Seeing prospects make it to the big leagues is always fun when those players give the team a spark. Matt McLain was called up on May 15, and when the Reds lost a 9-8 slugfest in Colorado, Cincinnati sat at 18-23.
McLain’s solid debut paved the way for an electric coming-out party for Elly De La Cruz, whose performance lit the fuse on a hot streak that has the Reds sitting at 52-46 and in the National League Wild Card hunt as of this writing. Yes, the Reds’ success can very much be attributed to the influx of young offensive talent that has been slamming balls off of and over the walls and running the bases with youthful exuberance. Enter Christian Encarnacion-Strand, whose name stretches from hip to hip across the backside on his jersey. The rookie slammed a home run in his second big-league game, so time for another booster rocket for the Reds’ soaring ship.
Savvy fantasy players have grabbed up these players, and there may be more coming in the weeks ahead. Especially keep an eye out for teams who are selling off players via trade at the deadline because that often leads to young players gaining at-bats and innings pitched in the latter part of the season. Those players could either mean points in the standings late in the season or become fliers in keeper leagues for the 2024 season. Never too early to think of next year.
Here is a set of Deep Sleepers, including one player who made his debut the same day as Encarnacion-Strand. All are rostered in less than 30% of fantasy leagues.
Fantasy Baseball Deep Sleepers & Waiver Wire Pickups
Chas McCormick (OF – HOU): Rostered 25%
Since June 29, McCormick is hitting .392 with a 1.230 OPS in 14 games. He has five home runs and 14 RBI in that hot stretch to boost up an Astros lineup that has been missing Yordan Alvarez and Jose Altuve. The Astros start a home series in Oakland tonight, so McCormick is a good bet to stay hot.
Endy Rodriguez (C – PIT): Rostered 4%
Rodriguez dominated at three levels of the minors in 2022, hitting a combined .323 with a .997 OPS on the season. He smacked 25 home runs and drove in 95. Rodriguez had a more pedestrian .268 with six homers in 67 Triple-A games this year, but anyone with catcher eligibility coming up from the minors could be an upgrade over players in two-catcher leagues.
Alex Kiriloff (1B/OF – MIN): Rostered 6%
Kiriloff came out of the Midsummer break and, on July 16, started a four-game run where he went 8-for-17 with three home runs, five runs, and nine RBI. The Twins start a home series against the White Sox, who have a team ERA of 4.63 with a composite 1.370 WHIP as a staff. Kiriloff could continue to feast this weekend.
MacKenzie Gore (SP – WAS); Rostered 26%
Gore’s prized left arm received a bit of a break by throwing just five total innings between June 25 and July 17. This is consistent with teams often giving young pitchers a bit of a break midway through the season. Gore’s 114 strikeouts in 96 innings show his power stuff that can dominate at times, though the 41 walks show he’s still improving his command. He’s lined up for a home start on July 23 against the Giants, who are slugging just .388 against lefties this season.
Logan Allen (SP – CLE): Rostered 17%
Allen came out of a three-week demotion to the minors with five shutout innings against the Pirates in a 10-1 victory for the Guardians. He struck out eight and allowed a single hit. That’s a good return for a pitcher who could not get to the fifth inning in either of his previous three starts before being sent down. Up next, it looks like he’s lined up to pitch at home against the Royals on July 24. He could be a streaming option who turns into a keeper, as long as he doesn’t have an innings cap late in the season.
Kevin Ginkel (RP – ARI): 2% Rostered
Get ready to see this reliever’s rostership percentage jump up pretty quickly. Ginkel earned saves in games July 18-19, though he did allow a run in the latter game. The Diamondbacks have five pitchers who have earned saves for them this season, but none more than eight. Grab Ginkel now to ride the wave for a team that’s in second place and going to continue winning.
Kyle Finnegan (RP – WAS): 24% Rostered
With Hunter Harvey going on the IL, Finnegan has received save opportunities in his first two games coming out of the All-Star break. He converted one, and the other was a blown save that turned into a win. Finnegan has 40 strikeouts in 40.2 innings and almost a 3-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, so he’s no slouch. Warning: With the trade deadline approaching, Finnegan’s name has been whispered to be potentially on the move. That usually means closers going into setup roles.
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