Pitcher List Dynasty Mock: 10 Prospects We Forgot

Twelve writers. 25 prospects. Over the last few weeks, the Pitcher List staff has written up 300 different prospect-eligible players for fans to consider—either in dynasty formats, keeper leagues, or redraft formats for those close to the big leagues.

However, that doesn’t mean we covered the exact top 300 prospects, or that there aren’t some hidden gems still out there for you to discover in your leagues.

Here are 10 prospects in particular that I think deserve their own write-ups even though we did not select them in our mock draft. These players should be on the radar in most dynasty formats—and some of them in redraft leagues as well.

The full draft board can be viewed here

 

1. Sheldon Neuse, 2B/3B, OAK

 

Oakland’s recent move to trade Jurickson Profar to the Padres has opened up a starting spot at second base in the Bay, and while the expectation is that former top prospect Franklin Barreto will take that spot, don’t count out Sheldon Neuse.

Neuse didn’t make our draft despite blasting 27 home runs with 102 RBI and a .317/.389/.550 slash line at Triple-A Las Vegas last year. He did get a chance at the big league level, playing mostly at second base and hitting .250 with three doubles and a 31.1% strikeout rate.

Neuse has the tools to be a bat-first regular at second base, although his glove work is actually not bad for a career third baseman who only recently made the transition. Barreto and fellow prospect Jorge Mateo may get in Neuse’s way, but don’t be surprised to see him contributing in the big leagues before long.

 

2. Domingo Leyba, SS, AZ

 

Like Neuse, Domingo Leyba is another infield prospect who got his first crack at the big leagues this past season, after a strong campaign in Triple-A. Leyba has long been a contact-oriented middle infield prospect whose power was projected to limit him to utility duties in the Show.

However, after hitting 19 home runs in 498 plate appearances in Triple-A last year, Leyba could end up emerging as a big league regular at either shortstop or second base.

Of course, 19 home runs in the PCL with the juiced ball is a tad suspect, so it’s easy to have your questions about the 24-year-old, but he should get more opportunities in the big leagues this year—and is a prospect worth keeping an eye on in dynasty leagues and even NL-only formats.

 

3. Zack Collins, C/DH, CWS

 

Zack Collins is the third, and final, player on this list who has already made his major league debut, having slashed .186/.307/.349 with three home runs in 102 plate appearances for the White Sox last year.

He fared much better at Triple-A, mashing 19 home runs in 88 games with a .282/.408/.548 line. The prodigious raw power as a catcher is what makes Collins such an intriguing prospect, but the strikeout issues (38.2% in MLB, 26.7% in Triple-A) are hard to ignore, even if his walk rates help mitigate that somewhat.

Also hard to ignore is his defense behind the plate, which could force a position change at the big league level. If Collins settles in as a first base/designated hitter type player, he may be best suited for a platoon/bench bat role, which kills his fantasy value.

However, three true outcome sluggers with poor defense have made themselves fantasy relevant in the past, a la Adam Dunn, so Collins is at least worth an eye in deeper dynasty formats and AL-only leagues.

 

4. Will Benson, OF, CLE

 

One look at his FanGraphs page and it’s not hard to see why Will Benson did not get selected in our dynasty mock—but also why he makes this list.

Benson is an extraordinarily toolsy outfield prospect, compared to Jason Heyward coming out of high school for his combination of power and speed. That combo has shown up so far in the minor leagues, as he hit 22 home runs and swiped 27 bases last year in 123 games between A and High-A.

However, he also hit a miserable .232, including a .189 average in 217 at-bats at High-A. Sub-.200 averages are not going to cut it in the minor leagues, and his strikeout rate continues to hover around 30%.

Unless Benson fixes the holes in his swing, he may never reach his potential—or even the big leagues at all. If he starts to make more contact, though, his potential is through the roof.

How confident you are in his ability to do so will determine if you consider him a dynasty asset worth obtaining at this point in his career.

