Graduated from Stash List Volume 2: The First Strand: Matt Mervis, Brandon Pfaadt, Gavin Stone, Christopher Morel.
Just a refresher or if it’s your first season with us: Players like Jordan Walker and Taj Bradley are ineligible for the stash list because anyone who has already been promoted in-season is ineligible. Guys like Christophper Morel and Royce Lewis are a bit of a gray-area. Orioles SS Joey Ortiz sort of fell through the cracks of this one due to three days with Baltimore. I’d put him in the six spot here if eligible.
1. Reds SS Elly De La Cruz | 21 | AAA
Do you remember the pop group “fun.”?
I’m not sure how well the name describes their music, but it perfectly describes the experience of watching Elly De La Cruz play baseball.
2. Guardians RHP Gavin Williams | 23 | AAA
Best pitcher in the minors. Been sitting high nineties, popping 100 and commanding his off-speed stuff. Has a 1.13 ERA and 0.81 WHIP in three Triple-A starts across 16 innings. He’s simply too much for the level right now.
3. Orioles OF Colton Cowser | 23 | AAA
He’s getting the George Springer stall-tactic treatment for now, but that can’t last with Baltimore in the running and Cowser slashing .317/.456/.561 while carrying an almost one-to-one strikeout-to-walk rate across 33 games.
4. Reds 1B Christian Encarnacion-Strand | 23 | AAA
Falls from one to four between the last stash and this one. Didn’t do anything to earn the slide: just other guys playing better. Wouldn’t hurt CE-S to take a walk or two, but he’s got eight home runs in 16 games and should be in the majors. Here’s hoping this is his last time on the list.
5. Reds SS Matt McLain | 23 | AAA
Four of the top 15 stashed this week play for Cincinnati’s Triple-A affiliate in Louisville. The Reds are 17-21 as I type on Saturday morning. Sounds bad, maybe, but that’s just four games behind Milwaukee for the division crown. Maybe it’s not their year, but the organization simply can’t be planning to bury four players for another 100-something games, can it? McLain would be carrying your minor league fantasy team with his 12 home runs and ten steals in 36 games and triple slash of .346/.457/.714.
6. Rays 1B Kyle Manzardo | 22 | AAA
Will probably need an injury or invasion by planet Zardo to crack the major leagues any time soon, but Kyle is doing his part, posting a 128 wRC+ and 13.7-to-17.6 walk-to-strikeout rate.
7. Red Sox SS David Hamilton | 25 | AAA
At some point, a guy just has to accept the possibility that sometimes it doesn’t matter what a player does or how much his team could use him. David Hamilton has seven home runs and 20 steals in 31 games along with a 10.9-to-18.8 walk-to-strikeout rate and a slash line of .292/.372/.533. That’s a 155-game pace of 35 homers and 100 steals. But okay, sure, I guess Boston’s in no hurry to find out how much of that would play in Fenway. Today, they’re starting Pablo Reyes at second base.
8. Reds LHP Andrew Abbott | 23 | AAA
This one’s elementary, my dear Watson. Abbott has been throwing whiffs all year (and last year), and the Reds need arms. They went off script for Ben Lively this week, and he pitched well enough to earn another episode, but he’s here for more of a cameo than a multi-season arc. Abbott has 60 strikeouts in 30.1 innings spread evenly across two levels.
9. Yankees 3B Andres Chaparro | 24 | AAA
My thoughts here are mostly “C’mon man!” These front offices sometimes act like baseball isn’t a rhythm game. They’re all rhythm games. That’s what makes them games. Whether it’s shooting threes or throwing dice, the rhythm is the juice.
10. Orioles 2B Jordan Westburg | 24 | AAA
As with Cowser, Westburg’s timeline seems to be largely out of his hands. He’s hitting .304 with nine home runs and four stolen bases in 30 games.
11. Twins SS Royce Lewis | 23 | AA
Lewis has plenty of places to fold into the lineup if he can get healthy. He returned to the field Friday, got hit by a pitch and stole a base.
12. Mariners RHP Bryan Woo | 23 | AA
It’s easy to get excited about what’s going on with Bryan Woo, who has been winning others over with a string of dominant outings. Statlines don’t get much better than his 0.71 WHIP and 31.4 percent K-BB rate through 28 innings.
13. Mets SS Ronny Mauricio | 22 | AAA
Mauricio has made big gains this year, cutting his strikeout rate from 23.1 percent to 17.1 percent. He’s hitting .340 with six homers and seven steals in 37 games.
14. Phillies OF Simon Muzziotti | 24 | AAA
Hitting .491 with three home runs and four stolen bases over his last 14 games, bringing his season-long average to .391 with a 10.9 percent strikeout rate. Muzziotti’s on the 40-man roster after a cup of coffee last year, but the team doesn’t have room for him to play everyday at the moment.
15. Tigers 3B Justyn-Henry Malloy | 24 | AAA
Malloy has a .436 on base percentage and five home runs in 36 games this season. Should be getting that big phone call any day now. Is it still a call? Does anyone ever just get texted when they get promoted? And how many times is it a call until it’s a text? Like, if Vidal Brujan gets recalled again next month: phone call or text?
Thanks for reading!
