MLB Call-Ups: One Call-Up Who Will Make a Difference for Each Contender

Sept.1st. The calendar turns and baseball fans begin to feel the encroachment of season’s end with renewed interest and apprehension.

As contenders summon top prospects and key specialists to the big league, fans will get to see the future meet the fierce urgency of now. Trust me, it’s a fantastic collision.

Want to see the best prospects in baseball?

Watch the Nationals.

Want to see the players who could star in the postseason this year?

Watch these guys.

Philadelphia Phillies: Justin DeFratus, RP

General manager Ruben Amaro Jr. has already said he won’t promote anyone from AAA Lehigh Valley until their season ends. Whenever that day comes—the Iron Pigs are currently making a playoff push—it’ll be open season

Former Brewers’ starting pitcher (and Philly area native) Dave Bush might get a look, along with former Pirate outfielder Brandon Moss. Top prospect turned semi-pro Domonic Brown will likely revisit Citizen’s Bank Park along with fellow familiar face Andrew Carpenter.

But the player flashing brightest on my radar is AAA reliever Justin DeFratus. In 40 innings with Lehigh Valley De Fratus has posted an absurd 5.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio with a healthy 12.4 SO/9 rate.

DeFratus has major league swing-and-miss stuff, and with Jose Contreras now officially out for the year he could challenge for a spot in the bullpen. A fading Michael Stutes—seven earned runs allowed in his last 8.1 innings—better take notice.

Atlanta Braves: Julio Teheran, SP

As usual, the Braves are one of the few contending teams with a truly elite prospect left in their arsenal. Last year they promoted Freddie Freeman in September, and this year they have the luxury of adding the game’s second-best pitching prospect to an already-stacked rotation.

Teheran, just 20 years old, has nothing left to prove in the minor leagues (2.22 ERA in 140 IPs). Next stop is Atlanta.

In a very brief big league audition earlier this year, Teheran struggled. But the sample size was small, and all signs indicate that this guy will be an elite starting pitcher in the major leagues sooner rather than later.

I’ve been waiting all year for Teheran or fellow prospect Mike Minor to permanently replace weak link Derek Lowe in the Braves rotation. With Tommy Hanson on the DL, Minor has already eased into the rotation and acquitted himself fairly well.

In September, Teheran will get a chance to make his case. If things go well, the Braves might get enough of that magic rookie vibe to keep the young hurler on the postseason staff.

Milwaukee Brewers: Taylor Green, 3B/2B

Offseason trades over the past five years have completely ravaged the Brewers farm system. Gone are Matt LaPorta, Michael Brantley, Brett Lawrie, Alcides Escobar and Lorenzo Cain, replaced with a whole lot of filler.

That flurry of activity left the win-now Brewers with one bullet left in their chamber, Taylor Green.

The left-handed hitting third basement has emerged from the murky depths of semi-prosecthood to absolutely mash the ball in AAA this year. To date he’s hit .336/.413/.583 with 22 HRs in Nashville.

Considering those eye-poppers it was no surprise that Milwaukee summoned him to Brewtown on August 27th, in time to ensure he’s eligible for the postseason roster.

With starter Casey McGehee still struggling to get on base and hit for power, Green fills an immediate need for a team focused on the immediate future. Don’t be surprised to see manager Ron Roenicke try to work Green into a platoon with McGehee before season’s end.

Arizona Diamondbacks: Paul Goldschmidt, 1B

One month of big league service makes you a grizzled veteran by this list’s standards. But you must forgive the Diamondbacks for their haste. When August came around and their impressive season took a turn for the magical, the Snakes almost had to go all-in.

With first base providing a constant source of consternation—Xavier Nady, Juan Miranda and top-prospect turned Oakland Athletic Brandon Allen all fell short—Arizona turned to the powerful Goldschmidt for support.

Though early results are mixed, Goldschmidt has already shown flashes of the player who hit 83 home runs in three short minor league seasons.

No doubt, power is Goldschmidt’s greatest asset. As Arizona pushes toward a division title, keep a close eye on the youngsters development.

San Francisco Giants: Brett Pill, INF/OF

Exasperation has turned to desperation for the defending champs over the last few weeks. As Arizona begins to separate in the NL West, the Giants have looked so moribund on offense that some folks were calling for the organization to promote Single-A lead-off man Gary Brown to the 40-man roster.

Instead, the Giants demoted veterans Miguel Tejada and Aaron Rowand and called-up AAA super-utility-man Brett Pill. Pill has played 1B, 2B, 3B and OF this year in Fresno, and most importantly to the Giants, he can hit.

Pill has raked to to the tune of .312/.341/.530 this year, and with the Giants in try-anything mode he should get plenty of ABs down the stretch. Remember, the Giants made up plenty of ground against San Diego last September and they still have the pitching personnel to go on a sustained run.

If Pill can lift the offense a bit, the Giants still have hope.

