Waiver Wire: Nomar Mazara and Mallex Smith Promoted

By Brad Kelly | Apr 10, 2016

Mar 8, 2016; Mesa, AZ, USA; Texas Rangers right fielder Nomar Mazara (30) hits in the first inning during a spring training game against the Oakland Athletics at HoHoKam Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports /

Nomar Mazara and Mallex Smith entered the 2016 season as top prospects, but were both blocked from getting promoted. Both now have clear paths to playing time. Making both must adds off the waiver wire.

As we enter the second week of the season, big time injuries has already struck some teams. News broke today that the Texas Rangers were losing outfielder, Shin-Soo Choo for at least 4-6 weeks due to a calf problem and the Atlanta Braves were forced to put outfielder, Ender Inciarte on the 15 day DL due to a nagging hamstring issue.

With both of these teams having clear holes in their outfield, they have turned to their top prospects to help with the loss of production. Nomar Mazara and Mallex Smith are amongst the best prospects in the game as each brings a game changing skill set to the table.

Mazara will slot into RF for the Rangers and manager Jeff Banister has already indicated that he will be the club’s starter moving forward. Mazara’s calling card throughout the minors has been his raw power and pure left-handed stroke at the plate.

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Last season across AA and AAA, he posted a, .296 AVG/14 HR/69 RBI/.808 OPS line. He has been lauded for his power since he came to the club as a 17-year-old, but he has continually developed to the point where the team has made him their first promotion and a MLB starter.

The Rangers even made it a point to get him into the lineup immediately as he was slotted to bat second in Sunday’s game. The Rangers still sport one of the better lineups and one of the best hitter’s ballpark in baseball, so his counting stats should be fine as well.

He may not hit for a lot of AVG, even though he is a career .270 minor leaguer hitter, but the power upside is too hard to pass up. He is starting to fly off the waiver wire already and if he starts hot out of the gates like he has done early this season in the minors, .500 AVG/1 HR/4 RBI in only 12 at bats, he will not be available for long. Snag him now.

Where Mazara brings the power, Mallex Smith brings nothing but blistering speed. Smith is coming off back to back seasons that saw him snag 88 bags in 2014 and 51 SB in 2015. The 24-year-old has flown through the minors and has shown the Braves that his bat has finally caught up to his speed.

Since he posted a .262 AVG in 2013, Smith has improved his AVG each of the last two seasons by over 40 points. His .310 AVG in 2014 and .303 AVG in 2015, are a welcome sight for a guy that can absolutely fly. His OBP is nothing to scoff at either as he has been able to post at a .403 and .371 clip the last two seasons as well.

The Braves were able to steal him away from the San Diego Padres, and it clear why he was valued so highly. MLB is lacking the speedsters that it once had, but Smith is a clear throwback to the years where speed ruled the game. Ironically, the most common pro-comparison Smith gets, is to the recently cut Michael Bourn.

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He has not been scooped off the waiver wire at the same rate that Mazara has, but make no mistake about it, he can bring just as much fantasy value. The Braves are not contending this season, so they are going to welcome the chance to see what they have with Smith in center. Make him a priority addition, as premium speed options are few and far between.

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