Fantasy baseball waiver wire: Jasson Dominguez, Ronny Mauricio make the leap to redraft leagues – Beragampengetahuan

When the season began, I did not foresee that this column would become a weekly feature on prospects making their major league debuts. That may be an exaggeration, but only a slight one. This week’s edition features no fewer than seven prospects who have either made their debut in the past week or are about to make their debut with the expansion of major league rosters to 28 players. Better yet, this week’s cohort includes two prospects — Jasson Dominguez and Ronny Mauricio — who made Keith Law’s Top 100 list for 2023.

Of course, this isn’t just a prospect column, so there are a few grizzled veterans to consider, too.

Seven (count ’em!) prospects making debuts

The Yankees’ late-season youth movement continues with the imminent promotions of outfielder Jasson Dominguez (39% roster rate on CBS) and catcher Austin Wells (8%). Once they arrive on Friday, there should be opportunities for both to play often, if not regularly. With Harrison Bader being claimed off waivers by the Reds, center field may be Dominguez’s domain for the remainder of the season, while Wells would ostensibly share most of the catching reps with Kyle Higashioka. This season, Dominguez stole 37 bases at Double-A Somerset (and three more bases during a brief stay at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre), while walking frequently and homering occasionally (15 home runs in 507 plate appearances). Wells showed a bit more power at Somerset and Scranton Wilkes/Barres with 16 combined homers in 419 plate appearances, and as a left-handed fly ball hitter, he has appeal as a streamer during the Yankees’ remaining home series.

Across town, the Mets will be bringing up one of their top prospects, shortstop/outfielder Ronny Mauricio (27%), on Friday. The 22-year-old was a power/speed threat with Triple-A Syracuse, tallying 23 home runs and 24 stolen bases, while showing good contact skills (18.2 percent strikeout rate). He could be a significant upgrade in left field over the current platoon of Rafael Ortega and Tim Locastro.

Hunter Goodman‘s (13%) promotion to the Rockies has not been as eagerly awaited as that of Dominguez, Wells or Mauricio, but he earned it by improving his strikeout and walk rates at Double-A Hartford while maintaining the power he showed at lower levels. Goodman made it difficult for the Rockies to keep him at Triple-A Albuquerque for long, as he batted. 371 with nine home runs over just 67 plate appearances. He has kept that power surge going since getting promoted on Sunday, hitting five of his seven batted balls at an exit velocity of at least 95 mph. Goodman appears to be settling in as the Rockies first baseman, having made four straight starts.

The Cubs announced on Thursday that they will be promoting Alexander Canario (3%) from Triple-A Iowa on Friday. The 23-year-old outfielder played in only 36 games for Triple-A Iowa, having missed more than half the season while working his way back from ankle and shoulder surgeries. Canario hit .276 with eight home runs, and six of those came in his last 14 games, during which he slashed .322/.349/.746. That span of games also produced a 30.2 percent strikeout rate and 4.8 percent walk rate. Canario has legitimate power, but if his recent lack of plate discipline carries forward, he may not be able to make the most of this opportunity. It’s conceivable that his arrival pushes Nick Madrigal to the bench more often, with Jeimer Candelario spending more time at third base.

The Cubs and Braves have filled the back of their rotations with a prospect callup. Jordan Wicks (42%) made his debut for the Cubs last Saturday with an outstanding outing in Pittsburgh, burning the Pirates with nine strikeouts over five innings while allowing one run on two hits and a walk. Wicks was a good strikeout pitcher over parts of two seasons at Double-A Tennessee with a 29.0 percent rate over 21 starts, but that rate plummeted to 22.2 percent over seven starts at Iowa this season. We will have a chance to see how Wicks fares against a whiff-happy Reds lineup in Cincinnati on Friday, and we can cut him some slack knowing he gets a a good matchup next week at home against the Giants.

The Braves’ Darius Vines (5%) lost strikeouts after moving up from Double-A Mississippi (28.5 percent rate) to Triple-A Gwinnett (20.3 percent rate) in 2022. That trend continued after he returned from a shoulder injury in late July, registering a 21.7 percent strikeout rate over five starts with Gwinnett. Given that recent track record, along with a fastball that sits in the low 90s, it was something of a surprise to see Vines emerge with a strong debut at Colorado on Wednesday night. The righty gave up two runs over six innings, striking out five and not allowing any barrels. Vines could get a nice matchup next week at home against the Pirates, as long as the Braves don’t use Monday’s day off to give the rest of the rotation an extra day of rest. Otherwise, he’ll get a tougher test against the Cardinals.

