My Dearest Martha – and dearest reader,
I’ve been out sick this week, so my apologies for the delay on this piece, and I’m sorry that you had to watch another Alek Manoah start without at least being able to read about the promising young players on their way up.
Let’s not waste any time and get right to it.
All stats are accurate as of Thursday afternoon, May 25.
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Fantasy Baseball Prospect Report
Elly De La Cruz (SS – CIN)
We were excited earlier this week when De La Cruz was pulled from the Louisville Bats lineup, as we expected Elly to get the call to the big leagues.
Not so fast, as it was just a day off. But still, De La Cruz has been fantastic as one of the big Cincy hitting prospects, biding his time in the minors until he gets the call to the city of Skyline Chili.
The 21-year-old has a .282/.375/.590 slash line with seven homers and nine steals in 136 plate appearances this year, but he is striking out at a 27.9 percent clip. That’s going to be the biggest challenge for De La Cruz at the next level, but even if he can keep that to 25 percent, you’re looking at a player with sky-high potential.
Jordan Walker (3B – STL)
Now is the time to acquire Walker if you can, even if he initially struggled after being demoted. As pointed out by our Pitcher List friend Matt Heckman on Twitter, Walker is slashing .361/.410/.611 with two home runs in Triple-A Memphis.
It was a brutal start to the year, but he’s a top-five prospect for a reason. It’s a matter of time before he gets the call up to St. Louis, and will be an automatic must-add option for the upside alone.
Jake McCarthy (OF – ARI)
Fading McCarthy during the draft season was one of my better moves this year, but he seems to be hitting his way back to the big leagues in Triple-A.
Is there a chance that he’s just a Quad-A player? Yeah, there is, and I think it’s more likely than not that he is. But he’s slashing .369/.457/.596 in Triple-A with five homers and 11 steals since being demoted.
The speed alone would put him on the radar, and Arizona has been one of the better offenses of late, so I’d trust the counting stats if he can play regularly.
Opportunity is many times greater than skill. With McCarthy, this is one of those times.
Jackson Holliday (SS – BAL)
He’s 19 years old, and he’s arguably the best prospect in baseball. It might not be arguable for much longer, though.
The tools are loud. The results are loud. And he’s at a point now where he’s someone you can’t move in dynasty leagues unless it’s for a legit superstar.
Holliday, in High-A, mind you, is slashing .405/.524/.714 with a 20 BB% and 16.2K% and four home runs with eight steals.
He has the makings of being a five-category stud, and I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see him reach Double-A by July and the big leagues by next May.
Gavin Stone (SP – LAD)
So the results have been really, really bad for Stone, as the 10.13 ERA and 2.50 WHIP are hard to swallow in two games.
But he’s been incredibly unlucky (.462 BA against compared to .270 xBA against) on his fastball, but what he does have is a 28.2 Whiff%. I believe in the stuff, but he may just get one more turn to show what he can do, given the number of high-level pitching prospects the Dodgers have.
Bobby Miller (SP – LAD)
One of those pitching prospects is Miller, who looked good with his 100 mph stuff in his debut, allowing just one run in five innings, striking out five.
He didn’t have the Whiffs that you’d want to see (18.9 Whiff%) but featured all five of his offerings in his outing – throwing four pitches at least 11 times. The fastball was lively but was also hit to the tune of a .391 xBA.
He’s ahead of Stone in the pecking order and should remain in the rotation, given the number of injuries the Dodgers have.
Endy Rodriguez (C – PIT)
We’re just waiting at this point for Rodriguez to get the call. Hell, maybe even Henry Davis, too. While Austin Hedges (I should be Michael Hedges with the way I bet, but I digress) is good defensively, he brings nothing to the table offensively.
The Pirates are slumping after a hot start, and they could use some – any – production behind the backstop.
Endy only had 161 plate appearances above A-ball coming into the season, so I get taking it slow with him. But he’s holding his own against Triple-A pitchers (the average isn’t great, but the walk and strikeout rates are), and he’d be an immediate upgrade over Hedges.
He’d be a pickup in two-catcher leagues and NL-only leagues.
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Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.