Fantasy Baseball - Prospects to stash now!
Yahoo Fantasy analyst Andy Behrens offers a trio of hitters working their way towards Major League Baseball that may help fantasy managers later in the season.
Video Transcript
ANDY BEHRENS: Hey, it's Andy Behrens with Yahoo Sports. And today, we're going to talk about three MLB prospects that you can stash for later use in fantasy baseball. Perhaps you're upset at having missed out on Elly de la Cruz, but here's the great thing about Major League prospects-- they just keep coming up. There's always a fresh one to get excited about.
And today, we got three guys, minor league batters, who can still have a pretty significant fantasy impact this season. Let's start with the Reds. What if we told you that there is yet another Reds prospect, somebody in the organization who's actually out hitting Elly de la Cruz right now? Christian Encarnacion-Strand is currently batting .345 at triple-A, OK?
He's got 17 homers. He's got an OPS near 1.100. This guy hit 32 bombs last season in the minors while batting over .300, lives on base. He is one of the best bat ball hitters that we've seen since Vlad Guerrero, Sr. He's all kinds of fun.
And he is just about as MLB ready as any hitter in the minors right now. Obviously, the Reds have got-- Votto is back, and Spencer Steer, and Elly. And so the corners are full and DH seems full. So finding a spot is suddenly going to be a little complicated.
But, listen, when CES arrives, he is going to be an absolute must start, a heart of the order type hitter in a great lineup. Elsewhere, Orioles prospect Colton Cowser, he's just a little bit too good for the International League right now. He needs a new challenge. He's hitting over .340. The OBP is currently over .470-- getting on base at a 47% clip in triple-A.
He has a 20-20 profile. He's got great power and speed. He's walked nearly as often as he struck out this season. He lives on base. The O's are, obviously, a talent rich team. They are about to get richer when they call up Cowser.
Finally, Milwaukee prospect Sal Frelick. Just returned to triple-A Nashville. He'd been recovering from a thumb injury. He has been scorching hot since coming back. All he did in the minors last season was hit .331, an OBP over .400, 24 steals, 45 extra base hits. We would have seen him with the Brewers, I think, by now if not for the injury. When he arrives, he is going to be a really nice speed and batting average addition to your fantasy lineup.
