With the trade deadline looming, Rotoworld’s latest Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire column takes a look at three talented prospects poised to make an impact for fantasy managers over the final two months of the regular season.
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David Festa, SP, Twins
Available in 98 percent of Yahoo! leagues
Festa authored his strongest performance in the majors last Wednesday in a bulk relief outing against the Phillies, recording seven strikeouts and allowing just one run over 4 1/3 impressive innings, and is slated to take the ball on Tuesday evening against the Mets in a road tilt at Citi Field. The 24-year-old top pitching prospect was roughed up, surrendering 12 runs over 10 innings in a pair of starts earlier this month following a promotion from Triple-A St. Paul, which made last week’s stellar performance even more noteworthy since it showed he’s capable of adjusting and improving at the highest level. He’s had issues with left-handers in the big leagues so far and that problem likely isn’t going away. However, he’s displayed stellar control so far in the majors with a 15/3 K/BB ratio across 14 1/3 innings of work, and is going to miss enough bats to make an impact for fantasy managers. The biggest question is whether there’s enough room for him in Minnesota’s starting rotation mix, especially if they decide to add at Tuesday’s trade deadline. With Chris Paddack on the shelf with a forearm strain, Festa appears likely to get some extended runway over the next few weeks, and is at least worthy of a speculative roster spot in all fantasy formats until further notice given his prospect pedigree and most recent performance.
Jasson Domínguez, OF, Yankees
Available in 73 percent of Yahoo! leagues
We’re not exactly sure how New York’s outfield rotation will shake out in the coming weeks with newly-acquired electrifying talent Jazz Chisholm Jr. parked at the hot corner temporarily with Giancarlo Stanton back from the injured list at designated hitter. Here’s what we can state definitively: Domínguez is capable of helping the Yankees at the highest level right now. The 21-year-old top prospect is finally healthy, returning to game action last weekend at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, following a lengthy absence due to an oblique injury. He’s had no problem in the minors this season in his return from last year’s Tommy John surgery, batting .344 (33-for-96) with six homers and three steals across 25 contests across three levels in the Yankees system. It’s nearly impossible to forecast how New York will get his bat into their overstocked lineup in the coming weeks, but it’s not like Stanton has been the model of durability throughout his career. If they’re going to make a deep postseason run, he’s probably going to be part of their outfield nucleus at some point, and he’s talented enough to make an impact for fantasy managers, which he showed last year, holding his own in his first taste of the big leagues. This is purely a speculative bet on raw talent finding a way to make an impact at the highest level, but considering how widely-available Domínguez is at the moment in fantasy leagues, he’s at least worthy of a roster spot in deeper mixed leagues.
Ben Joyce, RP, Angels
Available in 89 percent of Yahoo! leagues
The expectation for the past several weeks leading up to the trade deadline, according to reporting by Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register, has been that the Angels were priming Joyce for the closer role in the likelihood that stopper Carlos Estévez would be shipped to a contender. With Estévez jettisoned to the Phillies last weekend in exchange for a pair of intriguing pitching prospect, Halos manager Ron Washington turned to veteran Luis García in a save situation on Sunday against the Athletics after Joyce fanned three batters over a pair of scoreless frames. There’s a possibility García winds up sticking around past Tuesday’s trade deadline, but the non-contending Angels should strongly consider figuring out whether they have a potential elite closer in Joyce, which would exponentially increase his long-term trade value. The hard-throwing 23-year-old right-hander has only struck out 21 percent of the batters he’s faced this season, which isn’t a ton considering his immense raw stuff and triple-digit fastball velocity. However, he holds a sparkling 2.11 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 19/10 K/BB ratio across 21 1/3 innings (18 appearances). He’s reeled off 15 consecutive scoreless appearances dating back to June 11. He’s at least worthy of a speculative roster spot in deeper mixed leagues on the chance that Washington finally decides to toss him the metaphorical ninth-inning car keys.
