Farm Futures: It's Stashing Season! (Hitters)

This will be my penultimate article on pro prospects until after the draft (which begins June 4), and I could think of no better way to attempt to leave readers satisfied than a look at the top stash candidates in the minors. This week I've separated the stash candidates on the hitting side into three categories, to make it easier for those looking to address a specific weakness on their roster. Next week I will do the same thing, but on the pitching side.

Not all of these guys should be stashed, but all of them could be stashed in certain leagues.

AVERAGE

Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 3B, Blue Jays -- Vladito is out of his mind right now, and at this point I think it's a safe bet that he debuts in the majors this season as long as he stays healthy. He should be stashed in all 15-team mixers, and I wouldn't try to talk anyone out of stashing him in 10 and 12-team mixers if you want to chase upside. Look for a late July or early August debut.

Luis Urias, 2B/SS, Padres -- Urias is the youngest hitter in the Pacific Coast League but ranks in the top 10 in BB/K (1.05) and top 20 in wRC+ (144). I think he gets the call sometime in June, and hits at least .270 over the rest of the season. A .300 average over 90-100 games is in play, and he could also be a major contributor in runs. The skill set makes more sense in deeper leagues this season.

Nick Senzel, 2B/3B, Reds -- Senzel has not played since leaving a game last week with dizziness, which is particularly troubling in his case since he was shut down at the end of last season with vertigo. He is not a lock to return to game action in the coming weeks, and even if he came back this week, he is not a lock to make his big-league debut in 2018. That said, he still has the potential to hit .300 with 10 home runs and 10 steals in half a season, so there is an argument to continue stashing him in deep mixers.

Bo Bichette, SS, Blue Jays -- If Vladito gets the call in the second half, I think there's a decent chance Bichette gets the call on the same day. He doesn't have the same type of immediate power upside, but I wouldn't bet against the hit tool.

Austin Dean, OF, Marlins -- There are four blue chip prospects in this group… and Dean, who was only recently added to the top 400. He may be on the greatest heater of his life, or he may have figured something out this year over stops at Double-A and Triple-A. One thing is for sure, the Marlins can use all the help they can get, and if Dean keeps raking it's only a matter of time before he gets the call.

POWER

Willy Adames, SS, Rays -- Adames and the guy below him on this list could have been listed in any of the three offensive sections, but if I had to bet on him being a quality contributor in any one category, it would be power. If he is healthy he will be up in early June, and could be a viable middle-infield option in all formats.

Kyle Tucker, OF, Astros -- Derek Fisher and Jake Marisnick are both striking out over 40 percent of the time right now, so this one seems inevitable. The question is, when? I didn't expect the non George Springer/Josh Reddick outfielders to be this bad, which is why I was anticipating a July or August promotion for Tucker. However, I now believe a first-half promotion is more likely. Tucker could be a five-category contributor, but he could also struggle to hit for a high average initially, and will not be guaranteed a long leash if he struggles early.

Christin Stewart, OF, Tigers -- I detailed Stewart's impressive start to the campaign in last week's piece. JaCoby Jones is not good, so Stewart should get his chance sometime in the first half if he keeps this up.

Franmil Reyes, OF, Padres -- Since I omitted Reyes from last week's piece on breakout hitters he has 16 hits and eight home runs in just six games! Sorry, big fella. I honestly don't know when the last time a pro hitter was this dialed in. He is hitting balls out to all fields and is only striking out 20.1 percent of the time. It certainly seems like he's ready for a challenge against big-league pitching. Unfortunately, Franchy Cordero and Travis Jankowski are currently performing too well on both sides of the ball to be taken out of the lineup, so it's hard to say when Reyes gets his chance. Throw in the fact that Wil Myers (oblique) will be back sooner than later, and all of a sudden the Padres have one of the most crowded outfield situations in the National League.

