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Welcome to the latest edition of RotoBaller’s Recently Promoted Prospects series for fantasy baseball! Here I discuss some recently promoted MLB prospects and rookies , making note of what I think their upside could be for fantasy baseball managers, and whether they are potential risers or fallers.
We have seen 139 rookies make their MLB debut in 2021. This week saw debuts of a couple big name prospects, as well as a couple of unheralded players that could make some noise. I will use video looks, scouting reports, analytics, and RotoBaller’s premium projections to predict what each recently called-up player could do if given a continued opportunity in 2021.
Here are your recently promoted prospects for Week 13 of the fantasy baseball season.
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Wander Franco, Tampa Bay Rays
85% Rostered on Yahoo
Situation: The Super Two deadline has safely passed, so the Tampa Bay Rays have called up wunderkind Wander Franco to make his long-anticipated MLB debut. Franco is the first player born in the year 2001 to appear in an MLB game.
Skill: Wander Franco gave us all a glimpse of his fantastic upside in his debut game, going 2-for-4 with a double, home run, and three driven in. He also showed off his excellent batting eye and pitch recognition, working back from an 0-2 count to draw a walk in a manner usually reserved for grizzled veterans. He's a true switch-hitter with a swing that can do damage from both sides of the dish. He has a contact-oriented approach but can also drive the ball for power. He accomplishes this with excellent barrel control, bat speed, and forearm and wrist strength. While not a burner, he's fast enough (79th percentile sprint speed) to chip in stolen bases as well. Defensively, he has the range and arm strength to be at least an average MLB level defender at 2B, 3B, and SS.
Projection: I think Wander will be a very good, but not elite, fantasy baseball asset for years to come. If we played fantasy baseball according to wRC+ or fWAR, then he projects to be one of the game's most valuable real-life assets. But fantasy baseball is weird, and values things in a different way from real life. While Wander could be a $20+ performer the rest of the way this season, I don't foresee him hitting enough home runs or stealing enough bases to jump into the elite tier of Mike Trout, Fernando Tatis Jr, Mookie Betts, and Ronald Acuna Jr. That being said, if you're in the 15% of leagues where Franco isn't owned yet, please rectify that with a hefty FAAB bid this weekend.
Connor Wong, Boston Red Sox
0% Rostered on Yahoo
Situation: With Catcher Kevin Plawecki headed to the IL this week, the Red Sox turned to young catching prospect Connor Wong for some temporary depth. Wong was part of the Red Sox haul in the deal that sent Mookie Betts to the Dodgers.
Skill: Wong is a versatile defender who has handled catcher, second base, and third base throughout his minor league career. This alone makes him a valuable 40-man roster member for a big league org. Outside of his versatility, Wong has also swung a solid bat throughout his minor league career, consistently posting double-digit estimated barrel rates:
| Connor Wong | |||
| Year | Level | xwOBA | Barrel% |
| 2017 | R | 0.010 | 0.0% |
| 2017 | A | 0.329 | 11.1% |
| 2018 | A+ | 0.328 | 11.9% |
| 2019 | A+ | 0.323 | 11.9% |
| 2019 | AA | 0.338 | 13.6% |
| 2021 | AAA | 0.267 | 6.9% |
Projection: It's doubtful that Wong stays on the MLB roster very long at this moment. But in the event he is able to obtain regular playing time at the big league level, he's got the pop to hit double-digit home runs over the remainder of the season. I don't think he's a guy you need to rush out and add in any format right now. But monitor the situation, especially if your squad is in need of power.
Lars Nootbaar, St. Louis Cardinals
1% Rostered on Yahoo
Situation: In need of some left-handed hitting depth, the Cardinals turned to a young outfielder with a name that's reminiscent of a knock-off Snickers bar sold at Aldi. Lars Nootbaar had been pummeling Triple-A pitching prior to his MLB debut, earning him a spot on my first Outsider hitters list of the 2021 season.
Skill: Lars Nootbaar has a sweet left-handed swing that's geared for line-drive contact. Throughout his minor league career, he's shown an excellent appreciation of the strike zone, frequently running BB:K ratios around the 0.75 range. His approach means he should be a valuable asset in OBP leagues. He has enough raw power to combine with his hit tool in games to hit around 20 home runs over the course of a full season. He's not going to chip in anything other than the occasional stolen base, however, limiting his ultimate fantasy upside.
Projection: I'm a little more optimistic on Nootbaar than the publicly available projection systems. Something along the lines of a 260/350/425 slash line with 5-10 home runs isn't out of the question for him over the remainder of the season. He's unlikely to be relevant outside of very deep formats, however.
Tylor Megill, New York Mets
0% Rostered on Yahoo
Situation: The Mets nearly have a Big League rotation on the IL at the moment, with Carlos Carrasco, Noah Syndergaard, Joey Lucchesi, and Jordan Yamamoto all unable to pitch at the moment due to varied degrees of injuredness. So, the team turned to 25-year-old breakout prospect Tylor Megill to stem the tide.
Skill: Megill has been fantastic in eight starts between Double-A and Triple-A so far this season. He worked his way onto my early Outsiders pitching prospects lists, and I thought we could see his MLB debut some time this season. Megill is a big (6'7") right hander that primarily throws a four-seam fastball that sits around 94 mph. He prefers working the fastball in the lower half of the zone, and is capable of working it to his glove-side (inside to left-handers). Megill also throws a changeup and slider, and a cutter that has a shape that kind of bleeds into the slider. It's an overall profile that screams "innings-eater".
Projection: Megill is likely an up-and-down arm for the Mets for the remainder of this season, with the potential to work his way into starting rotation consideration next spring. In the event the Mets experience another pitching injury (entirely possible as, well, it's the Mets!), Megill is likely the next man up. He's worthy of a streaming spot in a good matchup even in 12-team leagues.
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