Two weeks ago I wrote about five players I’ll be continuing to monitor during spring training games. But obviously, there are far more guys worth checking out. Some are relevant for fantasy baseball, some are just fun prospects to watch. So today I wanted to highlight a few more of those players. The first player is highly relevant for fantasy this season, while the next two are more so guys to keep on the back burner. Let me know which guys you’ll be watching and make sure to comment with your own personal picks!

Ezequiel Tovar, SS, Colorado Rockies

Why: To monitor his plate approach and power progress

Ezequiel Tovar is quickly trending up as a fantasy draft target. After seeing him in person last season I can understand why. I was even told recently by a 4-year minor leaguer that “He’s by far the best player I’ve played with at any level”. Tovar was signed at age 16 by the Rockies for a fairly high bonus. He was moved through the minors pretty quickly, and became a big-time prospect with his tremendous 2021 campaign.

Tovar followed that up by hitting .319 with 14 HRs, 17 stolen bags, and a .927 OPS in 2022, in a season that saw him move comfortably into the top 50 of most prospect rankings. He spent time between AA and AAA in 2022 before getting a taste of the MLB. And while his MLB numbers through 9 games weren’t very good, that doesn’t really mean anything. In fact, it may eliminate a few naive potential buyers.

At just 21 years of age, Tovar is known for a few things with the first being his defense. Tovar gained a reputation as not only the best defender in the Rockies system but as one of the best in all of the minor leagues. He’s fluid, athletic, and has a fantastic arm. His defense alone makes him a near shoe-in to start as the Rockies SS this season.

As a hitter, Tovar is aggressive and known for his plus contact-making ability which he combines with a baseline of power. Giving up on switch-hitting has been of benefit. And he’s had increasingly great results against both left and right-handed pitchers. There have been many questions about his hit tool as it will surely determine his ceiling. But everything has been trending in the right direction. He even has 15-20 stolen base potential, a nice addition to the floor that his athleticism provides him.

Those in Rockies spheres have been raving about the development of Tovar as a hitter. And everyone monitoring his progress seems to agree that a once-questioned bat is now turning into something with real upside. Tovar has a consistent, compact swing with very few holes in it. One which pairs very well with plus (some would say plus-plus) overall bat speed. In particular, I was impressed with his ability to drive pitches from any part of the zone. He doesn’t appear to have any zone-based weaknesses, likely a byproduct of his bat speed.

While he was thought of as a contact hitter, there were some concerns with selectivity and an inadequate amount of chasing. In 2022, his strikeout rate was still a bit high (21%). But his walk rate improved tremendously, up 5% from the previous season. Some of those concerns still exist. But many (including Bud Black) believe that they can be ironed out with time and experience. He is still 21 after all. What we want to watch most closely is Tovar’s approach at the plate. Despite all his bat speed, he’s known to be (or to have been) a bit reckless at times.

The power will also be really interesting to monitor. Tovar had 15 home runs across A and A+ ball in 2021 then followed that up with 14 in 2022, split across AA and AAA. These are encouraging numbers and combined with his .475 and .540 slugging percentages in 2021 and 2022, respectively, we’re seeing strong growth in the power department. What was most encouraging was that Tovar showcased more opposite-field power this season. He proved that he can be more than just a pull-hitter when he’s looking to do damage.

Fangraphs projects Tovar to hit for a .280/.327/.463 line this season, with 17 home runs, 12 stolen bags, and 62 runs/62 RBI. This is a very encouraging projection given the fact that Tovar only has 9 MLB games to his name. It speaks to his talent and minor league production, paired with the fantastic playing-time situation he’ll have and the Coors Field factor of course. Projections need to be taken with a grain of salt but I think this one paints a fair picture when considering his trajectory and surrounding situation.

Right now I’m seeing Tovar projected in the 200-250 range for rankings/ADPs, and this definitely seems right. I really, really like Tovar as a 210-250 range selection. As a late-ish round pick in deeper leagues, Tovar has tremendous value as a high-end MLB prospect who should have an everyday role in the most hitter-friendly park in the game. It’s not easy to find guys like that late in drafts. For shallower leagues, I love him as a bench piece, especially for fantasy players unwilling to spend high draft capital on a SS. For those who don’t mind drafting unproven prospects, Tovar is the perfect target. Again, a top-50 prospect with a nearly guaranteed starting spot in a hitter-friendly atmosphere is something we love to see, especially in the 200+ range. Tovar has had a solid spring so far and is someone I’ll continue to watch.

