The Stash Week 8: Top 10 Prospects for Stash Pitchers in 2023 | Launcher list (2023)

Welcome to the eighth edition of The Stash List for Pitchers!

Basic rules

1. The cache list is for youredraftleagues and does not take into account the impact after 2023
2. Only current players from the lower leagues who are expected to make an impact this season are included.
3. Players who have already made their MLB debut cannot accumulate more than 50 MLB IP
4. The benefits, proximity, health and opportunities of each player are weighted
5. The emphasis is on 12-team leagues with standard categories.
6. Rankings and ownership percentages will be updated weekly.

graduates

This section of the column lists pitchers who were on the previous week's roster but have since made their MLB debut and are no longer considered backups, as they are still on their team's active roster.

libertarian mateusz, STL (Trans. 2)

libertarian mateuszhe finally made his MLB debut this week after spending most of that season as AAA's top pitcher. He lostCorbina Burnesaand scored the win by allowing 0 runs in 5 innings, hitting 6 and passing 3. His control was spotty at times, with his SwStr% and CSW% around league average.

He didn't have as many chases out of the zone as you'd like to see in a hitter, especially on his big ball curl. He's now a two-shot shooter and one of them is going to have to step up for him to continue posting those scores. But so far the results speak for themselves and the effectiveness of it is minimal.

Top 10 Potential Stash Launchers

1.by Williams, CLE – ETA major (1)

by Williamshe wasn't as dominant as usual in his most recent start, and the MLB rotation situation is about to get a lot more crowded.Aaron Civale'aHe just started his first Clippers rehab on Thursday and he looked amazingTriston McKenziehe will begin his first rehab for the Clippers today.

That said, Williams still has an arsenal with the most advantages of perhaps anyone in the rotation. Walking is still his biggest problem, but I don't think that prevented him from making his debut in the first half. It probably depends more on the opportunities available in the Guardians rotation. By round, he is AAA's most exciting pitcher in the redesigned leagues.

2.andrew abad, CIN – ETA June (3)

andrew abadhe got off to a very good start on Friday where his SwStr% and CSW% returned to the really good levels we saw in his three starts before Saturday's clunker.

Brandon WilliamsonIBena Lively'egothey currently occupy two musical seats in the Reds' rotation and, unfortunately for Abbott, have been solid there. Though it's no surprise that Williamson, who has been one of the worst starters in the major leagues since he was acquired from Seattle, was able to make his MLB debut in Denver, Colorado and dominate.

Abbott was probably passed over for this round of promotions because he has the least experience in AAA and moved up from AA pretty quickly. He just needs a little more flavor and I'm sure he'll make his debut in the first half of this season. With their prospect of high-profile hitters also moving up soon, the Reds will be that much more exciting to watch.

3.bobby miller, LAD – ETA June (5)

bobby millerfound a rhythm on a wednesday night. After three bumpy starts in which he couldn't adjust and make his pitches, he put in a really solid performance in which he pitched 6 innings, allowed 1 run, hit 6 and went 1.

Dustina Mayalies on the shelf after suffering apronator flexor strain, but it will still be out of play for at least a month. This opens up a spot in the rotation and it will probably go to Miller orGavina Stone´a. Stone has already competed in the major leagues this season and hasn't missed a game due to injury, so it's more likely that he'll get his first chance. However, Stone struggled immensely in his debut, and his substitution (which is his signature offering) for him was unsuccessful. My (theoretical) bet is that Miller will hold the job for at least a couple of starts before May returns.

4.ben brown, CHC - June (4)

ben brownhe got off to his first bad start to the season on Tuesday, ruining his impressive stat line. He only drew 7 puffs on 84 pitches, well below the mark in his first two AAA starts, and gave up a ton of hard contact. His speed dropped by about 0.5 mph, but I think the biggest problem was lack of control.

In his first two AAA starts, the court placement charts will show you that he mostly kept his fastballs high and sliders tucked in, which is usually a very good game plan for these two pitches. And it worked very well. But in his last start, he couldn't bury the slider and take out bottom zone chases as often. He threw the pitch much higher than usual and probably suffered from it. His fastball also didn't lift as much as usual, and both pitches converged to form a mush in the middle of the zone, possibly killing off the effective tunneling of his array and leading to high exit velocities.

One start isn't enough to make you lose faith in his ability, and he remains one of the best backup options the Cubs have in their rotation. Expect him to correct these problems in his next likely start on Sunday.

5.Sala DL, BAL – ETA mayor (6)

Sala DL he withdrew from the start Tuesday after just 45 pitches, but this was not because of anything alarming. According to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, this was a precautionary move to manage the workload.

DL Hall was dropped after 3 innings tonight and 45 shots at AAA Norfolk. But he has a weekly unloading schedule, as they call it, and a useful training period over the next few weeks. There are no problems with his health.#oriole

— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch)May 17, 2023

He looked really good in those 3 rounds, and yet the only thing stopping him from making the top 2-3 on this list is the risk of the release it brings.

