Speculate On These 6 More Recent Callups?

Not every callup is a top prospect, of course, like some of the names in yesterday’s post. That, however, doesn’t mean that lesser prospects can be ignored. So let’s review another six recently recalled hitters to determine how excited we should be.

Jacob Melton | HOU OF

Melton shows up as the Astros top prospect, but failed to make the top 100. That sounds like a problem for the Astros system in general if they don’t even have anyone in that top 100! With 65/65 Raw Power and 55/5 Speed scouting grades, I’m already curious if he could potentially provide a nice power/speed mix.

Recalled last week on Monday, Melton has started five of seven games in center field, with one of those two non-starts coming against a left-handed starter. As a lefty, he’ll likely serve on the strong side of a platoon. Injury has limited him to just 104 Triple-A PAs this season, but he did record 443 PAs between Double-A and Triple-A last year.

Last year, he showed some power with a .173 ISO, but even more speed with 30 steals to just four caught stealings. This year in a much smaller sample size, he pushed his walk rate to a career best at Triple-A, while reducing his SwStk% into single digits for the first time. That’s a real nice pair of improvements. He also posted another 113+ maxEV, mid-double digit HR/FB rate, and an ISO that jumped above .200. His steals pace was a bit off, with just six, but a full season would have netted him around 18 home runs and 36 steals, which is intriguing.

The projection systems think he’ll kill your average, but he doesn’t whiff or strikeout too frequently, so it’s not a given. I also wouldn’t worry too much about batting average over the small sample that is the rest of the season. Go speculate here for a touch of power and some speed.

Brett Harris | ATH 3B

After Gio Urshela was let go, the Athletics had an opening at third base, and Harris was given the first opportunity to start there regularly. He’s no prospect though, as the 27-year-old was last ranked just 24th in the organization and his scouting grades don’t exactly scream fantasy asset. Though perhaps his 60/60 Field grade will keep him in the lineup.

He only recorded 255 PAs in the minors this year as he dealt with injury, but split time between the minors and Majors last year as well and gave us a larger sample size to evaluate him from. Last season and for much of his professional career, he showed excellent plate patience with double digit walk rates, while striking out around 20% of the time or less. He has posted single digit SwStk% everywhere he has played, which is impressive.

He has posted solid HR/FB rates, but I’m skeptical he could maintain those levels in the Majors, given pedestrian HardHit% and maxEV marks. Still, the better than average strikeout rates mean he’ll be able to contribute some power, but highly unlikely his ISO comes anywhere near the .200+ he posted in the minors this year.

He also has some speed, stealing seven bases this year and six last. So that’s double digit steal potential over a full season to go along with double digit home run potential. It’s far from exciting, but makes for a respectable injury replacement in deep leagues.

Nathan Church | STL OF

Victor Scott II’s injury opened up center field in St. Louis, and Church received the first shot. As a lefty, though, he’ll likely serve on the strong side of a platoon. Church might be even less of a prospect than Harris, as he ranked just 41st among Cardinals prospects, though he’s a bit younger than the latter. His scouting grades suggest potential batting average and steals contributions, so perhaps he proves appealing to fantasy owners.

He recorded 385 minor league PAs this year, split between Double-A and Triple-A. He made fantastic contact, with an overall strikeout rate just below 10% and barely above it during his time at Triple-A. He has also always posted single digit SwStk% marks. The performance certainly explains his Hit scouting grades!

He even flashed some newly developed power this year. He posted just a 6% HR/FB rate and .106 ISO at Double-A last year, but those rates jumped to 13.4% and .196 in the minors this year. His HardHit% and maxEV were also acceptable and support the averageish power, which is a nice improvement.

His speed is still his best potential fantasy contribution. He swiped 16 bases this year after stealing 24 last year. But the addition of some power means he’s not totally punchless and could knock a couple of homers before the season ends if he remains in the lineup.

Finally, because of his strong strikeout rate, he has been able to hit .329 in the minors this year without a super inflated BABIP mark. Obviously, you can’t count on that from him in the Majors, but he has the potential to actually add value in the category. Of course, BABIP could bounce any way over a small sample, so there’s no guarantee. He’s worth a look in deep leagues.

