Impact Fantasy Baseball Prospects Yet to Debut: James Wood, Shane Baz, Noelvi Marte - Waiting in the Wings

It's Week 13 of the MLB season and while we have seen a large number of rookies called up this season already, there are still some big names who have yet to make their 2o24 MLB debuts.

We love covering prospects here at RotoBaller, and in this piece, I wanted to highlight three fantasy baseball prospects who could make sizable impacts for their teams (and your fantasy teams) as soon as they finally get to the big leagues this summer.

These are players who have such massive potential that they should be rostered in all but the shallowest of leagues. I included the availability of each player in Yahoo leagues with each breakdown. Let's take a look at some of the hottest names in the minor leagues!

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James Wood - OF, Washington Nationals

Current Level: Triple-A Rochester
Availability: 23% rostered
2024 stats:45 G, .355/.465/.596, Nine HRs, 31 RBI, 39 R, 10 SB

James Wood has not played any baseball games in nearly a month due to a hamstring injury, so you would think the buzz around the five-tool outfielder may have died down during that time, right?

Wrong! Wood is such an impressive physical specimen (6-foot-7, 234 pounds) and has posted some incredible numbers this season on a per-game basis that everyone is still drooling for the opportunity to see him at the major league level.

James Wood is expected to start playing in games early this week, per source.

Wood has been out since May 23 with right hamstring tightness. Was hitting .355 with a 1.061 OPS before his injury.

— Andrew Golden (@andrewcgolden) June 17, 2024

The good news is that he's expected to return to the Rochester lineup this week, which is the first step toward him getting the call to the next level. There's really not much more for him to prove in terms of what he can do, but Washington may want to see him stay healthy for a week or two before finally making the call.

But the bottom line is that there's a very high likelihood we see the 21-year-old make his MLB debut in the coming month. The combination of speed and power that Wood brings to the table is unique and unlike any other prospect in baseball right now.

His power has been compared to Adam Dunn's but with the speed of someone like Oneil Cruz. Unlike Cruz, however, Wood has shown some solid patience at the plate this season, drawing 35 walks compared to 37 strikeouts.

Shane Baz - SP, Tampa Bay Rays

Current Level: Triple-A Durham
Availability: 56% rostered
2024 stats: Eight GS, 2-3, 31.1 IP, 4.60 ERA, 4.39 FIP, 22.3% K%, 12.9% BB%, 30.2% GB%, .318 BABIP

Shane Baz's return has been a long time in the making. Unlike Wood, Baz does have some MLB experience as he made brief appearances for Tampa Bay during the 2021 and 2022 campaigns. However, he suffered an elbow injury in 2022 that resulted in Tommy John surgery and he missed the entire 2023 season.

Baz, a former Pirates farm hand, came over to Tampa Bay in the Chris Archer trade that also saw the Pirates surrender Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow (and it still haunts me to this day).

It's been a long road back, and Baz has had some rocky results at times in his minor league rehab starts. But the 25-year-old right-hander still has major potential and has seen his velocity return completely as he's been throwing his fastball in the high 90s once again.

Clap it up for another strong outing from Shane Baz

His final line tonight:
6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 SO pic.twitter.com/gmsczu0ce8

— Durham Bulls (@DurhamBulls) June 15, 2024

The former first-round pick is considered to have one of the highest ceilings of any minor league pitcher and showcased some plus strikeout stuff during his first 40 innings in the major leagues. His last two starts for Durham have been outstanding as he's whiffed 18 hitters in 11 innings while allowing just seven hits, three walks, and two earned runs.

Baz seems very ready for major league competition and could be activated as soon as his next turn in the rotation, so he's absolutely a must-stash player as his 2024 promotion is imminent.

Noelvi Marte - SS/3B, Cincinnati Reds

Level: Triple-A Louisville
Availability: 25% rostered
2024 stats: Five G, .182/.182/.227, Zero HRs, Zero RBI, Two R, Zero SB
2023 MLB stats: 35 G, .316/.366/.456, Three HRs, 15 RBI, 15 R, Six SB

Like Baz, Marte already has limited MLB experience as he appeared in 35 games for the Reds last season. What makes his situation very different from the other two players is that Marte was suspended for the first 80 games of the season for using an illegal substance.

Marte was set to start the season in the starting lineup for Cincy, likely at third base, before the suspension. And injuries to Matt McLain and Christian Encarnacion-Strand have left the Reds thin as far as depth goes in the infield.

If Marte can play third base, then Jeimer Candelario can shift over to first base and either Candelario or Spencer Steer can move to DH. Marte's glove is an upgrade for the defense, but it will remain to be seen if he can perform as well at the plate as he did in a small sample last season.

Noelvi Marte juuuuuuuuuuuust missed hitting a home run TWICE this afternoon.#RedsMiLB pic.twitter.com/AMoINqsL2I

— Chatterbox Sports (@CBoxSports) June 16, 2024

While Marte has struggled at the plate through his first five games at Triple-A, it might just be a matter of knocking off the rust. He had strong numbers all through the minor leagues and still has another week to get acclimated.

Marte's suspension is set to end on June 27. At that point, the Reds can activate him and promote him to the major leagues. Each day that his promotion comes closer, his rostership will rise, so the wise move would be to snag him now (in all formats) while you still can!

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