Top Fantasy Baseball Players to Stash Ahead of Sept. 1 Roster Expansion
Once September rolls around, MLB invites several minor leaguers to join the party. The final-month rosters expand to 40 players per club, creating opportunities for fantasy baseball owners to pillage the arriving talent.
Last week's installment listed Corey Seager, Jose Berrios, Hector Olivera, Javier Baez, Josh Bell and Marcus Stroman as players to stash before Sept. 1. These new picks are less flashy than the first batch, and they will only hold immediate value in deeper leagues. Mixed-league managers can relax and see what happens, but those in more challenging circles should seek a head start before the floodgates open.
Due to inconsistencies with including prospects, Yahoo Sports participants will have to wait for two of them to become available. However, other sites make it easier to stash minor leaguers, which is especially useful for keeper and dynasty contestants that are out of the playoff chase.
Take a look at these six youngsters pushing for a September call-up.
Rob Refsnyder, 2B, New York Yankees
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On July 12, Rob Refsnyder homered during his second career MLB game for the New York Yankees. A week later, the team sent him back to Triple-A.
“I wasn’t expecting this, but I had a great experience,” Refsnyder told the New York Post's Dan Martin after his demotion. “I got my feet wet. I saw what major league pitching, defense, what it was all about.”
Stephen Drew is hitting .196/.266/.378, and Brendan Ryan isn't exactly providing offense either. Meanwhile, the 24-year-old second baseman sports a .360 on-base percentage, nine home runs and 11 stolen bases in the minors.
Of course, defense matters for the Yankees, and Drew and Ryan are both far superior fielders. From a pure fantasy perspective, Refsnyder offers more appeal due to his better bat and plate discipline. Limited to 22 runs over their past eight games, the Bronx Bombers might come around to that line of thinking.
He's not relevant for a standard 10- or 12-team mixed league, but he holds deep value with a solid amount of power and speed and a tiny home park.
A.J. Reed, 1B, Houston Astros
2 of 6Few prospects have risen higher this year than A.J. Reed. A fringe talent entering 2015, the 22-year-old first baseman is batting .343/.436/.608 with 30 homers and 112 RBI.
He has generated those gaudy numbers in Single-A and Double-A, but Lance McCullers followed a similar path to the Houston Astros this year. Due to Chris Carter's disappointing campaign, the club's first basemen have amassed a .217/.297/.389 slash line and 28.4 strikeout percentage.
In their latest update, MLB.com moved Reed up to baseball's No. 2 first base prospect behind Josh Bell, who was highlighted as a stash candidate last week. If the 2014 second-round pick keeps raking, he could earn a September cup of coffee, but it's far from a guarantee given he's not on Houston's 40-man roster.
Either way, dynasty players should especially take notice. While most leagues feature farm systems, Reed wasn't on anyone's radar until this year, meaning he's likely available anyway. Even if he doesn't play this season, gamers should stash him now for future consideration.
Dalton Pompey, OF, Toronto Blue Jays
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Unlike the other unseen up-and-comers, drafters kept tabs on Dalton Pompey this spring. Breaking into the season as the Toronto Blue Jays' starting center fielder, the rookie speedster failed to meet the hype, getting demoted after 23 games.
Watching Toronto decimate opposing pitchers, anyone who snagged Pompey in March can only longingly dream of what could have been. Instead, he stepped aside for Kevin Pillar after hitting .193, and his replacement has swiped 16 bags while playing stellar defense.
He won't have a starting gig waiting, but the discarded 22-year-old has hit .285 with a .375 on-base percentage and 15 steals through 60 Triple-A games. While the Blue Jays acquired a more established burner in Ben Revere, he has poached one bag since the acquisition.
One bad month isn't enough to write off a once popular prospect. Pompey still boasts promising speed, but don't grab him hoping for anything more.
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Bradley Zimmer, OF, Cleveland Indians
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Kyle Schwarber, Michael Conforto and Trea Turner have already graduated to the majors from last year's draft class, and Bradley Zimmer looks to join a promising crop of young position players to close the season.
Selected with the 21st pick in 2014, the 22-year-old outfielder has tallied 16 homers and 41 steals during his first full professional season. While he achieved most of his success in Single-A, he's making progress at the next level, hitting .288 this month after a slow Double-A start.
Pegged with a 2017 estimated time of arrival by MLB.com, the Cleveland Indians would radically expedite that projection by awarding him a September showing. While he'll likely have to wait at least another year, the club's barren depth chart makes him worth monitoring.
After Cleveland surprisingly found a taker for Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher, Michael Brantley is lonely in the outfield. Even though Zimmer can use more seasoning, the Indians have little to lose by playing him over Abraham Almonte with five teams above them for the American League's final wild-card spot.
Blake Snell, P, Tampa Bay Rays
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Blake Snell is having some kind of year, registering a 1.31 ERA and 151 strikeouts through 124 innings. The Tampa Bay Rays righty didn't relinquish a run until May 23, starting his breakout season with 46 scoreless innings.
He hasn't slowed down in Triple-A, allowing zero or one run in all seven starts. Rated Tampa Bay's No. 9 prospect by Baseball America's Bill Ballew last November, the 22-year-old jumped to No. 41 in the site's revised midseason rankings.
"It's going good," Snell told MiLB.com's Sam Dykstra earlier this month. "I'm getting my confidence to the point where I feel like I can perform at any level. I'm starting to believe no one can hurt me if I pitch like I should, and that's been a big help."
Good enough for the Rays to continue his rapid ascension? While Tampa Bay is more likely to give Matt Moore another stab at starting, Snell should at least get a chance to shine in the bullpen. Believe it or not, the 62-64 Rays are just three games behind the Minnesota Twins for a wild-card spot. They can't afford to keep such a powerful weapon holstered.
That gives keeper and dynasty players a chance to stash and scout him for 2016 and beyond. He can also make a major impact in redraft leagues that count holds. Even in five-by-five formats, it helps to roster one or two dominant middle relievers, and Snell carries that kind of upside as a future high-level starter.
Robert Stephenson, P, Cincinnati Reds
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Of all these prospects, Robert Stephenson is the most likely to receive a significant opportunity. While Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price wouldn't reveal a decision to the Cincinnati Enquirer's C. Trent Rosecrans, he at least acknowledged discussions of bringing their top pitching prospect into the fold.
"Those are conversations I'll have with (general manager) Walt (Jocketty) when we finalize the roster of guys that are coming up," Price said. "I just don't have the ability or the right to tell you guys who would be coming up because we haven't had that final conversation. There's a chance he could be a part of that September conversation."
This is usually when teams plan to conserve young pitchers, but Price actually wants to stretch Stephenson out. The 22-year-old righty, who returned from a two-week absence on Thursday, has tossed 120.1 innings this season. Cincinnati's manager wants him to exceed last year's 136.1 frames, which would require a September stint in the big leagues with his Triple-A season ending on Sept. 7.
"He needs to get those innings up to where we can say he can safely throw 185-190 innings next year and that should safely cover a six-month season," Price added.
After dealing Johnny Cueto and Mike Leake, the Reds have received poor production from David Holmberg, Keyvius Sampson and John Lamb. A more integral piece of their future plans, Stephenson has recorded 131 strikeouts through 120.1 innings this year. He has also issued an alarmingly high 63 walks, but he can't pitch much worse than the youngsters currently occupying the rotation.
Stats courtesy of MiLB.com and are accurate through games played on Aug. 26.
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