2023 Fantasy Baseball Prospects: Corbin Carroll, Gunnar Henderson & More!
I’ve been playing fantasy baseball long enough to have a print-out of a 1993 draft my seventh-grade friends and I did (and then had to upload to CompuServe!), but I’m also old enough to remember literally RUNNING to my computer to pick up Mike Trout once I saw he was called up. For anyone else who can remember picking up Trout that season, they’ll also remember how they (more than likely) won their fantasy baseball league because of that waiver add.
The days of being able to pick up a generational prospect in the middle of the season are more or less gone (due to the proliferation of articles and websites like this one), so we’re going to have to adjust our thinking a bit and start targeting those types of players in our drafts. If you don’t, someone else in your league will.
That’s not to say those moves will work out for you – for every Mike Trout or Bryce Harper, there is a Max Scherzer (who took multiple years and multiple teams to pan out) or Jurickson Profar. And the latter list of busts goes on and on. BUT, we shouldn’t be scared of taking a flier on those types of prospects because they provide a TON of upside at the end of your draft, and their only downside is that you might end up dropping them after a few weeks.
With all that in mind – and the caveat that you might need to stash most of these guys for a few weeks or months – let’s dig into 10 prospects you should have on your radar (and cheatsheet) as you go into your fantasy baseball draft.
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2023 Fantasy Baseball Prospect Hitters
Corbin Carroll, Outfield, Arizona Diamondbacks
Carroll tops many NL Rookie of the Year lists – and for good reason. He hit 24 home runs and stole 31 bases in 91 minor league games last season (combined AA and AAA) and hit .260 with four home runs and two steals in 104 at-bats after getting called up to the big leagues. The downside with Carroll is that you’ll likely have to take him in the top 100 of your draft (his current ADP is 95) so you’re going to have to pay a pretty penny due to his buzziness. Is he worth it? I’d say so because he has 20 HR/30 steal upside, but I wouldn’t blame anyone if they let someone else pay a draft premium here.
Gunnar Henderson, Third Base, Baltimore Orioles
Henderson is another buzzy player who is going around the 100 mark of drafts (currently caring a 110 ADP on our tracker), but again, he has the potential upside to warrant his draft position. Like Carroll, Henderson had a solid AA/AAA season in which he hit .297 with 19 home runs and 22 steals in 112 games before being called up and hitting .259 with four home runs and one steal in 116 at-bats. Also like Carroll, Henderson is a leading candidate to win Rookie of the Year (in the American League). And also like Carroll, I wouldn’t blame anyone if they let someone else pay a draft premium. Henderson probably has a little less upsthane as Carroll, so I’d probably lean toward Carroll if you’re dead-set on grabbing one of these two.
Josh Jung, Third Base, Texas Rangers
We’re getting much lower on the draft board here as Jung has a 170 ADP on our tracker, so the potential downside is a lot less. That said, the upside is a bit less as Jung doesn’t have the potential steal upside of Carroll or Henderson. He hit .204 with five home runs in 98 big league at-bats last year (so that average is a bit worrisome), but he should be able to scrape his way to 25 or so home runs if he gets a full season of at-bats this year. I don’t know if I’d jump at Jung at 170, but he’s definitely worth a look if you can get him a little later than that.
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Triston Casas, First Base, Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox are a mess (Red Sox fan here), but Casas is one of the few potential bright spots for Boston this season. The Red Sox designated Eric Hosmer for assignment, signaling that they’re ready to fully hand the keys to Casas. Currently being picked around 165, Casas only hit .197 in 76 big league at-bats last season. However, he hit five home runs during his call-up, so we were able to see some of his power-hitting potential. Assuming he sees a full season of at-bats, Casas should be able to provide 25 home run upside while adding a handful of steals. His spot on the Red Sox roster is (theoretically) secure so I think he’s worth taking around his current ADP.
Jordan Walker, Third Base, St. Louis Cardinals
Yet anothird-base base (sort of) prospect, Walker can likely be had at the end of your draft and projects a ton of upside. He’s unlikely to start the season with the Cardinals, but the 20-year-old has a shot at winning an outfield spot this spring. If he plays anything close to a full season (that’s admittedly a big if), Walker could provide fantasy managers with a .300 average with 20 homerun/20 steal potential. That’s more of a best-case scenario, but that’s a scenario that more than warrants an end-of-draft flier.
Miguel Vargas, First Base, Los Angeles Dodgers
Vargas had a rough experience in the big leagues last season in hitting just .170 in 47 at-bats, but the 23-year-old is getting a shot at the starting second base job for the Dodgers after hitting .304 with 17 home runs and 16 steals in AAA last year. He’s currently dealing with a hairline fracture in his pinkie (which is a little worrisome), but we could be looking at a 20-20 player with big run-scoring potential in a powerful Dodgers lineup if he wins the starting job this spring. Even better, you can currently get theDodgers's top prospect at the end of your drafts and he’ll soon have positional eligibility at second base if he wins the job.
Esteury Ruiz, Outfield, Oakland A’s
I’m honestly not sure Ruiz really belongs on this list in terms of talent, but hear me out. The A’s horrible roster provides him the potential for an everyday spot, and he provides a lot of upside on the base paths – especially with the new rules – and you can currently get him around 183 in your draft. Assuming he sees something close to a full season of at-bats, Ruiz could steal 50 bases. Will he? I don’t know. He could spend a good deal of the season in the minors. He could hit .171 in the majors as he did in his 35 big league at-bats last season. But with steals being at a premium these days, I’d say he’s worth the risk toward the end of your draft.
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2023 Fantasy Baseball Prospect Pitchers
Hunter Brown, Houston Astros
Now that we’ve covered some of the major hitting prospects, let’s move on to pitchers. I started with hitters for a reason – they’re much more predictable (and I use that term loosely). Especially in the current era of innings limit. However, Brown could push his way into the Astros rotation – and he has great stuff. In 20.1 innings with the Astros last season, Brown put up 22 strikeouts to go along with two holds and a 0.89 and 1.08 WHIP. And again, he’s more or less free toward the end of drafts. Best-case scenario – he puts up high strikeout numbers (albeit on limited innings) as tAstros'ros fifth starter. Worst-case scenario (barring injury) – he spends a few months as a multiple-inning middle reliever with a high strikeout percentage.
Grayson Rodriguez, Baltimore Orioles
Rodriguez is supposed to begin the season on the Orioles roster, so that’s a great start! But like Brown and every young pitcher these days, Rodriguez will likely be on an innings limit this season, so his upside will be capped. And you’ll likely have to grab him as a top-200 player in your draft. Is that ideal? No. However, we’re still talking about a late-round flier (and he might have some decent trade value in your league due to his top-prospect status), so Rodriguez is definitely worth a late-round pick.
Hayden Wesnewski, Chicago Cubs
Wesnewski looked great in 33.0 big league inning last season as he posted a 2.18 ERA with a 0.94 WHIP and 33 strikeouts. He’s on a bad team (and may spend some time in the minors once Kyle Hendricks is healthy), but there’s a decent chance Wesnewski starts the season as tCubs'ubs fifth starter and is worth the end-of-draft pick just in case he takes the job and runs with it.
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