MLB Rookies Off to Strong Starts: Jackson Merrill, Jared Jones, Masyn Winn, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Colton Cowser and More
Discussing some MLB rookies who have started strong at the plate and on the mound.
New faces are constantly making a name for themselves in the MLB. Even though they don’t have much big league experience, they can be a big help for your fantasy team.
Today, let’s take a look at how rookies are performing so far this season. As a reminder, players can still be considered rookies even if they were in the big leagues in a previous season.
Most of these players aren’t widely owned yet, so could be waiver wire additions for your team, especially in standard leagues - these guys are probably owned in more deep leagues and dynasties.
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Top Hitters
The top rookie hitter has been San Diego’s Jackson Merrill. The young outfielder has 21 hits across 63 at-bats and 71 total plate appearances. He’s mostly provided singles, with two doubles and a homer to his name. Merrill has scored 12 runs, stolen four bases, drove in eight runs, walked nine times and struck out 12 times.
Merrill has lived up to the hype in his first taste of the big leagues, and looks like he’s going to stay here moving forward. He shows great plate discipline and should only get better over time. If he’s available in your league still, I’d absolutely find a way to add him.
San Francisco’s Jung Hoo Lee has looked good in his first MLB action. He had 18 hits in his first 17 games, with two doubles and a homer along the way. Lee has scored eight runs, driven in five, stolen two bases, walked six times and struck out eight times.
Being an international signee, his rookie status is a bit different than others, but not every player can immediately have success. He’s a near everyday player and should continue to post big numbers as he settles in, so I’m all for adding him as well.
Chicago Cubs’ Michael Busch has appeared in several of my stories here recently, and still qualifies as a rookie. He had 17 hits in his first 17 games, with six homers and three doubles. Busch has 12 RBIs, 10 runs scored, nine walks and 18 strikeouts.
This is the first real starting job Busch has held in the big leagues, and he’s making the most of it so far. He’s been a hot waiver wire add lately, so act fast if you want him. The success might not last all season, but I’d definitely take advantage of it while he’s going good at the dish.
St. Louis’ Masyn Winn had 17 hits in his first 16 games. He’s doubled and tripled twice along the way, while driving in six and scoring six times. Winn also has three steals, four walks and 10 strikeouts.
Winn has been fantastic to start the season, and is unowned in far too many leagues right now. At least take advantage of his hot start at the plate and stream him until he cools down a bit.
Baltimore’s Colton Cowser has 17 hits in his first 16 contests. He’s doubled six times and homered four times, while driving in 15 runs and scoring eight times. Cowser has two stolen bases, three walks and 14 strikeouts.
Jackson Holliday and a few other youngsters steal most of the headlines in Baltimore, but Cowser has been the one that’s really playing well. He’s earned himself an everyday role and is only available in about 12% of leagues right now. You might as well utilize him while he’s hot at the plate, and just maybe he can be a season-long fantasy asset for your team.
Texas’ Wyatt Langford also had 17 hits in his first 16 games. He has just one double and triple among those knocks, but has eight RBIs and seven runs scored. Langford has struck out 13 times and walked six times.
Langford is one of the top prospects in the game, and while he hasn’t hit for much power yet, his numbers are still solid. If he’s still available in your league, take a chance on him before he starts really mashing at the plate.
The last player that I want to discuss a bit more is Milwaukee’s Jackson Chourio, who had 14 hits in his first 14 games. He’s homered three times and doubled once, driven in 11 and scored seven times. Chourio also has three stolen bases, four walks and 18 strikeouts.
I was surprised to see him still available in about 20% of leagues, so he’s another one I’d add before he really takes off at the plate. He’s playing everyday, and aside from the strikeouts, has been pretty good in his first MLB games.
Some other hitters to keep an eye on are Milwaukee’s Joey Ortiz and Oliver Dunn, Arizona’s Blaze Alexander, St. Louis’ Ivan Herrera and Texas’ Evan Carter.
Top Pitchers
Let’s move on to pitchers, who aren’t enjoying quite as much success as the hitters are.
San Francisco’s Kyle Harrison, Pittsburgh’s Jared Jones and Los Angeles Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto all have made four starts this season.
Harrison is 2-1 with a 4.70 earned run average across 23 innings pitched. He’s struck out 19 and walked just four.
He’s owned in about 80% of leagues, and is a solid streaming option in the other 20%. Things haven’t fully clicked for him yet, but he also hasn’t had any really bad starts either. I trust him most in favorable matchups for now, but is probably one great start away from being a must start.
Jones has been fantastic to start the season, going 1-2 with a 3.13 ERA. He’s struck out 32 batters over 23 innings, while walking only two.
Jones could have even better numbers if he was allowed to pitch a little deeper into games - he hasn’t topped 90 pitches yet, and had only 59 in his last start. The Pirates might look to limit his innings at times this season, so keep that in mind. I still love what Jones has done so far, and the high strikeout marks make some of those shorter starts productive fantasy nights anyways. I’d at least view him as a strong streamer, and someone I’d try to add to my team in any format.
Yamamoto is owned in just about every league, so we’ll stick mostly to stats here. He’s 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA across 16 innings. Yamamoto has 21 strikeouts and just four walks so far.
Since allowing five runs in his first start, Yamamoto has allowed just three runs over 15 innings. He’s reached 91 pitches now, but hasn’t gone more than five innings - over time, I expect that to change, which will help him be one of the top fantasy arms in the league.
Cubs’ Shota Imanaga has not allowed an earned run over three starts so far. He’s 2-0 and has 16 strikeouts over 15 1/3 innings.
He’s owned in nearly every league, and should be added if he’s available. Over time, he should be able to pitch deeper into games, making him that much better of a fantasy asset.
Miami’s Max Meyer was off to a hot start in his first three starts before being sent down. He was 2-0 with a 2.12 ERA, with 14 strikeouts and three walks over 17 innings.
It looks like an effort for Miami to monitor his innings after he missed the entire 2023 season. He’s a great fantasy option when he’s on the MLB mound, so keep an eye out for his callup and stream/roster him while you can.
Kansas City reliever James McArthur has three saves and a win already, and is a rookie this season. He’s struck out 11 over 8 2/3 innings, which makes him a solid fantasy option, even if he isn’t always racking up saves.
Milwaukee’s Abner Uribe earned three saves early in the season before allowing some runs and presumably losing the closer role. He’s still pitching a bunch, and should strikeout plenty of batters, so that also makes him a decent fantasy option.
Oakland’s Mason Miller has a 2.25 ERA and three saves across 7 2/3 innings this season. He’s struck out 15 batters already, and while the Athletics likely aren’t going to win a lot of games, those strikeout numbers should make Miller a good fantasy option.
Other rookie pitchers to keep an eye on are: Yankees’ Luis Gil, Milwaukee’s DL Hall, San Diego’s Yuki Matsui and Matt Waldron, Cubs’ Jordan Wicks, Mets’ Jose Butto and Cleveland’s Cade Smith and Hunter Gaddis. There's a bunch more, but I had to stop somewhere.
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