Bidding for Dominguez: 0-to-1 percent of total FAB budget in 12-team leagues, 2-to-3 percent in 15-team leagues.

Bidding for Wells: 1-to-2 percent in two-catcher leagues.

Bidding for Mauricio:0-to-1 percent in 12-team leagues, 4-to-5 percent in 15-team leagues.

Bidding for Goodman: 2-to-3 percent in 15-team leagues.

Bidding for Canario: 1-to-2 percent in 15-team leagues.

Bidding for Wicks: 0-to-1 percent in 12-team leagues, 2-to-3 percent in 15-team leagues.

Bidding for Vines: 1-to-2 percent in 15-team leagues.

Two more hitters to consider

But enough about the prospects… how about a 30-year-old outfielder who has batted .305 with 11 home runs, 30 runs and 27 RBIs since June 30? Max Kepler (37%) has been on a tear for two months, and he has really heated up in August with a .314 batting average, six home runs and a 98.1 mph EV FB/LD that ranks 10th among the 201 hitters with at least 25 flies and liners combined for the month. He even gets a few favorable matchups in the Twins’ three-games series with the Guardians and Mets next week.

I wrote about Davis Schneider (26%) shortly after his major league debut a few weeks back. At that point, he was rolling into a slump after his red-hot start to his major league career. Not only is Schneider hot at the plate again, going 9-for-17 (.529) since rejoining the Blue Jays lineup, but he has homered four times in his past six games. Matt Chapman’s sprained finger solidifies Schneider’s playing time for at least a couple of weeks; and he is currently hitting in the upper part of the batting order. While he still has only 57 plate appearances, it starting to appear that he has enough power (92.7 mph EV FB/LD) and patience (20.2 percent O-Swing%) to make a difference in 15-team leagues. Schneider is also missing enough pitches (34.8 percent CSW%) to be a potential liability in 12-team leagues.

Bidding for Kepler: 1-to-2 percent in 12-team leagues.

Bidding for Schneider: 3-to-4 percent in 15-team leagues.

Three two-start pitchers to choose from

The two-start options you typically find on waivers, even in 12-team leagues, tend to be flawed, and that’s especially true this week. Out of a less-than-ideal group, Kyle Hendricks (59%) has the most going for him. With home starts against the Giants and Diamondbacks, he gets matchups against a pair of teams that have not been hitting for power, and the Giants have had the majors’ lowest wOBA (.280) in the second half. Hendricks has also been consistent, turning in outings that have ranged from solid to great over his past nine starts — with the lone exception being a start against the powerhouse Braves. Over this nine-game run, he has compiled a 4.7 percent barrel rate and a 29.7 percent hard-hit rate, but he has also put together a 16.7 percent strikeout rate, which explains why he could be on waivers in your 12-team leagues.

Brandon Pfaadt (40%) has been a little less consistent than Hendricks over a similar period, and his overall stats from his past eight starts, including a 4.17 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and 22.8 percent strikeout rate, have been just decent. However, Pfaadt begins his week with a home start against the Rockies, and that should be favorable enough to neutralize a potentially tricky weekend matchup against the Cubs.

The level of risk rises further with Reid Detmers (51%), and not just because the Angels’ roster purge has weakened its lineup and bullpen. Detmers has coughed up 10 home runs over his past 41.2 innings, contributing to a bloated 7.56 ERA over those nine starts. As rough as this stretch has been, the barrage of homers is not necessarily disqualifying to Detmers as a two-start streamer. The 93.6 mph EV FB/LD allowed in those starts suggests he has the potential for a high HR/9, but not the astronomical 2.16 HR/9 he has actually compiled. Also, three of the 10 home runs came in a start against the Dodgers and another three were given up against the Mariners. Detmers’ opponents next week, the Orioles and Guardians, have been among the least prolific home run-hitting teams in the second half.

Bidding for Hendricks: 1-to-2 percent in 12-team leagues.

Bidding for Pfaadt: 1-to-2 percent in 12-team leagues.

Bidding for Detmers: 0-to-1 percent in 12-team leagues.

Note: Season-to-date stats are for all games played through Wednesday, Aug. 30

Statistical credits: FanGraphs, Baseball Savant, Baseball-Reference

(Rich Storry-USA TODAY Sports)