5 Recent Callups to Investigate

The callups keep rolling in and deep leaguers need to constantly pay attention. Since last week, five more have now been handing an everyday role or the potential for one. Let’s dive in.

Gustavo Campero | LAA OF

Replacing the injured Wade Meckler, Campero has been up and down with the Angels since 2024, never recording more than 66 PA. He’s now starting in two straight games in left field since his recall.

The 28-year-old is no prospect, but that doesn’t mean he should be ignored. In the minors this year between Double-A and Triple-A, spanning about a half season’s worth of PA, he posted his typical sub-20% strikeout rate, while hitting for power and displaying speed.

He posted a 17.6% HR/FB rate, fueled by an elite 31.8% mark at Triple-A, but his Statcast metrics don’t much that power output at all. He did steal 12 bases though, so he could potentially contribute a bit in power and more in stolen bases. But I would caution again that he massively overperformed his Triple-A xwOBA, so there’s not much to be optimistic about that his bat could keep him in the lineup when the team gets healthier.

Still, I’ve always been fond of older guys with no fanfare who contribute a touch all around and doesn’t strike out too much. He’s worth at least considering in AL-Only leagues for as long as Meckler is out.

Christian Moore | LAA 2B

It’s about time he returned to the Majors! I’ve had a major hole at second base most of the season in AL Tout Wars and have been checking every week to see if Moore’s owner had dropped him after being tired of waiting for him to be called back up. Sadly, that never happened, otherwise I would have been celebrating his recall.

Moore earned a 184 PA cup of coffee with the Angels last year, but posted just a .288 wOBA and .282 xwOBA, but I’m willing to overlook the small sample size and consider what he did at Triple-A this year. There, he walked at a ridiculous 17.5% clip, while improving his strikeout rate to a career low of 22.5%. That walk rate dramatically boosts his value in OBP formats.

He also continued to post an inflated BABIP, driven by an absurd 29.5% LD%. That mark did hamper his FB%, which cut into his home run total. speaking of power, he posted another mid-teen HR/FB rate, though his HardHit% and Barrel% were underwhelming, despite an above average 111 MPH maxEV. He also swiped 15 bases, making him a potential all-around contributor. Unlike Campero, Moore posted a .350 xwOBA at Triple-A. That’s still well below his .423 actual mark, but at least it’s a good mark!

If he wasn’t owned in AL Tout Wars, I would have added him many weeks ago. I’m not sure how interested I would be in a shallow mixed league, but in any OBP format, he’s a must-add if you need second base help.

Alek Thomas

Much to the chagrin of James Tibbs III owners, it was Thomas that got the call when Andy Pages hit the IL. And suddenly, Thomas is a regular again, though he might end up serving on the strong side of a platoon.

Formerly the Diamondbacks’ second best prospect, ranked 21st overall, he’s been a massive disappointment. He’s posted a career 72 wRC+ and amassed just 1.3 WAR over 1,489 PA. As a result, he has spent the majority of the year at Triple-A after being traded to the Dodgers in mid-May.

At Triple-A, he did many things well. He posted a sterling 14.5% strikeout rate, an above average BABIP, and a 17.1% HR/FB, backed by a 46.3% HardHit%. Unfortunately, he was an extreme groundball hitter, hampering his home run output, posted just a 4.2% Barrel%, and stole just four bases. He also posted just a .324 xwOBA at the level.

The plate discipline is nice, but the power just hasn’t grown, and if he isn’t stealing bases, he’s not very appealing for fantasy owners. The lack of fly balls really caps his home run upside and pressures him to resume stealing bases to avoid being a complete non-contributor. Obviously worth an add in NL-Only leagues for as long as he’s getting full-time PAs against right-handers, but he remains far off the mixed league radar.

Deyvison De Los Santos | MIA 1B

De Los Santos has posted some ridiculous HR/FB rates in the minors, though all of those marks came in 2024. It makes you question what happened that year and why he hasn’t come close to replicating that success.

For some reason, I thought he debuted in the Majors a couple of years ago, so I’m really surprised to learn I’ve been mistaken and he actually made his MLB debut at the end of March before being demoted. He then spent the entire year at Triple-A before his latest recall. He now be on the short-side of a platoon, though there’s definitely an opportunity for an expanded role if he hits.

At Triple-A this season, he posted the lowest SwStr% and strikeout rate of his career. Though perhaps that’s not such an admirable feat considering it’s the third time he’s played at the level. He posted a 21.7% HR/FB rate, which is a decent rebound from last year, but still pales in comparison to the overall 35.4% mark he posted in 2024 across Double-A and Triple-A. The home run power was fueled by a mid-40% HardHit%, which is good, but not great, and a 113.1 MPH maxEV. That latter mark is well below what he recorded as a high last year (118.5 MPH and in 2024 of 116 MPH).

What’s particularly head scratching is the 6.7% Barrel%, which follows last year’s 5.9% mark at the level. For a guy last rated as owning 70/70 Raw Power, and also posting double digit marks in 2024, it’s really surprising to see that mark fall into the mid-single digits. It seems pretty hard to post that kind of HR/FB rate while barreling balls at a mid-single digit clip. Some of that can be explained by a sub-30% FB% though, which in itself is concerning for a power hitter.

Fortunately for fantasy owners, he has suddenly become a base stealer. He swiped 16 bags last year and 18 this year, so he’s far less reliant on his home run power to deliver fantasy value now. He’s a bit of a mystery to me, as his xwOBA marks, the past two years suggest a player who just isn’t ready to hit well at the MLB level.

That said, in an NL-Only league, you have to speculate here given the ultimate upside. Anyone else could ignore him at least until he ends up in an everyday role, if that happens.

Mickey Gasper | BOS C

The 30-year-old career minor leaguer is back. Thanks to the litany of injuries in Boston, he has seemingly taken over as the team’s starting DH, which I did not foresee at the time of his recall. After failing to homer with the Red Sox during his earlier time in the Majors, he promptly homered in his first three games back. That’ll get you on fantasy radars!

Gasper posted some intriguing Triple-A numbers this year, though it must be remembered that he’s played at this level since 2023. He walked more than he struck out, and that walk rate sat at a robust 17.4%. He posted a sublime batted ball profile, heavy on line drives, fueling a .377 BABIP. He posted a 19.1% HR/FB rate, backed by a 46.3% HardHit% and 110.3 MPH maxEV, though his 6.9% Barrel% was less validating.

Overall, a .446 wOBA and even a .383 xwOBA begs the question of why he actually hasn’t been given more of an extended look with the Red Sox.

The 19.1% HR/FB rate definitely isn’t real, but he should be league averageish there. Given his contact skills, he should be neutral at worst in batting average, but enjoy a big value boost in OBP leagues. He’s also catcher-qualified, so those rates are even more impressive compared to the alternatives.

I have been kicking myself for not prioritizing him when in need of a catcher in AL Tout Wars because I didn’t think he would play much. Oops. The Sox are due to get healthier at some point soon which will likely crush his playing time, but until then, he’s a deep mixed and AL-Only play for sure. Heck, I’m probably going to add him in my 12-team mixed league and decide whether to start him this week as well.