3 Impact Fantasy Baseball Prospects To Stash - Colton Gordon, Yanquiel Fernandez, Harry Ford

July 4, 2025

Three top fantasy baseball prospects - Colton Gordon, Yanquiel Fernandez, Harry Ford - that can make big impacts. These MLB prospects are waiver wire pickups or stashes.

Prospects have the upside to make a high impact as soon as they get the call to the big leagues. This season, several prospects have become must-start options such as Jacob Misiowroki and Nick Kurtz.

In this piece, we will look at one prospect who has begun to find his footing in the minors and two who are on their way to the big leagues.

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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Colton Gordon, SP, Houston Astros

Current Level: MLB
Availability: 15% rostered
2025 MLB stats: 45 1/3 IP, 4.37 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 41 SO, 7 BB

Gordon is a 26-year-old rookie with a 3-1 record and 3.98 earned run average (ERA) over 40 2/3 innings pitched (IP). His ERA estimators suggest he deserves a mark around 3.50, with his 3.51 xERA and 3.46 xFIP hovering around that figure. However, he hasn't garnered fantasy interest because of a 22 percent K% and a fastball that averages 91.3 mph.

Gordon was never much of a prospect, with the Astros selecting him in the eighth round of the 2021 draft. He had some MiLB success with the caveat that the club was slow to promote him, meaning he was old at virtually every level.

Gordon broke into the high minors with Double-A (Corpus Christi) in 2023, pitching to a 3.95 ERA and 4.03 xFIP over 93 1/3 IP. His .299 BABIP looked normal, and he flashed decent strikeout upside with a 30.7 percent K% against a 9.1 percent BB%.

That earned Gordon a 35-inning taste of Triple-A (Sugar Land), but it didn't go well. His 4.63 ERA wasn't great, and his 6.98 xFIP was completely unplayable. Gordon's K% collapsed to 18.4 percent, while he walked more batters with a 13.5 percent BB%. Gordon's .301 BABIP was in the normal range, but there wasn't much to see.

Gordon returned to Sugar Land in 2024 and fared better, posting a 3.94 ERA and 4.85 xFIP over 123 1/3 IP. His 23.8 percent K% and 7.5 percent BB% were better than the previous year, but not significant enough for our purposes. His .292 BABIP was probably on the fortunate side, especially considering Sugar Land's bandbox home park.

Gordon probably realized he wasn't on an MLB trajectory and just stopped walking people in 2025. With Sugar Land, he posted a 2.55 ERA (but 4.20 xFIP) in 42 1/3 IP. His 25.3 percent K% was in line with his prior work, but his 4.7 percent BB% was far better. Even a .330 BABIP couldn't dampen his line.

The pitching-needy Astros gave him a shot in Houston, and while his 22 percent K% is lower than it was in the minors, his 2.9 percent BB% is microscopic. Gordon's total lack of walks is essential to his success, as his arsenal lacks strikeout upside.

Gordon features a five-pitch mix: fastball, slider, sinker, curve, and change. His fastball lacks velocity, but its 2,045 rotations per minute (RPM) is low enough to induce soft contact and give Gordon a chance. It's 7.1 percent swinging strike percentage (SwStr%) and 66.9 percent Zone% are also solid.

Gordon's most thrown secondary is his slider, which he uses as a bendy fastball, considering its 50.2 percent Zone% and 25.2 percent chase rate. Its 12.6 percent SwStr% isn't great for a slider, though it isn't used as a put-away pitch anyway.

His sinker has a 3.2 percent SwStr% and 65.6 percent Zone%, making it an inferior version of Gordon's fastball. Ironically, its 31.3 percent chase rate is the highest in Gordon's arsenal. That's a champ/chump first, though it's more of an indictment of the rest of the repertoire than complimentary to his sinker.

Gordon's curve offers the highest SwStr% at 13.4 percent, but it's yet another fastball-like offering with a 58.2 percent Zone% and 28.6 percent chase rate. Finally, his changeup is mediocre with a 7.9 percent SwStr%, 44.7 percent Zone%, and 28.6 percent chase rate. Gordon got strikeouts on the farm, but it's hard to see how.

Very few pitchers are true-talent 2.9 percent BB% arms. If Gordon's BB% doubles to 5.8 percent (which would still be good), the overall package won't work. He's averaging about five innings per start, so a strong team like the Astros could help him post wins. Still, there's very little margin for error.

Colton Gordon delivered tonight

A+ outing? pic.twitter.com/OlyHEjbIAl

— SleeperAstros (@SleeperAstros) June 26, 2025

There's nothing wrong with riding a hot streak, but given his metrics, he does not project to be a viable fantasy option in the long term.

-Written by Rick Lucks

Yanquiel Fernandez, OF, Colorado Rockies

Current Level: MLB
Availability: 1% rostered
2025 AAA stats: 271 PA, .284/.347/.502, 43 R, 13 HR, 39 RBI, 0 SB, 8.5% BB%, 14% K%, 96 wRC+

Fernandez is one of the top prospects in the Colorado system and has been recalled to play starting this week. He will be making his debut when he appears in his first game; he was recalled on Tuesday but was not in the starting lineup. Fernandez has a growing hit tool, but his calling card is raw power. He has 13 home runs in 271 plate appearances covering 64 games; his career high in the minor leagues was 25 in 2023.

For a team that is starved of offense, Fernandez could get a lengthy runway to prove that he belongs on the major league club. One major issue he has experienced has been plate discipline, with extensive swing-and-miss in his history. But this season, he has cut the strikeout percentage to an excellent 14%.

Fernandez projects best as a corner outfielder, and with the moribund Rockies looking to have some abundant playing time for young players, Fernandez should be on your short list of players who could help you. This is especially true if you can grab him in dynasty leagues.

NEWS: The Rockies are expected to promote OF Yanquiel Fernandez as early as tomorrow, per @francysromeroFR

Fernandez’ last 100+ plate appearances have him slashing .380/.433/.639 with a 1.072 OPS in Triple-A

He hit a ball 473-feet last night👀 pic.twitter.com/gpAKJEbhwZ

— DNVR Rockies (@DNVR_Rockies) June 30, 2025

- Written by Mike Carter

Harry Ford, C, Seattle Mariners

Current Level: AAA
Availability: 1% rostered
2025 AAA stats: 282 PA, .305/.418/.459, 40 R, 8 HR, 43 RBI, 3 SB, 15.2% BB%, 17% K%, 129 wRC+

Ford was called up to the taxi squad last week due to a lingering injury to backup catcher and sometimes designated hitter Mitch Garver. Ford was not elevated to the active roster, but that didn't stop prospect watchers from thinking about adding him to their rosters over the weekend.

Ford does not have much left to prove in Triple-A, as evidenced by his .305 batting average and ridiculous .418 on-base percentage, with eight homers and 43 RBI. See the box below. Ford even chips in with stolen bases, although those numbers are way down for him in 2025.

This year, the skills seem to be coalescing, with a .305 batting average and .418 on-base percentage. Ford seems poised (depending on how long he remains in Triple-A) to easily surpass his career-highs in every category except stolen bases. In two catcher leagues, Ford is worth keeping an eye on as we move into the season's second half.

- Written by Mike Carter

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