One name that has come up often this year in the fanciful world of Prospectville is the Diamondbacks’ Paul Goldschmidt. He leads the minors with 22 home runs, in case you didn’t know. That sort of thing tends to get fantasy owners’ attention. As does Kevin Towers, the team’s GM, recently hinting that the D-backs may consider promoting a few of their minor leaguers in the weeks surrounding the All-Star Game. Seems like a good time to take a look at Goldschmidt and a few others in the system.

Read the rest of this entry »

Alas, for the first time in almost two months, there are no really big names to cover this week. (Thanks for the break, front office folks.) As such, nobody below is likely to make an impact in mixed leagues. But there are still two new names — and a pair of old friends — worth looking at in single-league play.

Read the rest of this entry »

Mariners top prospect Dustin Ackley will step into a major-league batter’s box for the first time when he faces off against Philadelphia’s Roy Oswalt just about 12 hours from now. You probably shouldn’t wait that long to pick him up.

Read the rest of this entry »

There’s news of Dustin Ackley’s debut Friday. We’ll look at the 2009 No. 2 pick more in depth for tomorrow’s post. For now, let’s rewind and point out a handful of guys who were promoted in the past week, including one who just might be more valuable than Ackley.

Read the rest of this entry »

Two weeks into June, it’s about time to update our rankings for American League outfielders. Again. Also in this installment? An apology to Melky Cabrera.

Read the rest of this entry »

As Tom Petty once sang: the waiting sucks. (I may be paraphrasing.) So while anticipation is brimming over a prospect who will make his major league debut later today, alas, there was ungood news about another elite ‘spect who was also ready to help fantasy owners, until as Phil Collins once sang, something happened on the way to the big leagues. (Paraphrasing again.) Plus? A whopping kit and a heaping caboodle of other callups.

Read the rest of this entry »

In this installment: Kyle McClellan‘s temporary rotation replacement and Jack Cust’s potential DH intruder.

Read the rest of this entry »

This week’s edition covers one top prospect making his MLB debut and a pair of recalls who didn’t fare so well earlier this season. Plus? The usual batch of players who only apply to really deep leagues. In fantasy, no transaction is too small.

Read the rest of this entry »

One of the most exciting aspects of fantasy baseball is trading.  It can also be the most frustrating as well.  We’ve already talked about those stupid early season offers where people are constantly testing your knowledge and your patience — something like his David Freese and Livan Hernandez for my Jose Bautista was a personal favorite.  But now we’re two months in, things have settled in for the most part, your waiver wire has been picked clean, and now everyone is trying to improve their squad via the trade.  Getting the right deal done is tough enough, but the process to get there can be a tenuous path riddled with both ignorance and annoyance.  Today we’re going to go through some do’s and don’ts which may help expedite the process with little fanfare or, at the least, keep you from wanting to choke the life out of a moronic competitor. Read the rest of this entry »

This column has a rather wide range when it comes to fantasy impact. It’s a nature-of-the-beast thing, trying to predict when minor leaguers are going to get their shot. And so there have been players highlighted in this space who have soon thereafter become relevant (Chris Davis) or even useful (Jerry Sands) to fantasy owners. And there have also been those mentioned — many more, in fact — who remain in Triple-A (Charlie Blackmon) or downright useless (Mark Rogers). This time, however, expect a 2-for-2 performance. At least in terms of how soon this pair of prospects will be reaching the majors.

Read the rest of this entry »