Fantasy Baseball Prospect Risers - Rookies to Stash and Top Performers for Week 17

July 19, 2026

Joey's top fantasy baseball prospect risers, breakouts with big upside for Week 17 of 2026. He analyzes top MLB rookies and call-ups to stash who are surging.

Welcome to the Week 17 edition of the top prospect performers. In this weekly piece, we take a look at some of the top-performing minor leaguers who could matter in fantasy down the road. While some may be promoted more quickly than others, it's important to stay up to date on recent prospect performances so you're ready to add them when they do get the call.

This week, we will dive into three potential prospects who fantasy managers should be looking to stash in Week 17 of the fantasy baseball season. These three prospects could provide some value in the second half and should be on fantasy radars right now. The top two players on this list could be promoted very soon, while the third player is a deep-league stash.

Let's dive into three rookies to stash for Week 17 of the fantasy season.

Kade Anderson, SP, Seattle Mariners

Mariners No. 1, Overall No. 5

It's only a matter of time until the Seattle Mariners promote top prospect Kade Anderson. Anderson is the top pitching prospect in baseball and the No. 5 overall prospect on MLB Pipeline. After being drafted third overall in the 2025 MLB Draft, the southpaw has wasted no time in showing his full potential in the minors.

Anderson didn't start any games in the minors last year after being drafted, but he immediately began his professional career at Double-A Arkansas this season. The Mariners' top prospect then allowed just one run in his first 24 1/3 innings pitched with the Arkansas Travelers. That fast start made it clear that he could provide some meaningful innings for Seattle in 2026.

Outside of one clunker against Double-A Northwest Arkansas on May 15 (five earned runs across four innings pitched), Anderson has been rock solid on the mound. He has a 1.36 ERA, 0.69 WHIP, and 108 strikeouts across 72 2/3 innings pitched. The 22-year-old has allowed two runs or fewer in 13 of his 14 starts and has struck out at least eight batters in half of his outings (seven).

Anderson is leaving the Mariners no choice but to call him up shortly. He has a 37.5% K-BB%, .160 batting average against, 34.5% chase rate, 39.5% whiff rate, 41.4% strikeout rate, 19.3% swinging strike rate, 69.2% strike rate, and a 3.8% walk rate at Double-A this season. In his most recent start, the southpaw threw six innings of two-run ball with nine strikeouts.

Kade Anderson racks up nine punchouts across six frames of two-run ball for the Double-A @ARTravs 🔱

MLB's top-ranked pitching prospect (@Mariners) is running a 108/10 K/BB ratio in his debut season: pic.twitter.com/UvwqlSPpfd

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 4, 2026

While there is a logjam in Seattle's rotation right now, that could clear up in the next few weeks. The Mariners are reportedly shopping Luis Castillo ahead of August's trade deadline. If Castillo is eventually moved at this year's trade deadline, that would give Anderson a better chance to be called up shortly after.

It's hard not to imagine Seattle calling up Anderson at some point in the second half. The 22-year-old has been unreal on the mound in his first professional season, and he could help the Mariners down the stretch. That's enough reason to stash the southpaw in all formats in Week 17 of the fantasy baseball season.

Verdict: Elite dynasty asset 

Ralphy Velazquez, 1B/OF, Cleveland Guardians

Guardians No. 1, Overall No. 35

A lot of fantasy managers might not be familiar with Cleveland Guardians' top prospect Ralphy Velazquez. Velazquez was taken in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2023 MLB Draft. Although he slowly rose up Cleveland's Minor League ranks, the hard-swinging lefty slugger is knocking on the door of a promotion to the big league roster.

Velázquez really broke out during the 2025 season at both High-A and Double-A. He slashed a combined .265/.342/.497 with 22 home runs, 28 doubles, 85 RBI, 52 walks, and one stolen base in 122 games across those two levels. Those numbers made him a top-100 prospect on both Baseball America and MLB Pipeline before the 2026 campaign.

Velazquez got off to a nice start at Double-A to begin the year. He slashed .317/.414/.566 with seven home runs, nine doubles, three triples, 30 RBI, and 22 walks in his first 36 games with the Akron RubberDucks before being promoted to Triple-A Columbus in mid-May. While there was an adjustment period for him once he was promoted to Triple-A, he has settled in quietly since the beginning of June.

Ralphy Velazquez, the @CleGuardians No. 1 prospect, laces one the other way to pad the AL lead!@GuardsInsider | #FuturesGame pic.twitter.com/QiGEXUrN8A

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 12, 2026

The Guardians' top prospect is batting .291 with four home runs, six doubles, 16 RBI, and 14 walks since June 2. His xwOBA (.349), expected batting average (.259), expected slugging (.445), average exit velocity (89 mph), and zone-swing rate (71.3%) all rank pretty well, and he's not striking out as much recently. Velázquez has only six strikeouts in 41 plate appearances in the month of July.

There is a chance the Guardians call up Velazquez sometime in August/September. He has been hitting the ball well over the last few weeks and has tallied a hit in seven of his last 10 contests. His power potential makes him a stash in some leagues at this point in the year. The lefty slugger has the tools to make an immediate impact in the big leagues.

Verdict: Potential solid contributor 

Jaxon Wiggins, SP, Chicago Cubs

Cubs No. 3, Overall No. 88

We're going to switch things up a bit on this last one. Usually, this article highlights the top-performing prospects and whether they are worth stashing in leagues. However, that hasn't been the case with Chicago Cubs top pitching prospect Jaxon Wiggins, who hasn't posted solid numbers since returning from injury. Still, he's a prospect fantasy managers should get familiar with because he could make an impact down the stretch.

It hasn't necessarily been a great year for Wiggins. He started the year with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs, where he looked good in his first start. The 24-year-old right-hander threw four innings of one-run ball with six strikeouts in his season debut against Triple-A Columbus on March 29.

After that solid outing, things have gone downhill for him. He struggled in his next Triple-A start on April 4 (four earned runs across four innings) and then went on the injured list due to right elbow inflammation on April 15. Wiggins proceeded to miss two months before appearing in his first rehab assignment outing on June 15 with the ACL Cubs at the rookie ball level.

He made three rehab starts as part of his ramp-up process (one at rookie ball, three at High-A) and was eventually activated from the injured list on July 10. The results, though, haven't been great for Wiggins since returning to Triple-A. He allowed three runs across 2 2/3 innings against Triple-A St. Paul on July 10 and gave up five runs across 2 1/3 innings against Triple-A Memphis on July 17.

Four strikeouts tonight for Jaxon Wiggins! pic.twitter.com/NTghTA8Rdw

— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) July 11, 2026

Even though the Cubs' top pitching prospect has had his struggles in his first two starts back at Triple-A, he could still find his way to the big leagues in September. Fantasy managers have to remember that Wiggins missed multiple months with a right elbow injury. He is still trying to get into a rhythm on the mound following a multi-month absence.

Wiggins has the stuff to contribute to this Cubs team later this season. He has a solid 28% strikeout rate, 31.5% whiff rate, and a 14% swinging strike rate across 13 innings pitched at Triple-A in 2026. Despite the lack of results since returning, things could turn around for him in the coming weeks. If he gets into a groove, Chicago could call him up to provide a boost to either the rotation or the bullpen at some point.

Fantasy managers should only monitor him in leagues right now since he has struggled recently. However, if he puts together a couple of nice outings in a row, he could creep into must-stash territory in all leagues. The Cubs need the pitching help, and Wiggins would provide that.

Verdict: Monitor for promotion

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