Fantasy Baseball - Minor League Report

Fantasy Baseball Player Prospecting: Jesus Montero, Felix Doubront, Jarred Cosart, more

August 31, 2011 @ 14:35:04

By Chris Hadorn
Edited by Nicholas Minnix

Your fantasy baseball rankings look a little stale. KFFL.com's Fantasy Baseball Player Prospecting series highlights the exploits of minor league baseball players, including top MLB prospects. Find out who'll make an impact, whether it's in your rotisserie or head-to-head baseball game next week or in your fantasy baseball keeper league two years from now.

This morning some major prospect news came out of the Bronx. Catcher Jesus Montero is headed to the majors after spending the last two seasons at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he has batted .289 with an .843 OPS. He also averaged 19.5 home runs and 71 RBIs in the International League.

Montero is expected to take a share of the designated hitter starts versus left-handed pitchers.

Due to the uncertainty of playing time, Montero is a risky pickup in shallow leagues. However, in the wake of Jorge Posada's struggles, the Yankees are looking for anybody to step up and run away with the designated hitter role. Montero has the advanced bat to step up to the challenge.

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Cosart has much to like - and work on

Yankees top pitching prospects Manny Banuelos and Dellin Betances won't be joining the big league club in September. Innings limits and business factors are some of the reasons why the Yankees are bypassing the opportunity to bring up the two promising hurlers to serve in their bullpen down the stretch.

Banuelos, 20, doesn't have to be added to the 40-man roster this winter, so saving his service time is a more appealing option for the Yankees.

With 13 walks in 20 innings since joining Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre, Betances isn't quite ready to make an impact in the majors.

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The Boston Red Sox are bringing up two back-end starter types in left-hander Felix Doubront and righty Kyle Weiland.

Doubront has the better arsenal, which includes a low- to mid-90s fastball and a plus changeup. However, the Venezuelan isn't quite as sharp as Weiland; he carries a reputation for nibbling. Doubront has had trouble with the deep fly this year, yielding 10 home runs in 70 1/3 innings at Triple-A Pawutcket. He also has a very pedestrian 4.22 ERA and 2.35 strikeout-to-walk ratio for a pitcher with his caliber of stuff.

Weiland, a sinkerballer, lacks the sexy repertoire but has a better feel for pitching and throwing strikes than Doubront. The 6-foot-4, 195-pound righty has posted a respectable 3.46 ERA in 122 1/3 innings at Pawtucket and has averaged a strong 8.83 strikeouts per nine innings there.

Both hurlers are likely candidates to make a transition to the Red Sox bullpen over the long term, and they will pitch in relief this September.

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The Tampa Bay Rays aren't expected to bring up strikeout artist Matt Moore during their initial call-ups tomorrow.

Moore's potential promotion is likely going to hinge on the Rays' success over the next seven to 10 days. If the Rays fall out of the race, the organization would likely save his service time for next season.

Moore, arguably the finest pitching prospect in the minors, has gone 11-3 with a 1.35 ERA and 200 strikeouts in 149 minor league innings this season.

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Armed with a high-90s fastball and a wicked breaking ball, Jarred Cosart has filthy stuff, a big reason why the Houston Astros asked for him in the trade that sent Hunter Pence to the Philadelphia Phillies in late July. However, he remains an enigma because of sub-par peripherals.

Since joining Double-A Corpus Christi of the Texas League, Cosart has compiled a 2.78 ERA in 32 1/3 innings, but his 18:10 strikeout-to-walk ratio is not indicative of an ace-caliber pitcher.

The good news is that Cosart's heavy fastball has generated a healthy percentage of ground-ball outs, so there's still a lot to like despite a mediocre strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Author Bio

Chris Hadorn
Chris Hadorn has covered minor league and amateur prospects for more than a decade. He writes for San Diego's North County Times and has been a KFFL fantasy baseball contributor since 2006.