6.Father Quinn, HOYO – ETA June (7)

Father Quinnhe looked very different from himself in his last start, in the best way possible. I mentioned earlier that his results were pretty average and his biggest asset is his proximity to the big leagues. And then he came out and hit 9 batters, only passed 1 and let 1 run for 7 innings of work. It was probably the best start to his career.

I assumed it was a branch until I lookedAsHe did this. Priester has relied heavily on his fastball and weight this season. In each of his previous starts, he's thrown these two pitches together at least 50% of the time, sometimes up to 70%. The problem is that they don't generate much odor, if at all. He tried to make light contact with the weight and throw forwards off balance with a fastball and breaking ball combination. And that led to good results, but he limited his advantage as he lacks elite speed or "something" to blow guys away.

He has one elite pitch in his arsenal: the curveball. And until Tuesday, she barely introduced him. But then he went and shot 30% of the time, the most of any of his pitches, and his entire arsenal benefited from the switch. He generated 20 passes on 88 shots, which is by far the best result of his season. He also had 32% CSW%, 50% oSwing%, and 75% zContact%, all much better than his recent starts. His curve and slide combination produced 50% utilization, which is a total of 180 compared to his previous slope combination, which featured the most fastballs.

It's just one start, but if this new combination proves to be repeatable without losing too much control, Priester's ceiling will change from a fourth or fifth starter on the sidelines to a third or fourth starter who may be more reliable in massive rounds. Nothing crazy, but definitely an improvement.

7.Briana wow, MAR - ETA julio (8)

Briana wowkeep pushing. On Wednesday, he set a season high for strikeouts with 10 points, and on top of that he posted a whopping 15.4% SwStr%. The arrow points directly to the sky.

Woo has an exceptionally smooth and repeatable pass with a low shoulder angle, which helps him create a significant amount of his quick punch. He stands at 94-95 and dodges the middle of the zone with solid dominance. He also has a slider and changeup, but is primarily a fastball/zipper shooter. The slider is shaped very similar to a gyro sliderbryce miller it also throws: it breaks hard with very little horizontal movement. I think they might come up with something in Arkansas.

8. Patrick Monteverde, MIA – ETA July (no.)

I turned onPatrick Monteverdeend of this listShane'a DrohanaIAs Willa Warren, despite the fact that these two were recruited into AAA after posting excellent results in AA. Monteverde has not yet been called up to the top youth category, but I think he is very close. Monteverde is the oldest player on this list and has pitched just over 70 innings in AA if last season is included. After the big leaps he's made this season, I think he's one of the next to move up. And when he's in AAA, we start to take him a lot more seriously.

His arsenal isn't huge, but he's good at multi-casting and can switch speed and spot them well. His fastball is from the '90s and has three variations: 4-seam, 2-seam, and cutter. The knife is a variation of his slider and he can use the two pitches in tandem to throw hitters off balance. He also includes a change that might be his best idea for a breeze.

9.Cade Povich, BAL – AND July (10)

Cade Povichhe took a step back in his last start when his command faltered a bit and 3 batters passed. While progress is not linear or exponential, it is worth monitoring. He still has fantastic K-BB% and xFIP even after this rough ride.

His fastball is a mid-90s left, and he also has a knife, slider, curveball, and substitution. His pass is a bit tricky, as he hides the ball well and his arm split is maybe a little higher than 3/4 range. This allows him to throw a hammer with a huge curve, but probably limits the range of his slider. He relies on his two breaking pitches and can fill the zone with them if necessary.

10AJ Smith-Shawver, ATL - ETA agosto (NR)

AJ Smith-Shawverhe moved up to make his AAA debut on Friday night after failing to make it in 5 starts at A+ and AA. He is now the youngest pitcher to appear in AAA this season, with the next youngest being about 2 years his senior. He held on to his debut and was not defeated at all. His 4-seam averaged 95.4 mph and he threw it 60% of the time. He also possessed a knife and slider for secondary pitches from him (both averaged 84-86 mph) and threw a spinball twice.

It generated 9 bursts at 84 altitudes, which is a solid number but not flashy. He was able to do a lot of chasing out of the zone, especially with his cutter, but somehow hitters were able to make contact with 95% of the pitches he threw in the zone. He's not hyperbole either. It wasn't catastrophic for him and I'm not going to panic because it can't be a permanent breakthrough. In his AAA debut at the age of 20, he too showed signs far more promising than worrisome.

watch list

This section of The Stash List is aimed at those of you who play in the deep leagues (15+ teams or 375+ players per roster), where some of the guys on the above list may already be drafted due to their greater pedigree. . The openings for these players will likely be a bit more distant than the players listed above, but the goal is to be ready to attack them as soon as it's clear an opportunity may open up.

The competitors are listed in alphabetical order and I don't have time to list them, so I highly recommend checking out their fangraph pages and/or watching one of their outings. Also, say hello to @SpokaneWaUpdate on Twitter for inspiration for this part of the article.

Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesignsa Twitter)