Fantasy Baseball: June Dynasty Stock Report
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Image credit: MacKenzie Gore (Photo by Bill Mitchell)
The monthly Baseball America dynasty stock report helps fantasy players make sense of the numbers. In this installment we focus on performance by prospects in the minor leagues at each position in June.
For each position, we highlight a Standout player, who should be viewed as that month’s prospect all-star, a Slumping player, who is a prominent prospect who has underperformed, and a Surging player, who is a lower-profile prospect who is playing well and could be worth tracking.
Struggling players are included not to pile on, but rather to highlight players for whom you may be able to buy low.
Key to the abbreviations used. Those with a plus sign (+) are index statistics in which the player is compared with league average, where a score of 100 is exactly average.
RAA = runs above average (based on wOBA and R/9 for pitchers) CATCHER ?? Standout ?? Slumping ?? Surging The Brewers have an eye on Henry as a potential impact catcher on both sides of the ball, a fact reinforced by his invitation to big league camp this spring. He scuffled in May but rebounded in a big way in June, hitting .315/.411/.517 with 12 extra-base hits and a strikeout rate of just 15 percent. As a high school catcher drafted in 2016, Henry has work to do, but he’s on a good track as a 22-year-old holding his own in the Carolina League. FIRST BASE ?? Standout ?? Slumping ?? Surging Drafted in 2014, Ramos took a few years to get going. The lefthanded hitter broke out with a 32-homer campaign in 2018 and has continued to mash as a 24-year-old at Triple-A this season. The attribute I like best about Ramos is his all-fields power. Roughly half of his home runs have been hit straightaway or to the opposite field this season, according to Ramos’ Baseball Savant spray chart. SECOND BASE ?? Standout ?? Slumping ?? Surging Barreto is a four-time Top 100 Prospect who exhausted his rookie eligibility last season—barely—but entered 2019 with no footing in Oakland. He looked like a new player at Triple-A this year, slashing his strikeout rate from 32 percent to 25 percent while maintaining power and showing greater willingness to run. In June, Barreto smashed nine homers and went 6-for-6 in steals. Now the 23-year-old is the Athletics’ primary second baseman after taking over for Jurickson Profar, reminding us all that fortunes can change quickly in baseball. THIRD BASE ?? Standout ?? Slumping ?? Surging Only the Nationals’ Jose Marmolejos (15.5) and Angels wunderkind Jo Adell (15.3) compiled a higher total for runs above average than Padlo in June. The 23-year-old got there by hitting .329/.442/.744 with nine homers and seven doubles in the pitcher-friendly Southern League. Padlo suffered a hamate injury in 2017 that knocked him off the prospect map for two seasons, but there are attributes here to like for the key prospect acquired in the Rays’ German Marquez trade with the Rockies. SHORTSTOP ?? Standout ?? Slumping ?? Surging He may be Ronald Acuña’s little brother, but Luisangel is a distinctly different type of player. Signed by the Rangers last year, he made his debut in the DSL this season and got off to a blazing start. Acuña hit .407 in June with discipline (16 walks, 10 strikeouts) and speed (eight steals) but not a lot of thump. Scouts see Acuña as a hit-over-power prospect with more of a second base defensive profile based on his height, which is closer to 5-foot-8 than what is listed. OUTFIELD ?? Standouts Brent Rooker, Twins Drew Waters, Braves ?? Slumping Travis Swaggerty, Pirates Jarren Duran, Red Sox ?? Surging The 15th overall pick in 2015, Grisham hit .230-something for three straight seasons heading into 2019 and thus had slipped to No. 28 on the Brewers’ prospect ranking. He had always showed strong discipline—in June he walked 23 times and struck out 15 times—so the Brewers encouraged him to attack early-count fastballs. The plan worked. Grisham popped 13 homers at Double-A before a promotion to Triple-A San Antonio on June 20. He has a chance for five average-ish tools, with an emphasis on discipline, fielding and throwing. PITCHER ?? Standouts Mitch Keller, Pirates Brendan McKay, Rays MacKenzie Gore, Padres ?? Slumping Blaine Knight, Orioles Tony Santillan, Reds Ryan Castellani, Rockies ?? Surging The Astros called up the 24-year-old Mexican righthander in July to patch a rotation that had weathered several injuries—but Urquidy was no emergency callup. He recorded one of the highest swinging-strike rates in the upper minors to go with a 1.84 ERA in 29.1 June innings and a 37 -to-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Urquidy is a four-pitch strike-thrower who pitches at 93-95 mph with a varied arsenal of secondary pitches, headlined by a plus changeup. The Astros point to a small mechanical tweak that has helped him reach a new level. Damon Jones, Phillies The 6-foot-5 lefthander streamlined his delivery this season and has enjoyed a breakthrough season that has carried him to Double-A. Improved fastball velocity and enhanced feel for his slider enabled the 24-year-old Jones to record a 1.17 ERA in 30.2 innings in June, striking out 44 and walking nine. The biggest improvement had been much sharper control than he had shown in past seasons.
WAA = wins above average (adjusted for position and park)
OPS+ = similar to Baseball-Reference.com version (full-season players now adjusted for ballpark!)
