Wow, another week is gone from what used to be the 2018 baseball season, which is screaming to what portends to be a fun an exciting finish.
Is Houston’s slump serious? Are the Phils and Braves able to hang, let alone the Athletics? Does it matter with Boston so dominant and complete?
Of course, it will be great to watch unfold, and ideally you too are enjoying the season with your roto team tied to the top of the standings.
So, who are some names owners might want to pay attention to this next week when roster tweaking, looking for points this year, or potential up-and-comers next? Let’s take our weekly tour.
Kohl Stewart (P, Twins): Starting out with the first of a bunch of hurlers, Stewart was the Minnesota first-round selection in 2013. Not so much dominating (406 strikeouts over 570.2 innings) with a 1.36 WHIP as a minor leaguer. Despite a 31-34 minor league mark, with a 3.34 ERA, the peripherals suggest a guy who will get hit.
Thomas Pannone (P, Blue Jays): I discovered Pannone last year when he scored a #215 slot on my Top 250 Prospect List on top of a 9-3, 2.36 season over 144.2 frames with 149 strikeouts at two levels. A 2013 pick of the Tribe who was then swapped for Joe Smith, Pannone has taken his lumps this year at Buffalo (0-3, 4.91) and was knocked around his first big league appearance (two runs over 1.1 innings). Still, I like Pannone and am curious to see how he develops along with his rebuilding team.
Yefry Ramirez (P, Orioles): Baltimore scores a couple of hits this week, which makes sense relative to how many prospects the team is giving license to. Ramirez, a hurler, is a 24-year-old Dominican with a quintessential resume. The righty has a 38-31, 3.50 line over 542 minor league innings with 527 strikeouts to go with a solid 1.15 WHIP. Ramirez has worked his way into the starting rotation and has grabbed 40 whiffs over 40 innings thus far along with eight starts, and in a deep AL format is worth tracking.
Akeel Morris (P, Angels): Originally drafted by the Mets in 2010, then swapped to the Braves then Angels, Morris has an impressive 550 strikeouts over his 430 minor league innings, with opposing hitters batting just .183 off of him. That said, Morris has had a tough time at the Show, posting a 6.14 ERA and 1.94 WHIP over 22 innings, so he too makes for a crapshoot this year in the scrounge for whiffs and perhaps more.
Sean Reid-Foley (P, Jays): I am not sure how or why this week both so pitcher-focused and more singularly, American League centric, but it’s surely the names who catch my eye, and rumors of Reid-Foley joining the rotation are certainly making the rounds. A second-round selection in 2014, the 24-year-old has compiled a 37-32, 3.83 line over 493.3 innings, logging 548 strikeouts with a 1.29 WHIP, and therein lies the potential rub. For, Reid-Foley has allowed 215 walks, and that suggests his command over the zone comes and goes. Still, the young Jay is surely worth grabbing in most formats.
Eric Villanueva (P, Tigers): Detroit, which is in the rebuild throes as deep as it gets, and Villanueava, who is 20, is raw and-a-half. Detroit acquired the youngster with a questionable record thus far(1-5, 5.66 over 41 innings) from the Mets, who have been solid of late at drafting arms, even if said limbs turn out to be somewhat brittle. Why New York determined Villanueva was expendable is unclear, but surely both teams could use arms so do see how the youngster develops.
Cedric Mullins (OF, Orioles): Closing with a couple of hitters — both from the AL East — Mullins was a 13th round pick in 2015. Mullins holds a .270-40-170 line with 77 steals over 376 games and has enough defense and on-base skills to move Adam Jones to right field for the rest of the season. Meaning, in a deep league where steals matter, Mullins is the flav of the week.
Danny Jansen (C, Jays): OK, raise your hand if you have a decent catcher on any of your teams? For, after J.T. Realmuto, is there a catcher we want? Well, Jansen, a 16th rounder in 2013, is a catcher and is riding a .275-12-58 line with a stellar .390 OBP (44 walks to 49 strikeouts) this season, meaning maybe there is hope for a backstop who can hit.
