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Welcome back to our top starting pitcher fantasy baseball prospects to stash for Week 18 of the 2024 MLB season. Today, we'll be taking a look at top MLB pitching prospects, including Zebby Matthews, Max Meyer, and Jackson Jobe.
Several of the sport's top pitching prospects who have been a recurring member of this column, such as Yilber Diaz, Christian Scott, and Drew Thorpe, have settled in the majors and are no longer "stash" options.
As the baseball season progresses, top prospects can have the opportunity to replace an injured player and immediately become valuable in fantasy. Below are five pitching prospects worth stashing in redraft leagues in Week 18. One of these players recently made their major league debut, and a few are nearing the call to the big leagues.
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Top Fantasy Baseball Prospect Stashes
Max Meyer - Miami Marlins (Currently At Triple-A, 30% rostered)
Something very interesting happened with our column's recurring name this week. On July 20, the right-hander pitched only three innings, compared to around five in each start over the past month. Even though he recorded only 10 outs at this start, he still struck out several batters and allowed only one run.
This is worth noting, as the Marlins would gain an extra year of control of their top pitching prospect if they waited until July 21 to promote him. Seeing that he was clearly on a strict innings limit on July 20 suggests his promotion could be any day now.
Max Meyer over his last 5 starts:
24 IP
1.88 ERA
13.9 K-BB%Wasting ammo in AAA…🤦🏻♂️
pic.twitter.com/ai2f2FzmdZ— Andrew DeCeglie (@Andrew_FBB) July 17, 2024
Meyer has held a microscopic 0.95 ERA and strong 1.26 WHIP across his four starts at Triple-A and has struck out 23 batters in 19 innings. Even though he may have an innings limit in the majors similar to what Christian Scott has now, his upside clearly puts him at the top among all prospect pitchers.
River Ryan - Los Angeles Dodgers (Currently In The Majors, 10% rostered)
The 25-year-old made his major league debut on Monday, July 22, and tossed 5 ⅓ innings of one-run ball (zero earned runs). He allowed just four hits and three walks and struck out two.
River Ryan, 97mph Paint. 🖌️🎨
1st MLB K pic.twitter.com/Lpar8HocQj
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 23, 2024
This season at Triple-A, the right-hander performed well, holding a solid 2.76 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and a 6:19 BB:K ratio across 16 ⅓ frames. Last summer at Double-A, Ryan posted a 3.33 ERA and 1.25 WHIP in 97 innings of work.
Even though the Dodgers will welcome back Clayton Kershaw (shoulder) and Tyler Glasnow (back) from injury this week, Ryan could still carve out a full-time role in the rotation. With the recent news of James Paxton being DFA’d, Ryan has a strong opportunity to remain in the big leagues for the rest of the season.
Still, Ryan could stay in the rotation, even serving as the sixth man, especially if the Dodgers want to be careful and not overwork their two front-of-the-line starters due to their lengthy injury history.
Zebby Matthews - Minnesota Twins (Currently At Triple-A, 1% rostered)
The Minnesota right-hander made his Triple-A debut on Sunday, July 21, and performed quite well. He tossed five innings of two-run ball, allowing just four hits, no walks, and six strikeouts.
Matthews began the campaign at High-A and needed only 22 innings to prove he was ready for the next level. At Double-A, Matthews held a 1.95 ERA, 0.76 WHIP, and a 6:63 BB:K ratio across 55 frames and a similar 1.59 ERA and 0.75 WHIP across 22 innings at High-A.
Matthews is known for his incredible control, which was prevalent in his first taste of Triple-A ball as he has allowed only six total free passes all season.
Zebby Matthews, making his first career start at Triple-A, retired 13 of the last 15 batters he faced in the @StPaulSaints win🌟
5 IP / 4 H / 2 R / 0 BB / 6 K
On the season, he has 97 strikeouts to 6 walks…which is the best K/BB ratio in @MLB and @MiLB (min. 35 IP)‼️#MNTwins pic.twitter.com/hLZcoPQfHH
— Twins Player Development (@TwinsPlayerDev) July 21, 2024
The fifth man in the Twins rotation, Chris Paddack (forearm), was recently placed on the 15-day IL due to a forearm strain in his throwing arm. This is the second injury on his throwing arm this season and it could sideline him for a significant amount of time.
The Twins could look to recall fellow prospect David Festa, who made his major league debut back in May and lasted only two starts at the big league level after posting a poor 10.80 ERA. If Matthews continues his stellar play at Triple-A, it will be hard for him not to get the call over Festa to fill the spot in the rotation.
Jackson Jobe - Detroit Tigers (Currently At Triple-A , 10% rostered)
I’ve written about Jackson Jobe several times in my prospect risers column, but now he has officially entered "stash" territory. Arguably, the best pitching prospect in the game has been tearing up Double-A since recovering from a hamstring injury.
In his first three starts back at Double-A, the former No. 3 overall pick has posted a dominant 0.56 ERA, 0.69 WHIP, and a 6:21 BB:K ratio in 16 innings of work.
Jackson Jobe spearheads a no-hitter at Double-A!
MLB's top pitching prospect (@tigers) sports a 1.38 ERA, .112 BAA and 12.4 K/9 for the @erie_seawolves after fanning five batters across six scoreless innings. pic.twitter.com/DzgdZAlZcq
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 21, 2024
Last summer, in 64 innings across primarily Single-A and High-A, Jobe had a 2.81 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, and a 6:84 BB:K ratio.
While the injury did hinder Jobe’s chances of making the big leagues this season, his ability to pick up right where he left off is incredible. He is posting the best numbers of his minor league career. The Tigers are looking to be sellers at the deadline and will likely trade away Jack Flaherty and potentially ace Tarik Skubal.
Even if one rotation spot opens, Jobe has a strong chance of at least getting a taste of the big leagues during the final two months of the summer. If he gets the call, he can have league-winning upside, even on an innings limit.
DJ Herz - Washington Nationals (Currently At Triple-A, 3% rostered)
Herz spent all of June and a part of July in the big leagues, posting a 5.17 ERA and 1.40 WHIP. However, he struck out an eye-catching 41 batters at an elite 29.1% rate. He also generated whiffs at a 30.9% mark, which places him in the top 87th percentile among all pitchers.
Herz tallied double-digit strikeouts twice, including a 13-punchout game on June 15 against the Miami Marlins.
DJ Herz, K'ing the side in the 3rd.
7Ks thru 3. pic.twitter.com/zz5VuSIf7m
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 15, 2024
In his first start back at Triple-A, the southpaw logged only 3 ⅓ innings with two strikeouts and two earned runs.
Currently, the Nationals only have four healthy starters and may look to promote Herz once his eligibility window opens up toward the end of the month. Herz is a high-strikeout-upside pitcher who could be worth deploying in favorable matchups in all leagues.
Note: Herz was promoted on Tuesday afternoon (July 23) to start that evening against the San Diego Padres.
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