XB+ = extra bases divided by batted balls
SB+ = stolen bases attempted divided by (estimated) times on first base
ERA+ = similar to Baseball-Reference.com version (full-season players now adjusted for ballpark
!)
FIP = fielding-independent pitching, e.g. strikeout, walk and home runs rates expressed as ERA
Luis Campusano, Padres
High Class A Lake Elsinore (California)
6.8 RAA, 0.9 WAA, 181 OPS+, 109 XB+
Will Banfield, Marlins
Low Class A Clinton (Midwest)
-7.0 RAA, -0.7 WAA, 35 OPS+, 82 XB+
Payton Henry, Brewers
High Class A Carolina (Carolina)
7.4 RAA, 1.1 WAA, 156 OPS+, 152 XB+
Evan White, Mariners
Double-A Arkansas (Texas)
12.2 RAA, 1.2 WAA, 239 OPS+, 210 XB+
Will Craig, Pirates
Triple-A Indianapolis (International)
-7.1 RAA, -0.8 WAA, 50 OPS+, 40 XB+
Roberto Ramos, Rockies
Triple-A Albuquerque (Pacific Coast)
10.2 RAA, 0.7 WAA, 171 OPS+, 179 XB+
Isan Diaz, Marlins
Triple-A New Orleans (Pacific Coast)
9.8 RAA, 0.9 WAA, 184 OPS+, 195 XB+, 76 SB+
Shervyen Newton, Mets
Low Class A Columbia (South Atlantic)
-5.2 RAA, -0.6 WAA, 40 OPS+, 41 XB+, 0 SB+
Franklin Barreto, Athletics
Triple-A Las Vegas (Pacific Coast)
13.3 RAA, 1.2 WAA, 181 OPS+, 192 XB+, 302 SB+
Ty France, Padres
Triple-A El Paso (Pacific Coast)
11.7 RAA, 1.0 WAA, 193 OPS+, 206 XB+
Nolan Gorman, Cardinals
High Class A Palm Beach (Florida State)
-4.7 RAA, -0.6 WAA, 65 OPS+, 150 XB+
Kevin Padlo, Rays
Double-A Montgomery
14.5 RAA, 1.9 WAA, 265 OPS+, 347 XB+
Bo Bichette, Blue Jays
Triple-A Buffalo (International)
9.8 RAA, 1.0 WAA, 173 OPS+, 105 XB+, 238 SB+
Wander Javier, Twins
Low Class A Cedar Rapids (Midwest)
-4.9 RAA, -0.4 WAA, 52 OPS+, 93 XB+, 0 SB+
Luisangel Acuña, Rangers
Dominican Summer League
12.7 RAA, 1.3 WAA, 192 OPS+, 100 XB+, 97 SB+
Jo Adell, Angels
Double-A Mobile (Southern)
15.3 RAA, 1.9 WAA, 234 OPS+, 255 XB+, 164 SB+
Triple-A Rochester (International)
13.9 RAA, 1.3 WAA, 190 OPS+, 186 XB+, 19 SB+
Double-A Mississippi (Southern)
10.8 RAA, 1.3 WAA, 210 OPS+, 197 XB+, 144 SB+
Tirso Ornelas, Padres
High Class A Lake Elsinore (California)
-7.1 RAA, -0.8 WAA, 26 OPS+, 18 XB+, 32 SB+
High Class A Bradenton (Florida State)
-6.7 RAA, -0.9 WAA, 57 OPS+, 73 XB+, 299 SB+
Double-A Portland (Eastern)
-6.1 RAA, -0.8 WAA, 61 OPS+, 36 XB+, 222 SB+
Trent Grisham, Brewers
Double-A Biloxi (Southern)
13.8 RAA, 1.7 WAA, 238 OPS+, 326 XB+, 24 SB+
Matthew Liberatore, Rays
Low Class A Bowling Green (Midwest)
13.6 RAA, 1.6 WAA, 186 ERA+, 2.29 FIP
Triple-A Indianapolis (International)
8.2 RAA, 0.8 WAA, 168 ERA+, 3.11 FIP
Triple-A Durham (International)
8.2 RAA, 0.8 WAA, 173 ERA+, 3.12 FIP
High Class A Lake Elsinore (California)
7.8 RAA, 0.8 WAA, 173 ERA+, 2.58 FIP
Patrick Sandoval, Angels
Triple-A Salt Lake (Pacific Coast)
-15.1 RAA, -1.2 WAA, -5 ERA+, 4.21 FIP
High Class A Frederick (Carolina)
-14.5 RAA, -1.9 WAA, 24 ERA+, 5.90 FIP
Double-A Chattanooga (Southern)
-13.2 RAA, -1.9 WAA, -19 ERA+, 5.62 FIP
Triple-A Albuquerque (Pacific Coast)
-12.1 RAA, -1.1 WAA, -33 ERA+, 11.02 FIP
Jose Urquidy, Astros
Triple-A Round Rock (Pacific Coast)
13.4 RAA, 1.1 WAA, 163 ERA+, 3.05 FIP
Double-A Reading (Eastern)
10.0 RAA, 1.4 WAA, 169 ERA+, 1.24 FIP
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