Recent Hitter Callups That Matter

We just passed roster expansion day, which means a slew of minor leaguers have been called up. Aside from those most recent promotions, there were some names that got the call a bit before roster sizes grew. Let’s discuss the recent callups, whether before or after roster expansion, that should matter in the vast majority of fantasy leagues.

Jordan Walker | STL

Formerly the 11th best prospect in baseball according to our rankings, Walker has been up and down this year after opening the season as the Cardinals starting right fielder. Unfortunately, he posted a sad .224 wOBA over 67 plate appearances, and the team decided not to exercise patience by letting him bust out of his slump. So to Triple-A he went, before getting promoted in mid-August, returning to Triple-A, and now coming back to the Majors. Given the Cardinals post-season chances, which currently stands at just 0.9%, I would hope he would remain the starter the rest of the season.

With 55/80 Game and 70/80 Raw Power, I’m not going to let a weak start to the season cloud my opinion here. Remember he hit respectively last year during his rookie season, though so far his power output hasn’t exactly matches his scouting grades. He has posted mid-teen HR/FB rates throughout his professional career, and just a 10.3% mark at Triple-A this season. His maxEV marks have been more impressive though between 113 and 115 MPH, which suggests big power that he just hasn’t been able to get to just yet, perhaps hinting at his upside. I’m curious where his FB% lands as it’s generally been in the low to mid 30% range, which is a bit low and could cut into his home run upside.

He owns some speed too, though he might be more of a 10 steal guy at best, rather than the 20+ he swiped in 2022. He has posted pretty solid strikeout rates too, though it’s come with a bit higher SwStk% marks than I would expect.

Nothing here suggests he’ll be a difference maker over the final month, but he clearly has big power potential given his maxEV, so you never know when that will suddenly manifest. I’d take a stab here and cross my fingers.

Brett Wisely | SF

With the incumbent Thairo Estrada out of the picture, Wisely has become the Giants starting second baseman, at least against right-handed pitching. The 25-year-old isn’t much of a prospect, ranked just 25th on the team with underwhelming scouting grades.

That said, he’s shown some power and speed at times in the past. Back in 2021, he posted a 15.1% HR/FB rate at Single-A and 23.5% mark at High-A, and is coming off a 14.6% mark at Triple-A this season. He also stole as many as 32 bases back in 2022, and 31 in 2021, but hasn’t been anywhere near that since.

Most of his value right now will likely stem from his strong side platoon role, at the very least, making him more of a deep league option.

Kyle Manzardo | CLE

Just as I noted in my August 27 article highlighting minor leaguers with .400+ wOBA marks that might be due for an imminent callup, Manzardo was promoted on Sunday and promptly hit two home runs. That performance likely resulted in some pretty aggressive bids from those teams who still had a hefty supply of FAAB units burning a hole in their pockets.

Manzardo figures to serve as the team’s starting DH against right-handed pitchers. Although his power isn’t elite, it’s good enough that when combined with his 40%+ FB% and good strikeout rate for a power hitter, he could easily go off for a big final month.

I love his plate discipline with double digit walk rates along with single digit SwStk% marks. I just wish he didn’t sit against lefties and worry about his BABIP, which hasn’t been good since 2022, despite a high LD% and low IFFB%. I think he’ll be a strong performer in OBP leagues.

Griffin Conine | MIA

Jeff’s son was last ranked as the team’s 19th best prospect…back in 2022. So the 27-year-old isn’t exactly a prospect, but since his recall in late August, has started five of six games, only sitting against a southpaw. It therefore looks pretty clear that he’s the team’s starting right-fielder on the strong side of a platoon.

With 80/80 Raw Power, I don’t care how he was ranked as a prospect, I’m interested! He has posted some incredible HR/FB rates over partial seasons in the minors. Back in 2019 in Single-A, he posted a 32.8% mark and .293 ISO, while he posted insane marks at High-A and Double-A in 2021 of 47.9% and 50%, to go with a .340 and .270 ISO, respectively. Unsurprisingly, he hasn’t quite been able to maintain such lofty marks since, but has been at 23.8% and above over any reasonable amount of playing time. Both his HardHit% and maxEV support well above average power.

Of course, there’s a catch. With all that power comes tons of swings and misses, and lots of strikeouts. He has been above a 30% strikeout rate for most of his career, but did improve to 29.5% at Triple-A this year. What’s odd is he doesn’t hit a ton of fly balls, but he’s been a line drive machine since arriving at Triple-A last year, which has boosted his BABIP.

With his strikeout issues, he kind of seems like a Joey Gallo kind of player, and you never know where that strikeout rate ultimately lands. His projections are all over the place in that regard. But he’s also a hitter that could perhaps put together a hot couple of weeks and knock out seven homers, so you might as well speculate in deeper leagues in which you need home runs.

Dylan Crews | WAS

Crews was our sixth best overall prospect and his arrival has been highly anticipated. With 60/60 Raw Power and 60/60 Speed, he seems like a fantasy owner’s dream. Recalled in late August, he’s started every game in right field, even hitting leadoff in his last four.

The 22-year-old has shown slightly above average power in the minors, with HR/FB rates in the low-to-mid double digits between Double-A and Triple-A this year, while his ISO has fallen a bit short of .200. But with a HardHit% of 43.3% and maxEV of 112.6 MPH at Triple-A, his power upside looks clear. But like some other names, he’ll need to raise his FB% to become a more significant home run contributor.

His stolen base potential looks like it’s better right now than his power, as he stole a combined 25 bases in the minors this year, nearly double his home run total. He was also an excellent basestealer, succeeding 83.3% of the time.

He actually improved his strikeout rate at Triple-A, along with his SwStk%, which is a great sign, but his BABIP dipped below .300, so you have to wonder whether he’ll even be neutral in batting average. The projections aren’t optimistic.

Overall, it’s pretty clear that he has a lot of the tools that make fantasy owners drool, with the potential to produce a bit of everything.

Henry Davis | PIT

He’s back! After Joey Bart was placed on the IL, Davis got the call to return to the Majors after disappointing with the bat last year and hitting poorly during his time this year. But with 70/70 Raw Power at catcher, he’s someone you can’t give up on.

That power hasn’t exactly translated to production yet, though, as he boasts just a 9.8% HR/FB rate and .118 ISO in the Majors, but he has shown much more power in the minors. At Triple-A this year, he posted an 18.3% HR/FB rate and .248 ISO, though I would like to see more impressive HardHit% and maxEV marks to feel like there really is big power in his bat. Unlike some other names on this list, he has hit a high rate of fly balls for most of his professional career, though that could hurt his BABIP.

Strikeouts had been a major issue in the Majors this year, but not so much in the minors, as he isn’t swinging and missing as much as you might expect given the high strikeout rate. That’s encouraging as it might be easier to improve upon and help him avoid a batting average flirting with the Mendoza Line (sub-.200).

Aside from the power and strikeouts, he does steal bases, so could potentially chip in five to ten over a full season, which is a nice little bonus. It could help take the sting out of his batting average, at the very least.

There aren’t many catchers likely available in your league that have the fantasy upside that Davis possesses. So if you are desperate for an upgrade or fill an injury hole, he’s as good a speculation as any.