Prospect Alert
Fantasy Baseball Sleepers

On The Horizon

There are always a number of quality players that get shipped to Triple-A at the beginning of the season, and this year is certainly no exception. In-season promotions are critical additions to many fantasy league winners, and go a long way towards filling holes left after a poor drafting decision, unforeseen injury, or a flat-out flop of an established big leaguer.

Here are a few names that are looming on the horizon, and should make an impact in the coming months in the majors:

OF Grady Sizemore, Cleveland Indians
Sizemore is arguably the best outfield prospect in all of baseball, for good reason. He has one of the best power/speed/contact combos in the minors, and his plate discipline should fuel his success as he advances to the majors. Coco Crisp and Alex Escobar are currently clogging his path to the majors, which is a good thing, as a little time in Triple-A will do Sizemore good. He’s still only 21 years old, but it is rather difficult to imagine Sizemore sticking around Triple-A for longer than a few months.

SP Rich Harden, Oakland A’s
Harden is still a work in progress, as major league hitters caught up to him at the end of last season. His spring performance was awful, with the exception of his final appearance, and his “tune-up” minor league performance left something to be desired. Harden will have his ups and downs throughout this season – be sure to ride him while he’s hot, and leave him benched while he’s not. He’ll restart his major league trek Thursday in Texas as Oakland’s fifth starter.

SP Edwin Jackson, Los Angeles Dodgers
Jackson struggled throughout this spring, much like Harden. His long-term future remains bright, and his stuff alone makes him one of the top prospects in baseball. Expect Jackson to remain inconsistent for the rest of the season, which means he’s not worth much in single-season fantasy leagues. He could potentially start Saturday against San Francisco, which would be a start to watch, but don’t reach to pick him up just yet. He’d need at least two or three consecutive solid starts to be considered useful fantasy material, and that likely won’t happen for a while.

OF Jeremy Reed, Chicago White Sox
Along with Sizemore, Reed is one of the top outfield prospects in baseball. He has all the tools except for home run power, but he doesn’t have a spot in the Show – yet. That might change soon, as Aaron Rowand has been struggling in the bigs, leaving his job security a bit uncertain. The wild card in this situation is Joe Borchard, who was once considered one of the better prospects around, but has never received a fair opportunity. Borchard has done a bit better than Reed in limited Triple-A time thus far, and would likely be the safer addition to the big league roster. Additional time in the minors wouldn’t hurt Reed, and he’d likely see a promotion later this season, anyways. Keep an eye on both guys, as either could make a decent splash in the majors if (when) promoted.

2B/SS Brandon Phillips, Cleveland Indians
Just as it looked as though Phillips would be a major flop, he’s starting to turn things around. Sure, it’s only four games, but Phillips is hitting .400+ with power in the minors – likely better than any four game stretch last season. It’s notable that the Indians are working him in at short – his natural position – leading to speculation that the front office is still trying to move Vizquel. If they find a taker for Omar, and Phillips really does turn things around, he could be a diamond-in-the-rough for later in the season. Quite a bit has to go right for Phillips to truly succeed this season, but he certainly has the talent to his credit. He’s worth watching as much as any other minor leaguer this season, and will likely slip under the radars of most fantasy leaguers.

SP Aaron Heilman, New York Mets
Those readers of this column last season might recall that I’m not very high on Heilman – however, his success early this season makes him worth watching. In his first minor league start, Heilman struck out nine batters in five innings of work. His spring performance was nearly as impressive, as he posted a 22/5 K/BB ratio in 19 innings. I still believe that Heilman projects best as a middle-of-the-rotation guy, but the early numbers this season seem to indicate that he could enjoy some success in the bigs this season. Keep an eye on how he fares over his next few starts, as a few spots in that rotation could be a bit flexible over the coming months.

1B/DH Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins
With the injury bug hitting the Twins hitters hard, it’s rather surprising that Morneau is stuck in the minors. He couldn’t possibly be expected to do any better in the minors (.524-2-10 in 21 at-bats), and now is the perfect time to give him an opportunity in the majors. His mediocre performance in the majors last season is due in large part to sporadic opportunities, which resulted from an overcrowded major league roster. If given regular playing time in the majors, it’s quite possible that he’d stick around once their regulars return from the DL. As long as he sticks around the minors, he should continue to put on quite a show.

OF Todd Linden, San Francisco Giants
Linden is one of those prospects that never receive much mention, mostly because he doesn’t have one overpowering tool – he simply does a variety of things well. Surprisingly, Marquis Grissom continues to play well, so the center field spot isn’t really up for grabs at this point. Left field – currently occupied by Michael Tucker – would be likely be Linden’s destination if promoted. If given a full season in the majors, Linden would likely top out at .260-.270 with a 15/15 power/speed split, which would be enough to make him useful in NL-only leagues.

SP Adam Wainwright, Atlanta Braves
The simple fact that Atlanta traded Wainwright was enough to put a significant dent in his status as a prospect, as the Braves are very rarely wrong when it comes to pitching prospects. This is more likely a case of the Braves needing to trade value to get it, and Wainwright remains one of the top pitching prospects in baseball. Let other owners worry about John Schuerholz’ motives behind trading Wainwright, and focus only on the fact that Wainwright could very well develop into a No. 1 or 2 starter in the bigs. His spring performance was solid, and his first minor league start in the Cardinals organization was dominant (6 IP, 0 H, 1 BB, 6K). He could get a call in the first half of the season, as Marquis/Carpenter/Suppan simply aren’t good enough to hold Wainwright off.

SP Zack Greinke, Kansas City Royals
Greinke’s spring performance didn’t help his stock as a performance, but he’ll turn things around. He was considered the top pitching prospect at the end of last season, and many baseball executives still hold that belief. Greinke’s overall talent level is impressive, but one worrying factor is a decreasing K/IP factor as he climbs the organizational ladder. It was solid enough in Single-A, but it was noticeably worse in Double-A. That ratio will likely hurt him early on in his major league career, as most non-overpowering pitchers struggle early on against top-level competition. He’s a tremendous long-term prospect, drawing comparisons to Saberhagen and Maddux, but it would be wise to temper any short-term expectations.

We're back on a regular schedule with the start of the regular season, so check back next week for more prospect analysis!

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