Waiver Wire: Youth Movement

May 30, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Rangers starting pitcher

(21) throws a pitch in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox in his first major league game at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

In my years of watching baseball, 2015 has served as one of the more intriguing years because young and upcoming stars are ruling the game for the first time in a long time.  This season also seems unique in terms that nearly every day a high-profile or top prospect is called up to make their debut, and it leads to young studs being potentially available on the waiver wire.

From a fantasy perspective, these call ups are often temporary or normally hold little value as these young players embark on the rocky road of adjusting to the majors, but this season is offering huge talents and value.

We have all been witness to the highly publicized breakouts of guys like Kris Bryant or Joc Pederson, but what too often happens is that other solid prospect performances are overlooked as they receive less of the limelight. 

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Fantasy owners have to be impartial to those who dominate the headlines and look across the entire league to see and uncover the value that young talents everywhere are offering so far this season. One team who embodies this youth movement is the Houston Astros. The sabermetric oriented ball club finds themselves not only sitting atop the AL West, but also being one of the best teams in all of baseball as they rely on youth and analytics to guide their approach.

If we look at their roster we see that youth is prevalent and we got a little taste of what kind of farm system they had when George Springer debuted last season. This season though it seems as those they are showing off their farm system again as they have some very intriguing rookies.

By now you should be well aware of Lance McCullers, and the dominance and upside he possesses going forward. For some reason though he still is on the waiver wire in more than 60% of leagues of all fantasy platforms. This is where shrewd fantasy owners need to move in while you still have time.

McCullers has some of the best raw stuff in baseball as his arsenal includes an upper 90’s fastball with a sharp curve ball that is certainly a capable strike out pitch. His last outing was downright ridiculous as he shut down a potent Orioles lineup for 9 innings, while giving up 1 ER, walking no one, and striking out 11.

His electric arm offers premium upside as he currently sits with two wins, a 1.88 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and 29 K’s. He probably will not be able to maintain that kind of line, but for a guy who has a 29/6 K/BB ratio, I do not see him falling off completely.

His two starts this week increase his value as well, as he will face the Chi Sox and Mariners, which happen to be struggling offenses. He does square off with Chris Sale on Monday, so we should be given another glimpse to see if he can compete with the best of the best.

There is also the recent news that not only the Astros best prospect, but maybe even the best prospect in baseball, Carlos Correa, will join the team and start Monday. Now, usually I am a little hesitant to chase prospect hype but in Correa’s case, he happens to be the oft sought after game changing SS.

We all know that SS is one of the most thinnest and top-heavy positions in fantasy baseball, so whenever we have the chance to possibly get an immediate contributor at the position, we have to be aggressive and snag him before he even takes a professional AB.

Correa has shown throughout the minors that he possesses the power and speed combo that could immediately put him amongst the top 10 SS in fantasy. He was not the 2012 1^st overall pick for nothing, and I fully urge all fantasy owners to snag him now. The reward far outweighs the risk.

Moving away from the Astros farm, I would further like to direct your attention to the upcoming stud Eduardo Rodriguez. My esteemed colleague Bill Pivetz recently wrote a great piece on how Rodriguez has the talent and organizational support to blossom into a true stud.

Looking further into Rodriguez though, I think it is important to note that this kid has basically been rock solid from the time he was signed as a free agent by the Orioles. I got the chance to watch him early on in A-ball with the Orioles, and from then you could tell that he was a true pitcher instead of just a young thrower.

The Red Sox rotation has been god awful, yet Rodriguez offers them some stability as his approach suits exactly what they need. He has a well verse repertoire and his pitching approach allows value in a fantasy format as he limits damage and has the raw stuff to get out of nearly any jam.

I see Rodriguez sticking with the team for the rest of the season, mainly because they have no better alternatives, and his talent should have fantasy owners snagging him up now before it is too late.

The last prospect that I recommend fantasy owners to pick up is the awesomely-named Chi Chi Gonzalez. Gonzalez is another 1^st round pick that has flown through the minors since his selection in 2013, with his eventual debut occurring in May for the Rangers. 

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Unlike McCullers or even Rodriguez, he will not post above average K rates, but that should not negate his value in fantasy owners eyes. He is another example of a guy that relies heavily on movement and deception in order to succeed and so far he has.

His first start against the Red Sox went pretty well has he was able to get through 5 innings without giving up a run and only surrendering 2 hits. That start piqued my interest, therefore I made it a point to watch his next start against the solid Royals lineup.

His performance completely won me over as he shut down the reigning AL champs for a complete game shutout, whilst becoming the first Rangers pitcher in nearly 40 years to not allow a run during his first two starts.

What I liked the most was that it seemed as though Gonzalez had made an adjustment from his first start and began to pitch more aggressively to the Royals as opposed to a more defensive approach. He does not have overpowering stuff but for a rookie to make that kind of approach and mentality change in his first two starts, speaks to the fact that he could stick around.

Right now Gonzalez is on the waiver wire in less than 30% of leagues across all platforms, which is absurd. He is another victim to the fact that he gets loss in the shuffle of the more highly publicized prospects, but the results speak for themselves. Fantasy owners should act fast before he becomes a house hold name.