 

5. Michael Siani, OF, CIN

 

Michael Siani was a fourth-round pick by the Reds in 2018, drawing comparisons to Grady Sizemore for his five-tool contributions. We haven’t seen those tools materialize just yet, save for one: the speed.

Siani swiped 45 bases in 121 games last year in A-ball, albeit with 15 caught stealing. Still, that kind of speed is worth a gamble in fantasy formats, even if his bat (.253/.333/.339) still has some catching up to do.

Scouts like him as a potential 20/20 center fielder if everything comes together, but there’s also potential as a speedy fourth outfielder with a bit of pop, a la Jake Marisnick. No prospect outside of our top 300 is risk-averse, but Siani is worth a gamble in dynasty formats for owners who are looking for speed.

 

6. Franklin Perez, RHP, DET

 

Few prospects have seen their luster dim as rapidly as Franklin Perez, especially since his performance hasn’t been the issue—just his health. The big right-hander threw just 7.2 innings last year after only mustering 19.2 the previous season, with a myriad of shoulder injuries seriously delaying his development.

Still just 22, Perez has only been pitching since he was 15, and there’s a reason he was the headliner in the Justin Verlander trade few summers ago. He has an exciting four-pitch mix and very advanced feel on the mound, which made him a high-floor prospect as a mid-rotation starter.

That floor has bottomed out now thanks to injuries, but it’s not hard to imagine he gets back there. At the very least, he’s worth a look in those deeper dynasty formats that can afford an injury stash of his caliber.

 

7. Brennan Malone, RHP, AZ

 

Brennan Malone is a power right-hander who hit 99 mph in high school before Arizona made him a competitive-balance pick in 2019. He’s only thrown eight professional innings, but scouts love the changes he made to his slider last year, giving him two plus pitches along with a curveball and changeup that look decent enough to make him a mid-rotation starter.

Power pitchers always come with more injury risk, and Malone’s profile certainly makes him a bullpen risk (albeit a good one), but he’s still work a look in dynasty formats for his size, velocity and emerging secondaries.

 

8. Will Wilson, SS, SFG

 

Will Wilson was LA’s first-round pick in 2019, a bat-first shortstop out of NC State who blasted 31 home runs in college and tacked on five more in 46 professional games last summer. He was shipped to San Francisco after less than a year with the Angels, however, in an effort to clear Zack Cozart’s contract off the books.

Wilson may not have the highest ceiling, making him somewhat of a boring dynasty target—especially in the later rounds—but his raw power from the right side and solid glove work give him a nice opportunity hit 15-20 home runs as a big league starter at either second or shortstop—and there’s nothing wrong with pursuing that in dynasty formats.

 

9. Parker Meadows, OF, DET

 

Parker Meadows is kind of the opposite to Wilson—a much higher-risk, higher-reward prospect. The younger brother of Austin Meadows, Parker hit just .221/.296/.312 with seven home runs and 14 stolen bases in Single-A last year, a steep decline from his strong debut in 2018.

The first pick in the second round in the 2018 draft, Meadows still projects as a toolsy center field prospect with 20/20 potential. While he may never be his brother, he is a decent buy-low candidate in deeper fantasy formats for the potential that he still possesses. At 20, there’s still a long way to go here and plenty of time to right the ship.

 

10. Gabriel Cancel, 2B, KC

 

An offensive-minded second baseman from the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy, Gabriel Cancel broke out at the plate in 2019, hitting 18 home runs and swiping 15 bases—both career highs.

He has plate-discipline issues (6.6% walk rate, 28.1% strikeout rate) and profiles more as a utility infielder, but if it all clicks, the 22-year-old could be an above-average-hitting regular at the keystone, making him a dynasty asset worth chasing in the later rounds.

Others given consideration: OF D’Shawn Knowles, OF Buddy Reed, RHP Anthony Castro, 3B Malcolm Nunez, 3B Tyler Nevin, OF Lazaro Armenteros

Graphic by Justin Paradis (@freshmeatcomm on Twitter)