Austin Riley, 3B, Braves -- Riley finally got his deserved promotion to Triple-A, and if he carries over the success he enjoyed at Double-A and the Arizona Fall League, he could be in Atlanta before the All-Star break. If this Jose Bautista thing works, however, we may not see Riley at all this summer. This is a high-risk/high-reward stash.

Eloy Jimenez, OF, White Sox -- I still think there's at least a 50 percent chance Jimenez doesn't make his big-league debut this season, but if he were to debut, he has the potential to swing leagues. This might be the ultimate high-risk/high-reward stash.

Jake Bauers, OF, Rays -- Bauers is another one who could reasonably be listed under the Average or Speed groups. In reality, he won't be an above-average contributor in any one category, but he could do a little bit of everything -- think .260 average with eight home runs and eight steals after a June call-up. There are leagues where that's useful, and you know if you play in them.

Willie Calhoun, OF, Rangers -- Not only did Calhoun not break camp with the big club, but he's not particularly close to forcing a promotion from Triple-A. I'd feel pretty comfortable cutting bait with him in most redraft formats, as it's entirely possible he spends the entire minor-league season in the Pacific Coast League.

Clint Frazier, OF, Yankees -- I didn't think Frazier would be super relevant this year, given the Yankees' outfield depth, but Brett Gardner is really struggling, so it's conceivable that at some point they turn to another option in the outfield. Frazier is healthy at Triple-A, and is hitting for power (.259 ISO) while striking out way too much (40 percent K-rate) in a tiny sample (30 plate appearances). He probably wouldn't hit for a very high average if he got the call, but he could provide some power and speed for those in deeper leagues.

Ryan McMahon, 1B, Rockies -- Ian Desmond has been worth negative 0.6 wins this season, per FanGraphs -- the second worst mark among qualified big league hitters. He is making $22 million this year and will make another $38 million through the 2021 season, so the Rockies will no doubt try to be patient with him. McMahon could return to the majors this summer, but he doesn't seem like a worthwhile stash anymore in most formats.

Tyler O'Neill, OF, Cardinals -- Unless the Cardinals decide to take away the starting job of Dexter Fowler, who will be receiving a $16.5 million annual salary through the 2021 season, O'Neill presumably needs an injury to someone ahead of him on the organizational depth chart. Harrison Bader has been pretty competent this season though, so even then, he may not get his shot.

Austin Hays, OF, Orioles -- Look, I'm a Hays fan, but it's hard to sugarcoat how far he seemingly is from a promotion to the majors. First of all, he's at Double-A, not Triple-A, which doesn't necessarily mean he won't be jumped to the majors and bypass the highest level of the minors again, as he did in 2017, but he's the only player I'm writing up in this article who has been a below league average hitter (99 wRC+) at Double-A this season. This smells like a situation where Hays will be a steal in 2019 redraft leagues and won't provide any notable value in 2018.

Chris Shaw, OF, Giants -- Shaw now has 26 home runs and 153 strikeouts in 116 games at Triple-A. It's a pretty obvious profile. He's going to hit for power and he's probably going to hit for a low average. The Giants would be wise to hold him down until he shows an improved approach.

SPEED

Dustin Fowler, OF, A's -- Of all the players I'm writing up in this article, I think Fowler is the first to get the call. He is ready and his team needs him.

With Mark Canha playing like he is, there really isn't any reason to have Jake Smolinski on the roster. I'd swap him with Dustin Fowler tomorrow.

— Melissa Lockard (@melissalockard) May 3, 2018

Fowler could be a five-category guy, but the skill his owners will be banking on is his speed on the bases. If he hits, he could earn a top two spot in the lineup against right-handed pitching.

Adalberto Mondesi, SS, Royals -- Someone asked me recently on Twitter when Mondesi will be up, and my response was that I simply don't know how to get inside the mind of a front office that voluntarily signed Alcides Escobar to be their starting shortstop this season. Whenever they are willing to admit that was a mistake, Mondesi will be the guy. Once he's up, he could steal six bases a month if he hits, and there will be some sneaky pop as well.

