodgers C Thayron Liranzo. One way to identify a player like this is the ratio of relevance to league-size is changing in a hurry on the fly. Though I’ve added him elsewhere, I’ve mostly ignored Liranzo in my 15-teamer with 20 milb spots per team. This week, I saw his name in some tweets. On May 21, he hit his 10th and 11th home runs on the season. He’s slashing .310/.444/.690 in the month of May with 14 walks and 18 strikeouts in 16 games. Still just a catching prospect in Low-A, but he’ll be off the board in most leagues before long. 

First Base 

I struggled a little with this spot. It’s just not as obvious as some others, which is pretty common for the last stop on the defensive spectrum. 

Shortly before publication time, I settled on Mets 1B Mark Vientos, who may not wind up playing much first base given the polar bear over there but has quickly found his way to the middle of that lineup. 

HM: Mariners 1B Tyler Locklear is creeping toward the back of a Top 100 near you in the wake of a solid all-around season in High-A as a 22-year-old with ten home runs, five steals, solid plate skills and a triple slash line of .302/.401/.577. Might also have some subconscious name value for the 80’s and 90’s kids. 

Second Base

I decided to cheat a little here so I could fit Reds 2B Matt McLain into the article. He’s been playing shortstop for Cincinnati but covered the keystone a lot while sharing the field with baseball’s best prospect.

HM: Mariners 2B Jose Caballero: Hard to argue against a guy who comes from the wilderness to claim a starting gig and then produce usable rotisserie stats. Second base isn’t a position overflowing with impact fantasy prospects. Could make a case for Taylor Walls. 

Shortstop 

I don’t know what more to say about Reds SS Elly De La Cruz. He reminds me a bit of Usain Bolt in the sense that he could run backwards faster than everyone else runs forward. Just a couple tiers beyond what we can realistically expect from even peak human physiology. 

HM: Twins SS Royce Lewis and Red Sox SS David Hamilton. I’m not sure either guy here has really been climbing lists, but I have my popcorn ready. Hamilton hit another two home runs Tuesday and now has 11 homers and 23 steals in 40 games. Can do some napkin math there and see the skeleton of a 44 HR, 92 SB season. The team’s starting shortstop Enrique Hernandez is producing a 74 wRC+ after posting a 75 last year. 

Third Base 

Rays 3B Junior Caminero: I think we can just clear out and let Caminero have this to himself. I suspect he’s moved the needle more than any minor league player these first couple months thanks to 11 home runs in 33 High-A games as a 19 year old. His swing also packs an aesthetic punch you can almost feel through the screen, reminiscent of Ronald Acuña and Jackson Chourio. 

Outfield 

Mariners OF Jonathan Clase turned 21 on May 23. He’s struggled with strikeout issues but has 29 steals and 11 home runs in 38 games across High-A and Double-A. As much as I like him, he’s a sell for me if someone is feeling aggressive about his chances. He’s the kind of guy a lot of builders might be targeting this time of year. 

Rockies OF Yanquiel Fernandez has passed Zac Veen for me in the Rockies org rankings. We simply don’t get any fantasy points for guys looking good in batting practice, and Fernandez is the hottest hitter in High-A as a 20-year-old, slugging a Morel-ian .935 over his past 14 games. 

21-year-old Giants OF Luis Matos tumbled a long way down the spreadsheets before finding his way again in 2023 and now he’s slugging .593 with a 3.6 percent strikeout rate through six Triple-A games. 

Athletics OF Esteury Ruiz is hitting .284 with a 109 wRC+ and 25 stolen bases through 50 games, yet he graduates prospect status still feeling a little underrated to me.   

Angels OF Mickey Moniak graduated as a “prospect” last year but is fast becoming a universally rostered fantasy player. I like his story partly because he credits journaling with turning his career around. During some teacher meeting stuff this week, I had to read an article from Harvard Business Review about how self-reflection is bad, actually, because it gets in the way of actions that make money. The author’s name was “Eurich.” You. Rich. Can’t make this stuff up folks. 

HM: You’ll need some patience to wait around for Brewers OF Luis Lara to help you in the standings. Or you could flip him. I’ve already seen him traded in the Razz30, so if you’ve got some extremely online people in your leagues, this kid might already have some currency. He’s got twice as many walks as strikeouts as an 18-year-old in Low-A. That along with his seven steals in 19 games is going to send him soaring up the stats-only lists month over month. 

Starting Pitcher

Guardians RHP Gavin Williams, baseball’s best minor league pitcher, is through five Triple-A starts with a 0.97 WHIP and 26.5 percent strikeout-minus-walk rate. 

Mariners RHP Bryce Miller probably deserves better than an honorable mention, and if I’m doing five outfielders with an honorable mention, shouldn‘t I do six or seven starting pitchers and three relievers? I guess I could. That’s not I’d been mapping out though. Didn’t even occur to me until now. One starter and one reliever, went the thinking, and now time has run short on me. Maybe I’ll just put a bunch in the honorable mentions section. Let me know if you’re thinking of a starter that should go here. Or anyone who has a good case for this list at any spot. 

HM: Reds LHP Andrew Abbott, Athletics RHP Mason Miller, Cubs LHP Jordan Wicks, Blue Jays RHP Adam Kloffenstein, Rays LHP Jacob Lopez, Dodgers RHP Kyle Hurt, Giants LHP Carson Whisenhunt, Padres RHP Jairo Iriarte. Feels like this could go on forever, which sort of artificially deflates the value of each breakout pitcher until they’re actually succeeding in the majors, so guys like Spencer Strider or Bryce Miller are fairly easy to acquire until he’s suddenly not. 

Relief Pitcher

Probably the easiest call on the board. No need for second place. If you were lucky enough to land Orioles RHP Yennier Cano, you know. Might be the purest joy in our game: a free relief pickup who can do no wrong. 

Thanks for reading!