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Last week, three prospects (Kyle Schwarber, Michael Conforto, and Aaron Nola) and their current major league situations were outlined and profiled for fantasy baseball managers. This week, updates on Schwarber and Conforto will be given, as something has changed about their current major league situation.
Aaron Nola will receive no follow up, as his situation remains the same: Nola is more than likely going to remain in the Phillies rotation for the rest of the year. Also this week, three more recently prospects will be discussed along with their opportunity for production for fantasy baseball managers.
Editor’s Note: to read about even more MLB prospects, rookies and potential call-ups, be sure to check out our MLB prospects for fantasy baseball homepage which has lots of great weekly analysis.
MLB Prospect Updates & Recent Call-Ups - Week 17
Kyle Schwarber (C / OF, CHC)
Owned in 67% of Fleaflicker leagues
The Cubs are moving Schwarber into left field. All in all, this is a good sign. While the Cubs may not like Schwarber's defense as a catcher, it says a lot about their love of his offensive production (.352 BA, three HR, one SB, 182 OPS+, 1.019 OPS in 54 AB) that they are moving him to a position that they were trying to trade for. After losing Ben Zobrist to the Royals, the Cubs may have decided to keep Schwarber in the game long term by filling their short term need. Fantasy baseball managers should now feel more confident in Schwarber's opportunities for offensive production going forward and should add the catcher turned left fielder while he is still slugging this hot.
Michael Conforto (OF, NYM)
Owned in 15% of Fleaflicker leagues
The Mets nearly acquired Carlos Gomez and are still attempting to acquire Jay Bruce, Gerardo Parra, and Justin Upton. While it may seem strange to keep Juan Lagares in a lineup attempting to make a run at the playoffs, the Mets seem to have been mainly seeking LF, as they also missed out on Ben Zobrist. Conforto is currently batting .250, with a .743 OPS. Conforto isn't a heavy home run hitter, he tends to just get a lot of XBH. While it is possible that some shifting occurs in the outfield that allows Conforto to not have his spot taken, the trade talks of acquiring high end left fielders isn't the best of signs. The situation for Conforto is murky, but it depends if the Mets make a LF acquisition by the deadline.
Zach Lee (SP, LAD)
Owned in 1% of Fleaflicker leagues
Zach Lee got blown up in his MLB debut against the Mets; ending up with a 13.50 ERA, a 29 ERA+, a 5.22 FIP, 2.571 WHIP, 21.2 H/9, in four and two-thirds IP. This certainly doesn't spell the end of times for the talented young pitcher, but it probably will for this season unless he is summoned in September for bullpen help. Now that the Dodgers acquired Mat Latos and Jim Johnson in a three-team deal, they seem to be quite set in starting pitching and late inning relief work. Lee is a good pitcher, but on this loaded roster, he most likely won't have any fantasy value for fantasy baseball managers for the rest of the season.
Stephen Piscotty (1B / OF, STL)
Owned in 5% of Fleaflicker leagues
Stephen Piscotty has been hitting well since his major league call-up with a .333 BA, .770 OPS, and 115 OPS+ in 18 AB. Just as the Cardinals felt optimistic about Matt Adams return from the DL, Matt Holliday re-injures his right quad. This is unfortunately good news for fantasy baseball managers looking to take a chance on Piscotty. Piscotty was originally moved to first base to replace the injured Adams and the struggling Mark Reynolds. Now that a spot may have been vacated in LF, the chances for Piscotty to continue hitting just increased. If fantasy baseball managers are looking for a deep league option with reasonably high upside, Piscotty can be counted on for continued opportunity and production for now unless the Cardinals make a last second move for a bat.
Joe Ross (SP, WAS)
Owned in 18% of Fleaflicker leagues
Joe Ross, younger brother to Tyson Ross, has been a very valuable asset to the major league club in Washington while Stephen Strasburg remains injury plagued. So far in 2015 Ross has a 3.03 ERA, 123 ERA+, a very impressive 1.85 FIP, 0.949 WHIP, and a 9.4 K/9 in 32 and two-thirds IP. If the Nationals want to win a pennant, Joe Ross is making a case for why he is essential to that cause. The Nationals haven't acquired any rotation members this week, just Jonathan Papelbon. Joe Ross seems to be auditioning for his long term opportunities at the end of the season upon Strasburg's return. In that time, fantasy baseball manager's can trust in streaming Ross, as his isolated pitching performance is fantastic. Make sure to keep an eye on what happens to Ross, but if he keeps pitching like this, it will be hard to replace him with the struggling Strasburg if the Nationals want to make a run in October.
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