Impact Fantasy Baseball Players Ready To Shine: Shay Whitcomb, Kyle Manzardo, Adrian Del Castillo

August 11, 2024

Brian analyzes three top fantasy baseball prospects - Shay Whitcomb, Kyle Manzardo, and Adrian Del Castillo - who could make big impacts this season. These MLB prospects are potential waiver wire pick-ups or stashes.

It’s never too late to stash impact prospects in fantasy baseball leagues. Now is the time when fantasy managers can start to see the benefits of getting ahead of the game and adding prospects who can make a difference down the stretch. 

We’ve seen recent call-ups beginning to make an impact, with Jackson Holliday being the best recent example. 

As we near the final months of the season, who are some other names to target? Here is a look at three names to monitor, one of whom is already impacting his big-league club.

Shay Whitcomb - SS, Houston Astros

Level: Triple-A Sugar Land
Availability: 3% rostered
2024 stats: 105 G, .299/.385/.536, 24 HRs, 89 RBI, 72 R, 26 SB

Whitcomb is putting up gaudy numbers at Triple-A this season. He’s doing pretty much everything – hitting for average, driving in runs, and excelling on the basepaths. The power-speed potential is real with Whitcomb making him an intriguing stash. 

As a shortstop, there is not a natural opening for Whitcomb with the Astros with Jeremy Pena holding down the position. But if the Astros seek a spark, they could look to get creative in finding ways to get the 25-year-old’s bat in the lineup. 

Shay Whitcomb is the Astros Future player of the week. The 25-year-old hit .458 with 4 homers, 10 runs batted in over six games for Sugar Land! #Astros #Relentless pic.twitter.com/H4Hvtgy2dx

— Astros Future (@AstrosFuture) August 6, 2024

He doesn’t have much left to prove at Triple-A after the season he is having at his current age. Whitcomb can help fantasy managers if given an opportunity. 

Kyle Manzardo - 1B, Cleveland Guardians

Level: Triple-A Columbus
Availability: 17% rostered
2024 Triple-A stats: 67 G, .272/.401/.557, 16 HRs, 41 RBI, 51 R, 2 SB
2024 MLB stats: 30 G, .207/.241/.329, 0 HRs, 7 RBI, 4 R, 0 SB

Much like Jackson Holliday, Manzardo had a brief trial at the big leagues this season which was largely unsuccessful, and is back in the minors gaining confidence and awaiting another chance. 

We’ve seen how that has worked out recently for Holliday and Manzardo hopes he can follow a similar trajectory. He is coming off a three-hit performance with a home run on Saturday for Columbus. His on-base skills have been excellent at Triple-A this season and he has shown good power. 

Kyle Manzardo goes deep the other way to raise his Triple-A OPS to .958!@CleGuardians | @GuardsInsider | @CLBClippers pic.twitter.com/rIwobHBDiw

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 11, 2024

He could be someone who takes advantage of a late-season call-up and provides a jolt to fantasy managers. But do the contending Guardians want to throw him in a pennant race and give him meaningful at-bats? That remains the big question. 

Adrian Del Castillo - C, Arizona Diamondbacks

Level: Major leagues (Arizona)
Availability: 8% rostered
2024 Triple-A stats: 100 G, .319/.403/.608, 24 HRs, 70 RBI, 86 R, 0 SB
2024 MLB stats: 2 G, .571/.625/1.143, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 R, 0 SB

Del Castillo is an interesting name in two-catcher leagues as he made a name for himself with a walk-off home run in his second major-league game. He was putting up crazy numbers at Triple-A Reno of the Pacific Coast League. 

ADRIAN. DEL. CASTILLO!!!!!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/tuovG22FH9

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) August 10, 2024

He might not have an everyday role in Arizona but what catcher really does? He is off to a good start to his MLB career and there is no reason he can’t provide a good batting average for a catcher with the ability to provide power when he is in the lineup. 

Managers in deep leagues can do much worse for their second catcher spot.

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