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Three top fantasy baseball prospects - Samuel Basallo, Jordan Lawlar, Joe Boyle - that can make big impacts. These MLB prospects are waiver wire pickups or stashes.
This season, fantasy managers have seen several high-end prospects make an immediate impact in the major leagues. In June, Milwaukee's Jacob Misiorowski and Cincinnati's Chase Burns stole the show and are now viewed as must-start fantasy assets.
In this piece, we will take a look at two of the top hitting prospects at Triple-A and a budding arm in the Tampa Bay system.
Should those players be left on the waiver wire, or should fantasy managers add them before their breakout? Let's dive in!
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Samuel Basallo, C, Baltimore Orioles
Current Level: AAA
Availability: 5% rostered
2025 AAA stats: 51 G, .265/.380/.576, 8 2B, 15 HR, 47 SO, 32 BB
Samuel Basallo remains a must-stash prospect in all leagues as we approach the start of July. However, while it was somewhat understandable that Nick Kurtz and Roman Anthony had their promotions delayed due to log jams at their positions at the major league level, there isn't really a good excuse for Basallo not to be in the majors right now.
While the Orioles seem to have thrown in the towel on their season, they have a golden opportunity to get Basallo some run at the major league level with Adley Rutschman on the IL, and they're not taking it.
Basallo is one of the best prospects in all of baseball (I ranked him third in my latest non-debuted prospect rankings). At only 20 years old, he is raking in Triple-A with a 151 WRC+ and 15 HRs already.
How good is Samuel Basallo's Triple-A data? @EliBenPorat writes: "This is one of the most eye-opening, mind-blowing, jaw-droppingly good damage on contact profiles you’ll ever see." https://t.co/XrqZj2VPVO pic.twitter.com/TcyWB7OnLf
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) June 23, 2025
If Rutschman's injury doesn't push the Orioles to call up Basallo, there are some concerns that they could be holding him at Triple-A long enough to retain rookie eligibility next season so they can chase a PPI pick. That would be incredibly disappointing, but I guess it would be hard to be too shocked.
Whenever Basallo gets the call, he has the upside to be a starting-caliber fantasy catcher in all league formats.
-Written by Kevin Luo
Jordan Lawlar, INF, Arizona Diamondbacks
Current Level: AAA
Availability: 5% rostered
2025 AAA stats: 53 G, .319/.410/.583, 19 2B, 10 HR, 60 SO, 30 BB, 18 SB
The Diamondbacks are in a predicament right now. They don't have a horrible record at 41-39, but they have been bitten by the injury bug to say the least. Their star offseason signing, Corbin Burnes, had to get Tommy John surgery, as did their star closer, Justin Martinez.
Now, Corbin Carroll is out indefinitely with a fractured left wrist after being hit on the hand by a pitch. Do the Diamondbacks try to fight back in one of the toughest divisions in baseball, or do they start a soft sell in the coming weeks?
There has been speculation surrounding many Diamondbacks players drawing interest across the league, most notably Eugenio Suarez. One thing the Diamondbacks need to determine this season is whether Jordan Lawlar will be a major part of their future. Trading Suarez is one option for them to open up full-time playing time for Lawlar.
Both of Lawlar's short stints in the major leagues have been incredibly disappointing, as he has had a negative WRC+ both times. However, he's been incredibly productive in the minors again this season. He has a 137 WRC+ with 10 HRs and 18 SBs in Triple-A.
When Lawlar returns to the majors, I expect it'll be in a situation where he has a little bit of playing time runway. When that happens, he still has five-category upside. However, Lawlar tweaked his hamstring earlier in the week and was recently placed on the 7-day IL, which will slightly push back his return to the major leagues.
Given his injury, Lawlar is only worth stashing in deeper formats for the time being.
Jordan Lawlar was lifted after a 1st inning AB yesterday. There was nothing obvious when he ran down to 1B, but did not come back out in 2nd inning
Lawlar had missed 4 games with a sore hamstring and Blaze Alexander got call to Diamondbacks to replace injured Ildemaro Vargas pic.twitter.com/ySrPm4ABlD
— Jack Sommers (@shoewizard59) June 26, 2025
- Written by Kevin Luo
Joe Boyle, SP, Tampa Bay Rays
Current Level: AAA
Availability: 5% rostered
2025 MLB stats: 68 IP, 1.85 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 88 SO, 28 BB
Boyle somehow remained in Triple-A Durham this week and was good again outside of the three walks. It is time for him to head to Tampa. Boyle has tossed 68 Triple-A innings this year and has a 1.85 ERA to pair with an impressive 0.99 WHIP. The walk rate has improved significantly and now sits at just 10.3 percent, a respectable mark in Triple-A, where the zone is tighter and the ABS Challenge system is in effect.
The fastball averages 98 mph and tops out at over 100 mph. Throwing from a 5-foot-8 release height, Boyle creates an average ride on the pitch but does a great job of manipulating the pitch and blowing it by hitters. In Triple-A, it has an impressive 17 percent swinging strike rate.
Boyle’s new look split-changeup runs up to 95 mph and sits 93 mph regularly. It has good depth and 15-20 inches of arm-side movement. The slider sits around 90 mph with a strong gyro-shape and misses bats at high clips.
Boyle made a spot start in Tampa Bay earlier this season and tossed five innings of two-run ball (zero earned runs) with seven punchouts.
The biggest problem is that the Rays' rotation is full. While many of the arms have had some ups and downs, they are also arms that would benefit from innings limits down the stretch. A six-man rotation could make sense with Boyle being a part, especially if the Rays can remain in the Wild Card race.
Without a current path to the major leagues, fantasy managers in shallow formats should leave Boyle on the waiver wire for the time being. However, managers in deeper leagues looking for an upside starting pitcher for the second half should keep Boyle stashed on their bench.
Joe Boyle gets himself out of trouble in the first inning with some filth. Slider for the 1st K, splitter for the 2nd.
Pairing these two pitches with an upper 90s fastball is just ridiculous… pic.twitter.com/B9nWTD4zO5
— Jake (@TBRaysCentral) June 24, 2025
- Written by Chris Clegg
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