Drew Gilbert | SF OF

It’s tough to get a true read on who is going to start each night in right field for the Giants. Grant McCray has picked up a couple of recent starts, but it’s mostly been Gilbert after the team traded away Mike Yastrzemski.

Gilbert is actually a real prospect, ranking sixth in the organization, but with middling scouting grades across the board, though above average speed. Perhaps he could provide a touch of power and speed to make fantasy owners smile?

Like some other names on this list, Gilbert is a lefty and is likely to serve on the strong side of a platoon, though he did face one of two lefties since his recall. In the minors this year, most of which came withing the Mets system, he posted strong plate discipline metrics, with a double digit walk rate, sub-20% strikeout rate and single digit SwStk%. I love to see that. He even showcased a fly ball tendency, though did hit far too many pop-ups, which combined to push his BABIP below .300.

It’s a bit weird that he hits so many fly balls as his power has been mediocre at best. He posted just a 12.3% HR/FB rate this year, though that drove a .204 ISO, which is higher than I’d expect given the HR/FB rate. His HardHit% and maxEV support around league average power. Despite possessing 55/55 Speed scores, he hasn’t been much of a basestealer, as he stole just six bases this year, and he hasn’t been any better in the past.

I like the plate discipline here, but that’s about it. He’s only an NL-Only guy while he’s starting.

Cody Freeman | TEX 3B

Have the Rangers soured on Josh Jung again, or is he battling another injury? Since Freeman’s recall on Sunday, he has started two straight at third base, with Jung sitting on the bench. Without any word, it’s possible that the team has decided to give Freeman a shot. Or perhaps it’s just a minor physical issue with Jung and he’ll be back starting any day now.

Freeman isn’t much of a prospect, last ranking just 20th in the Rangers system. His scouting grades are probably the worst among the names on this list as well. But his minor league performance suggests he’s not worth completely ignoring!

At Triple-A this season, he posted a massively improved single digit strikeout rate and a microscopic 4.5% SwStk%. That’s some serious contact skills! He nearly walked as often as he struck out. The exciting thing is that he didn’t even cut down on his swing. Along with the career best contact numbers, he posted a career high BABIP, HR/FB rate, and ISO! His HardHit% and maxEV were nothing special, but still suggest around average power. He also showed a touch of speed, stealing eight bases and swiped 15 last year.

All in all, this was a major breakout, as he posted a .402 wOBA after just a .340 wOBA at Double-A last season. Without a whole lot of power or stolen base potential, he’s not exactly someone to rush out into the free pool for. But he could be a nice all-around contributor if he has indeed overtaken third base.

James Outman | MIN OF

The Twins traded away four of their offensive starters, opening up spots for a bunch of new names. Outman is the latest beneficiary (though he’s mostly benefiting from an injury ahead of him), as he was recalled on Saturday and has started two straight in left field since.

You might remember Outman after a surprise fantasy performance back in 2023 with the Dodgers. This is the same Outman! He’s recorded just over a season’s worth of PAs in the Majors, has walked at a double digit clipped, struck out too often, and killed his fantasy owners’ batting averages. The good news is he has also hit 30 homers and stolen 18 bases. So he’s got both power and speed, which we fantasy folk love.

In the minors this year, he did more of the same, walking at a double digit clip like always, but striking out just over 30% of the time. He continued hitting fly balls at a 40%+ rate, which really boosted his home run total thanks to a 25% HR/FB rate. That was backed by a robust 50% HardHit% and maxEV above 110 MPH. Oh, and he also posted a .296 ISO. The man’s got power! Despite trotting around the bases 23 times, he also managed to steal 17 bases.

This is exactly the type to speculate on in most formats. Of course, he’s a lefty and figures to sit against them, so that’s going to cut down on his counting stats. But you don’t easily find power/speed combos like this in your free agent pool. He also gets a nice boost in OBP formats, so definitely be more aggressive there since he’s not going to hit for average.