Roman Quinn, OF, Phillies -- Quinn has cooled off slightly over the last week at Triple-A, but he is still basically ready for a big-league promotion whenever the Phillies want to demote one of their struggling outfielders. He has the most stolen-base upside in this group (he could be Mallex Smith 2.0) but realistically won't play enough to max out.

Franklin Barreto, 2B, A's -- Barreto doesn't have much left to prove at Triple-A, although he could stand to strike out a little less. The big issue for him is that he's a significantly worse defender at shortstop than Marcus Semien and a significantly worse hitter right now than Jed Lowrie. If one of those two gets hurt, Barreto will get the call right away. His minor-league totals may suggest he is a better bet for power or batting average, but I think he'll move down in the lineup upon a promotion, where he will get a more consistent green light on the bases. He is a batting average risk against big-league pitching until he proves otherwise.

Steven Duggar, OF, Giants -- Duggar has been striking out at a 28.7 percent clip at Triple-A, but it may only take a hot week or two for him to get the call, given who the Giants are currently deploying next to Andrew McCutchen in the outfield. Duggar is basically a lesser version of Dustin Fowler -- he is capable of contributing across the board, but his above-average speed is the most likely source of 2018 fantasy value.

Victor Robles, OF, Nationals -- We simply don't know when Robles will be back in action at Triple-A, all we know is that the hyperextended elbow he suffered in late April will sideline him for "months", so he could be back in late June, July… September, we just don't know. If he had never suffered the injury, he may have been up a couple weeks ago and this Matt Adams thing may have never snowballed. Once he returns and is able to knock off the rust, he could assume an everyday role on the big-league club. If he comes back before the All-Star break, he will probably become relevant in most formats by the end of the year. It's also possible he serves as nothing more than a pinch runner and defensive specialist down the stretch, as he did in 2017. I'd rather cut him now in most redraft leagues than play the waiting game, even knowing that decision could haunt me if he comes back on the short end of his realistic timetable.

Minor league add/drops in CBS Expert Dynasty Leagues:

RDI

Added

Domingo German, RHP, Yankees ($51)
Andrew Suarez, LHP, Giants ($3) (my buy)
Calvin Mitchell, OF, Pirates ($1)
Jasrado Chisholm, SS, Diamondbacks ($0)
Andrew Knizner, C, Cardinals ($0)

Dropped

Freddy Peralta, RHP, Brewers
Anthony Santander, OF, Orioles (my drop)
Aristides Aquino, OF, Reds
Aramis Ademan, SS, Cubs
Kyle Funkhouser, RHP, Tigers
Wilmer Font, RHP, Dodgers

TDGX

Added

Domingo German, RHP, Yankees ($21)
Chris Paddack, RHP, Padres ($6)
Jalen Beeks, LHP, Red Sox ($4)
Dennis Santana, RHP, Dodgers ($2)
Kevin Smith, SS, Blue Jays ($2)
Gavin Lux, 2B, Dodgers ($1)
Seranthony Dominguez, RHP, Phillies ($1)
Demi Orimoloye, OF, Brewers ($0) (my buy)
Tyler Stephenson, C, Reds ($0)
Calvin Mitchell, OF, Pirates ($0)
Reggie Lawson, RHP, Padres ($0)
Oneil Cruz, 3B, Pirates ($0)
Juan Yepez, 1B, Cardinals ($0)
David Fletcher, 2B, Angels ($0)

Dropped

Freddy Peralta, RHP, Brewers
Sean Murphy, C, A's (my drop)
Yandy Diaz, 3B, Indians (my drop)
Matt Thaiss, 1B, Angels
Freicer Perez, RHP, Yankees
Zack Burdi, RHP, White Sox
Tucker Davidson, LHP, Braves
Daniel Brito, 2B, Phillies
Daniel Palka, OF, White Sox