Hot MLB Prospects to Watch for Fantasy Baseball - James Tibbs III, Chase Petty, Jacob Gonzalez, Brendan Beck, Sam Antonacci

April 2, 2026

Andersen looks at the top fantasy baseball prospects risers, sleepers for Week 1 in April 2026. These MLB prospects may become strong waiver wire stashes or pickups.

Welcome back, RotoBallers! Not only has the MLB regular season gotten underway, but Minor League Baseball is already back, too. The Triple-A schedule kicked off with some thrilling action last week.

Monitoring the top fantasy baseball prospects who have turned heads thus far is imperative. The players listed here are coming off dominant weeks and have significant long-term upside. Don't be surprised when these exact names are painting corners, mashing homers, and swiping bags at the big league level soon.

Savvy fantasy managers looking for an edge in their leagues should watch these players over the long haul, as they may soon be excellent additions.

James Tibbs III, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers

Level: Triple-A
2025 stats: 4 G, .556/.600/1.389, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 8 R, 0 SB, 10.0% BB%, 20.0% K%, .636 BABIP, .868 wOBA, 419 wRC+

Tibbs is a well-traveled prospect, having already played in the Giants, Red Sox, and Dodgers organizations. The top prospect in the Rafael Devers trade, Tibbs, is now knocking on the door of the majors for the reigning World Series champion Dodgers.

The 23-year-old has shown advanced results at the plate, hitting pitchers of both handedness types. His power has remained consistent across all levels of the minors, and his exit velocities should play at the next level.

Defensively, he doesn't possess the speed needed to play center field, but his arm will survive in right. With that being said, the Red Sox and Dodgers have also used him at first base, because his glovework is fringy and he might not be able to stick in the outfield long term.

Tibbs mashed the baseball during the first week of the minor league season, going 10-for-18 with three home runs, four doubles, one triple, two walks, and four strikeouts. He has just four games of experience at the Triple-A level, but assuming he continues to produce over a larger sample size at Oklahoma City, he should be able to make his MLB debut sooner rather than later.

JAMES TIBBS III AGAIN!

He goes past the pool in Las Vegas for his third homer in two games! pic.twitter.com/ZfcrEqLR5K

— Oklahoma City Comets (@OKC_comets) April 1, 2026

Chase Petty, SP, Cincinnati Reds

Level: Triple-A
2025 stats: 1 G, 1 GS, 0-0, 4.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.73 FIP, 15.43 K/9, 1.93 BB/9, 0.00 HR/9, 30.0% GB%, .400 BABIP

Petty was the Twins' first-round pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. He was traded to the Reds in a 2022 deal involving Sonny Gray. The right-hander made his MLB debut with three games (two starts) in the majors last year, but he opened 2026 back at Triple-A.

The right-hander possesses elite velocity, topping out at 100 mph. He has a great feel for the fastball, relying on its velocity to miss bats or induce weak contact.

He also throws a slider and changeup, both of which miss plenty of bats and are effective against right-handed hitters and left-handed hitters, respectively. He actually throws two different breaking balls, with one true slider looking more like a sweeper, while the other behaves like a gyro slider or cutter.

During his first start of the season last week, Petty allowed four hits over 4.2 scoreless innings. He issued just one walk and struck out eight batters. He had some control issues in the second half of last season, but for now, those seem to be resolved.

Chase Petty is up to seven strikeouts through four scoreless innings.

16 whiffs/30 swings

Changeup + slider have been responsible for 13 whiffs on 19 swings.

This is the best I’ve ever seen him outside the ST start vs the Dodgers last spring. #Reds pic.twitter.com/ECGwo50YHa

— OnBaseMachine (@RedsFan_Brandon) March 28, 2026

Jacob Gonzalez, SS, Chicago White Sox

Level: Triple-A
2025 stats: 2 G, .333/.429/1.333, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, 0 SB, 12.5% BB%, 25.0% K%, .000 BABIP, .749 wOBA, 354 wRC+

Gonzalez was the White Sox' first-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. They selected him 15th overall out of Ole Miss, awarding him a $3.9 million signing bonus. He played 45 games at Triple-A last year, and he remains in Charlotte to open the 2026 season.

Gonzalez struggled at the plate early in his minor league career. He started to produce weaker contact as soon as opposing pitchers learned to attack the outside of the zone. He also started to strike out at a near-20% clip during his first taste of Triple-A action in 2025. As a result, his hit tool grade took a step back, joining his power tool as below-average traits.

The 23-year-old makes up for any offensive questions with steady results in the field. A dependable middle infielder, Gonzalez's range, quick instincts, and decent glovework will give him a chance to stick at shortstop. With that being said, the White Sox have been proactive and have started to use him in a utility infielder role in case he doesn't turn out to be a shortstop long-term.

This past week, Gonzalez went 2-for-6 with a pair of solo home runs. He also drew a walk and struck out twice. Gonzalez has not hit more than eight home runs in a season since being drafted, so it will be interesting to monitor his power output as the season goes on.

Jacob Gonzalez with his 2nd HR of the game. #Knights take a 3-2 lead. pic.twitter.com/srFYZD0NMZ

— FutureSox (@FutureSox) March 29, 2026

Brendan Beck, SP, New York Yankees

Level: Triple-A
2025 stats: 1 G, 1 GS, 1-0, 5.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, -0.09 FIP, 16.20 K/9, 0.00 BB/9, 0.00 HR/9, 85.7% GB%, .111 BABIP

Beck may be 27 years old, but he's still an intriguing name in the Yankees' farm system. The 2021 second-round pick out of Stanford missed all of 2024 due to injury and didn't reach Triple-A until last year. He remains at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to open the 2026 campaign.

The right-hander isn't a flashy velocity guy, but he consistently attacks the zone and has shown an ability to limit loud contact. His fastball, which is his worst pitch, sits in the low 90s.

Beck commands his slider well and can use it to induce chase against trigger-happy batters. It's his best pitch, giving him a tool with which he can put away opponents. He rounds out his repertoire with a curveball and changeup, both of which are tertiary offerings and flash average to below-average stuff.

Sam Antonacci, OF, Chicago White Sox

Level: Triple-A
2025 stats: 4 G, .333/.524/.733, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 5 R, 3 SB, 28.6% BB%, 4.8% K%, .250 BABIP, .580 wOBA, 246 wRC+

The White Sox selected Antonacci with their fifth-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft after he put together an impressive junior season at Coastal Carolina. He peaked at Double-A in 2025 but played well enough to open this season at Triple-A.

Antonacci's swing is direct, and while he doesn't project much power, he's capable of hitting the ball just about anywhere in the zone. He's an on-base machine who can spray the ball to any part of the field, and he gets out of the box quickly enough to extend some of his gap-finders to extra base hits.

Although he swipes bags and extends some of his hits, Antonacci isn't the fastest defender. Rather, he possesses near-average range, which resulted in him playing a lot of second and third base between 2024 and 2025. With that said, the White Sox have started to experiment with him in the outfield. All four of his defensive appearances this season have come in left field.

Antonacci had a productive opening week at the plate, going 5-for-15 with a pair of home runs and four RBI. He also drew a whopping six walks, struck out just once, and swiped three bags. We're never surprised to see Antonacci log more walks than strikeouts, but the six-to-one ratio is impressive even by his standards. Don't be surprised if we see the 23-year-old in the majors this year.

Sam Antonacci, 2 games, 2HR. #Knights tied at 1 after the 105MPH 389' shot. pic.twitter.com/rD9FNLu6if

— FutureSox (@FutureSox) March 28, 2026

More Fantasy Baseball Prospects and Rookies