New York Yankees: Jesus Montero, C/DH

I’ve heard so much about Jesus Montero in the last year-and-a-half, I was beginning to confuse him for the other Jesus. Such is life as the biggest prospect on the world’s most famous baseball team.

Hype piled up hype has led to a month-long audition to see if the Yankees would even consider removing core-four stalwart Jorge Posada off of the postseason roster in favor of the Venezuelan youngster.

If Montero, a career.308 hitter in the minor leagues, plays well the rest of the way he might force the Bombers’ hand. With Andy Pettitte already gone, what would that leave us with?

The blue two?

Boston Red Sox: Jose Iglesias, SS

From Jesus to Iglesias (Churches), the speedy, sure-handed Red Sox prospect could play a big role in the Sox postseason run. Though he can’t hit for beans, the Red Sox need little help in that department.

Iglesias’ value lies in his ability to provide timely pinch-running (Dave Roberts, anyone?) and serve as a late-inning defensive replacement for the aging Marco Scutaro (-0.4 defensive WAR this year).

Iglesias isn’t a star, yet, but he’s ready to help a high-octane club tie up some of the loose ends.

Detroit Tigers: Jacob Turner, SP

The Tigers have been looking for somebody to pitch alongside Justin Verlander at the top of their rotation. At times, Max Scherzer has looked like that guy. At other times he’s looked lost. Not the encore to Verlander the Tigers had anticipated.

Enter Jacob Turner.

With rotation depth the team’s largest looming question mark, the Tigers re-promoted top pitching prospect Jacob Turner on September 1st  with hopes that he can shore-up a prevailing weakness. Turner has had a very nice year in the high minors (3.14 ERA and 3.14 K:BB ratio), numbers made all the more impressive by his age (20).

He won’t get a chance to drink the champagne, but I’m pretty sure he’s allowed to spray the stuff. The Tigers are hoping he gets a chance.

Also of note, reliever Luis Marte. The right-handed reliever dominated AA this year with a staggering 68 strikeouts in 53 innings pitched. Look for him to help a bullpen ERA that ranks 25th in baseball.

Cleveland Indians: Jerad Head, OF.

With Michael Brantley, Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore all ailing the Indians have turned to 28-year-old rookie Jerad Head in their attempt to stay afloat in the AL Central. As his age indicates, Head isn’t a top prospect and an unlikely long-term solution for the Tribe.

That said, he hit .284 with 24 HRs in AAA this year and has earned a shot at the big time.

Head doesn’t have a great SO:BB ratio, but his power alone makes him a potential missing piece in the Indians’ stretch run.

Having blown their prospect load in July with the dual promotions of Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall, Head may be the final hope in Cleveland’s dash to save their season.

Chicago White Sox: Dayan Viciedo, OF/DH

For the White Sox to entertain thoughts of catching the Tigers, they’ll need their an offensive revitalization. Viciedo and his .296/.364/.491 line in AAA this year give hope for just that.

The early results—and they are very early—drip with promise. Viciedo hit a HR in his season debut and has had a hit in each of his first four games. He’s a defensive question mark, but with Adam Dunn struggling to do much of anything, that won’t matter.

Expect Viciedo to get the nod over Dunn down the stretch, especially against left-handed starters. Provided Paul Knoerko stays healthy enough to play the field, you might even see Viciedo there full time.

Texas Rangers: Leonys Martin, OF.

With Nelson Cruz hobbling again, Martin will preview the club’s future while helping them in the present in their battle against the pesky Angels. The Cuban defector doesn’t even have a full minor league season under his belt, but in limited time has shown the ability to get on base (.362 OBP), run (19 SBs) and play stellar defense.

At this stage in his career he won't hit for much power, but he can handle the bat well enough to keep the Rangers’ offense moving forward. Recalling the way speedster Elvis Andrus gave the Yankees fits in last year’s ALCS gives Rangers fans hopes that Martin may provide a similar spark.

Expect Martin to pinch run and play late-inning defense at least until Cruz can return.

Los Angeles Angels: Mike Trout, OF.

Trout's not a new name, but his two-HR game against the Mariners on Tuesday reinforced the obvious. If the Angels are going to catch the Rangers, Mike Trout is the guy that’s going to get them there.

Perhaps the best prospect in all of baseball, Trout hit an unconscionable .326/.414/.544 as a 19-year-old in AA this year. The Angels called him up in early July during a midseason push but sent him down in early August after he struggled and Vernon Wells healed.

After a couple of weeks down on the farm, the Angels recalled the newly minted 20-year-old and have been giving him regular play in the corner outfield spots. With veterans Torii Hunter and Wells providing little by way of regular production, Trout should get regular at-bats as the Angels try to stay apace in their division.

Trout looks like a linebacker, runs like a wide-receiver, and hits home runs on balls thrown at his shoe-tops. I could go for a more under-the-radar pick here, but the man’s talents make any quibbling look downright perfunctory.

Trout has arrived, and the Angels will go as far as he takes them.