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| Will Jo Adell be the latest prospect to set the league on fire upon callup? |
This should be the first step to winning every fantasy baseball league every year for the foreseeable future.
However, unless you’re blessed with the top pick in your fantasy draft you’re going to have to identify the next Acuña before his meteoric rise to stardom.
Last season, we saw the future of the league be turned over to prospects who even average fantasy players knew were going to be some of the best in baseball the moment they stepped onto the diamond.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatís Jr. and Eloy Jiménez -- those names were drummed into our heads so often we knew they were coming, like an offspeed pitch at a Houston Astros' home game.
Everyone knows these players and their value is already really high just like this season Wander Frano, Luis Robert or Casey Mize are trending the moment they take the rubber or pick up a bat, so this article isn't about them.
The focus should be to find guys like Pete Alonso, Keston Hiura, Yordon Alvarez and Zac Gallen who flew under the radar until they were winning people some money. The are becoming pillars of fantasy teams for years to come.
Jo Adell OF Los Angeles Angels Highest level: AAA Age: 20 ETA: Mid 2020
Let's get crazy, Adell has all the makeup to be as good as Acuña and the potential to be even better someday.
Adell was on pace to have a cup of coffee in the show last season, but a hamstring and sprained ankle injury in spring training had him starting the season rehabbing in high A.
After a short stint in A+, Adell torched AA finishing his time there with a weighted run created plus (WRC+) of 173 with an average of .308 and slugged .556 with eight home runs.
Adell struggled in 27 games in AAA to end last season and a WRC+ of 67 (Yikes).
However, he had a pair of home runs wiped out due to a rainout, and he finished his AAA debut with a stretcher where he went 9-for-16 before finishing the season with a .264 average.
Things changed again for Adell before spring training ever started this season.
Adell's path to the big leagues is wide open after the Angels let Kole Calhoun walk in free agency.
Los Angeles is once again ready to start the season with some version of Brian Goodwin, David Fletcher and Michael Hermosillo (¯\_(ツ)_/¯) in rightfield.
After the Angels seemingly grabbed Joc Pederson in the Dodgers spasm of what seems like one GM drunk texting a bunch of other GMs at 3 a.m.
The Pederson deal ultimately fell through, but the front office's need to try to get someone more established allows us a window into how the Angels view Adell.
A subpar showing in AAA combined with Adell really failing to announce his arrival in the Arizona fall league means they want to see him actually conquer AAA rather than just keep him down for two months to defeat his arbitration clock.
It looks like from the numbers he was just missing his pitch at AAA after spending most of the season in AA.
He was hitting a lot of infield pop-ups in AAA and wasn't able to pull the ball as he had at every other level in the minors.
What does this mean for fantasy players?
His average draft projection will fall in redraft leagues, and even if someone else in your keeper league already has Adell this gives you a chance to buy low.
Owners get antsy, owners get frustrated with guys they think should already be here by now and owners are thinking about how to win right now.
Take advantage of this time when Jo Adell is just a name on a list because he has elite power which is only being held back by his injury history and strikeout rate.
Adell is a must-own in keeper leagues, and a top priority when he gets the call in redraft leagues.
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Chris Steele Is a prospect fanatic, and person who finds himself asking why he is so tired all the time while playing The Show at 2 a.m.
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