The smart move when drafting is to not draft already injured players.
The players you draft will likely get hurt, so why would you take someone who is already hurt? We’re seeing that happen his year, as we are having new injuries left and right.
For our weekly prospect report, we’ll focus primarily on those who just got the call.
Fantasy Baseball Week 3 Prospect Report
All stats are accurate as of Tuesday evening on April 18.
Zach Neto (SS – LAA)
While there are a lot of surprises on this list, the biggest surprise was Neto, who was the Angels’ first-round pick in 2022. Yeah, that’s quite the advancement. What’s more, the Angels wasted no time by having Neto lead off for them. He started off his career 0-for-8 before recording his first hit against Boston. While I’m hesitant to buy into the Angles properly developing or handling Neto this soon, he offers a good floor profile for fantasy.
Mason Miller (SP – OAK)
Miller has 28.2 innings under his belt as a professional. No, not in the big leagues, but at all levels. It doesn’t matter, as Oakland is seemingly trying to get people to attend their ballpark (don’t blame the fans, please) and have people tune in every fifth day. There’s reliever risk here with Miller, but as Lance Brozdowski puts it, he’s the closest thing to the “next Spencer Strider” as there may be.
Everybody wants the next Spencer Strider.
There probably isn’t one this year. BUT if anybody has a shot, it’s #Athletics Mason Miller.
4S: 100.0 mph, 16.5″ ride, 6″ arm-side, 144 Stuff+
CT: 95.7 mph, 7″ lift, 3″ cut/sweep, 116 Stuff+
SL: 86.5 mph, -3″ drop, 9″ sweep, 120 Stuff+– Lance Brozdowski (@LanceBroz) April 16, 2023
The stuff plays up and the cutter is absolutely filthy. He’s going to be exciting to watch.
Jordan Diaz (OF – OAK)
Oakland isn’t just content with calling up Miller, as they are calling up Diaz, too. Diaz, who had a cup of coffee in the bigs last year, is slashing .273/.319/.455 with a home run and a 16.7 K%. He’s not mixed-league eligible yet, but he’s an interesting player in 15-teamers and AL-only leagues.
Taj Bradley (SP – TB)
We thought it may be a one-and-done situation for Bradley last week, as he was called up to fill in for Zach Eflin. Well, with Jeffrey Springs out for the season needing Tommy John surgery, Bradley looks like he’s here to stay.
Bradley had 13 Whiffs Tuesday night, putting together a 32 CSW in Cincinnati. Those who risked it on him last week are reaping the benefits.
Brett Baty (3B – NYM)
Finally, Baty got the call. I’m going to assume that I willed this with my piece last week, but what’s going to be frustrating is if the Mets sit him every other day. He’s a must-grab in 12-team leagues in hopes that he plays every single day – like he should.
Matt Mervis (1B – CHC)
If we willed Baty to the big leagues last week, maybe we can do something similar with Mervis this week. Don’t forget that Mervis was the offseason darling this last year, but the signings of Eric Hosmer and Trey Mancini threw cold water on his hype. He’s demolishing the minors and Mancini and Hosmer are doing the opposite for the Cubs. It’s just a matter of time.
Oswald Peraza (SS – NYY)
Giancarlo Stanton will miss the next 6-8 weeks for the Yankees, and with the move, the Yankees called up Oswald Peraza, another one of their top shortstop prospects. Peraza is posting a similar line in Triple-A this season as he did in the big leagues last year, but we’ll have to see where the Yankees work him into their lineup. He’s on the watch list for now.
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Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.
