Top-5 Hitter Fantasy Baseball Prospects To Stash For Week 3 - Redraft Leagues (2026)

April 12, 2026

Frank Ammirante's top hitter fantasy baseball prospects to stash for Week 3 (2026). His MLB prospects to pick up and stash on your bench and N/A spots in redraft leagues.

We're into the third week of the 2026 MLB season. As always, it's important to think about which hitting prospects to stash. Finding a young gem can bring more upside to your fantasy baseball teams.

I've dug a bit deeper for this week's article once again, so if your league is more shallow, just add these hitters to your watch list instead of picking them up. This is only because if I always focused on players who have the most upside, this list would be the same every week. We're trying to highlight different hitters each time.

With that in mind, find out why Sam Antonacci, Jimmy Crooks, James Tibbs III, Colby Thomas, and Jacob Melton are my five hitter prospects to stash that I'm going to highlight this week.

Sam Antonacci, OF, Chicago White Sox

Tanner Murray (FC) steals 2B and Sam Antonacci steals home. #Knights trail 4-3 after the double steal. pic.twitter.com/P5ZR1uO3F4

— FutureSox (@FutureSox) April 1, 2026

Sam Antonacci is off to a great start at Triple-A, slashing .353/.522/.559 with two home runs and four stolen bases in 47 plate appearances. The plate discipline looks terrific, as highlighted by a 21.3% walk rate and 12.8% strikeout rate. The 184 wRC+ and .206 ISO are exactly what you want to see from a 23-year-old.

What's most intriguing here is the uptick in power. Last season, Antonacci had only five homers in 519 plate appearances across all minor league levels. If he can now get to 15+ homers, he becomes much more intriguing in fantasy. That's because Antonacci stole 48 bases in the minors last season.

When you look at the White Sox depth chart, you can see a path to playing time for Antonacci. Right now, the White Sox are deploying Dustin Harris and Tristan Peters in the outfield. These are two completely unproven players. Veteran Austin Hays is on the injured list with a hamstring issue, so there's an opportunity here.

If Antonacci can continue swinging the bat well, he'll be up sooner than later, making him a worthwhile stash in all formats, as long as you have an NA spot.

Jimmy Crooks, C, St. Louis Cardinals

Pedro Pages is batting .182 and is one of the worst defensive Catchers in baseball.

Jimmy Crooks is hitting .375 with 4 home runs. pic.twitter.com/8jIZWnZFTE

— Cardinals Talk (@theredbird_way) April 8, 2026

Jimmy Crooks is absolutely mashing in Triple-A so far, slashing .321/.457/.786 with four home runs in 35 plate appearances. Last season, Crooks had a respectable 105 wRC+ at Triple-A following 154 wRC+ at Double-A earlier that year, so it's clear that he's showing some improvement.

The Cardinals are a rebuilding team looking to give their young players opportunities, making it likely that we see Crooks in the big leagues at some point this season. Veteran Ivan Herrera is a good offensive catcher, but the Cardinals can move him to DH or trade him to a contender.

Now, I know what you're thinking. Why would you stash a catcher? That's because this recommendation is for two-catcher leagues where you have NA spots. It's worth keeping Crooks on your watch list in these formats, since he can provide some upside as your second catcher, especially in 15-team leagues.

It's not easy to find a worthwhile second catcher if you waited on the position in these deeper formats, so Crooks has some appeal.

James Tibbs III, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers

James Tibbs III Is Absolutely Nuclear

⚾️ 7 HR
⚾️ 8 Games
⚾️ .514 AVG
⚾️ 1.850 OPS

Tibbs is outhomering entire Triple-A rosters and making a massive case for a quick promotion to Los Angeles.
pic.twitter.com/MZuz9yFWzS

— RotoLegends (@RotoLegends) April 5, 2026

James Tibbs III was acquired by the Dodgers in the Dustin May trade with the Red Sox, which is already looking like a heist. Tibbs has been crushing the ball in Triple-A, slashing .413/.481/1.000 with seven home runs in 52 plate appearances.

This comes after he put up 20 homers and 10 steals in 562 plate appearances across all minor league levels last year.

The problem here is that Tibbs is blocked from playing time by Teoscar Hernandez, Andy Pages, and Kyle Tucker. However, if one of those outfielders deals with an injury, the Dodgers may opt to give Tibbs a shot, since he's swinging such a hot bat.

There's also the possibility that Tibbs could be traded at the deadline as the Dodgers look to upgrade other areas of their roster.

With that said, there's definitely a lower likelihood that Tibbs will be up in the big leagues than other names on this list. But he's absolutely worth highlighting considering how much he's mashing in Triple-A.

Colby Thomas, OF, Athletics

Colby Thomas is a bit older than others on this list at 25, but he only has 132 career plate appearances in the big leagues, so he qualifies to be on this list. What's intriguing here is that Thomas is off to a terrific start at Triple-A, slashing .371/.436/.743 with four home runs in 39 plate appearances.

Remember, this is a player who hit 31 homers with 15 steals across all minor-league levels back in 2024, so there's some upside in his profile. Young players who get to hit at the bandbox that is Sutter Health Park always have some intrigue in fantasy baseball. Just look at how Max Muncy has been mashing for the A's to start the season.

When you look at the A's depth chart, you see Denzel Clarke (an elite defender) struggling at the plate (44.4 K%), while Brent Rooker left Thursday's game with an injury. There's the possibility that if Rooker is forced to miss extended time, the A's can call up Thomas to get some at-bats. It would make sense with how well Thomas is swinging the bat in Triple-A.

If you're in a deeper league, keep an eye out for Thomas, since he could have some value as a streamer whenever the A's are at home.

Jacob Melton, OF, Tampa Bay Rays

Jacob Melton is unlike others on this list in that he's actually struggling in the minors right now, slashing .167/.333/.333 with an atrocious 43.6% strikeout rate at Triple-A. But here's where he's intriguing: speed. Melton already has seven stolen bases in only 39 plate appearances in the minors.

Unlike teammate Chandler Simpson, who is a speedster with zero power, Melton has the upside to eclipse 20 homers, since he's done that in the minors. You have 40+ stolen base potential with Melton.

If he were to eventually get called up, it's likely that Melton would only play against righties, since he's a left-handed hitter. But the home run and stolen base combination is a profile that we always target in fantasy. Back in 2023, Melton put up 23 homers and 46 steals in 450 plate appearances across all minor league levels, so that's enticing.

We also have to acknowledge that there are opportunities with the Rays. Currently, they have veteran Jake Fraley as a strong-side platoon in right field. If he struggles or if the Rays want to see what they have in Melton, we could see them make the switch here. It'll likely take some time, though, especially due to Melton's current struggles at the plate.

But if you're in a deeper league with a need for speed, you want to add Melton to your watch list.

Three Other Prospects to Consider Stashing

• Joshua Baez, OF, STL
• Aidan Miller, SS, PHI
• Leo De Vries, SS, ATH

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