Hayden Wesneski, RP/SP, Chicago Cubs

Why: In hopes that he can take the 5th rotation spot

In an era where vertically-inclined pitchers have become all the rage, the Chicago Cubs have taken a different approach. Hayden Wesneski is one of the players they’ve bet on, and early returns have been great. Wesneski was a 6th-round pick in 2019 and a top-10 prospect in the Yankees system. The Cubs landed him last season in exchange for Scott Effross and were happy to do so as Wesneski had looked great thus far in his minor league career. He then debuted for the Cubs with four starts and two relief appearances, totaling 33 innings. Wesneski looked fantastic; with a 2.18 ERA, 33 strikeouts, and a 0.939 WHIP.

What really stands out about Hayden Wesneski is his tremendous horizontal movement profile and well-rounded arsenal. He has 5 pitches he throws comfortably, and has fantastic movement pairings within his arsenal. His fastball appears fairly average, but his sinker and changeup give him two options for attacking hitters with arm-side movement. On the flip side, his slider and cutter give him two options to attack with tremendous glove-side movement. He has a bit of a funky delivery, and “frisbee” comes to mind when watching his pitches move. Hitters have had a very difficult time adjusting to Wesneski so far, and he certainly offers some unique looks.

The problem right now is that Wesneski doesn’t currently project to make the Cubs rotation. At least not to start the season. However, the other two options for the 5th spot, Javier Assad and Adrian Sampson, aren’t particularly appealing. Wesneski has by far the highest ceiling of the three. On top of that, the Cubs are more invested in Hayden Wesneski than the others. He’s even had the best MLB showing of the bunch thus far. Cubs GM Carter Hawkins stated earlier this week that Wesneski is absolutely in the running for that final spot. Though he was clear that a AAA designation isn’t fully out of question, either.

So where does that leave us, and why am I writing about him? As I said before, Wesneski has some pretty awesome and unique stuff. I highly encourage you to go watch some of his highlights. He even reminds me a little bit of Chris Bassitt, though of course, the two are still very far off as of now. Wesneski’s only pitch with a mediocre profile is his four-seamer. But the pitch performed extremely well last season (.120 BA, .136 wOBA, .200 SLG), likely due to how well his other pitches move. His combination of deception, elite movement, and great extension all keep hitters on their toes. So even though his situation is very much in the air, he has some fun potential.

I’ll be watching Wesneski closely to see if he can take that final rotation spot. Because if he does, there’s a chance that he picks up where he left off last season. Even if it’s only temporary until hitters adjust. I think he has some real long-term upside, but even just 1-2 months of his dominant self from last season would be of tremendous value. He’s not worth a draft pick, but he should be readily available on waivers. Points league players need to monitor him for streaming purposes. Dynasty players should take note of his early success. So far, Wesneski has looked very good this spring, and if he can keep it up, I think he can lock down that 5th spot. If that were to be the case, he’d definitely be a guy worth pinning to the top of your watch list.

Matt Brash, RP/SP, Seattle Mariners

Why: To monitor his command and perhaps his new cutter

Matt Brash is a pitcher I’ve been excited about for a while, as his 96-99mph fastball and absolutely electric slider have the makings of a nasty combination. Brash, a 4th round pick in 2019, absolutely dominated his first full minor league season in 2021 en route to top-100 prospect status. His 2.31 ERA and 142 strikeouts through 97.1 innings in 2021 allowed him to start games very early in 2022 for the Mariners. Unfortunately, things didn’t go quite as planned.

As a starter, Brash accumulated a 7.65 ERA and 17 walks to just 19 strikeouts. He did, however, settle in nicely as a reliever. Through 30.2 innings of relief, Brash had a 2.35 ERA and 43 strikeouts with 16 walks. Control has been the major issue for Brash at the MLB level, but he was able to make real improvements there and in other departments. And as far as raw stuff goes, it’s hard to find guys who can compare. A fastball that averages 97 mph, elite movement profiles with his pitches across the board, and tremendous spin rates. Brash has stuff that you simply can’t teach, which is why he’ll always be worth strong consideration.

His slider truly is one of the most electric you’ll see in any level of professional baseball. One issue he’s had, however, is that his slider almost breaks too much. Matt Brash’s slider has 15 inches of horizontal break on average, and on some nights it gets up near 17 inches. His slider moves so much that its horizontal break represents the width of home plate. If batters recognize a slider coming out of Brash’s hand, then so long as that slider appears to be coming in near the plate, batters know to lay off. This is amplified by a poor tunnel between his slider and fastball.

The good news is that as of late November, Brash had been working with Driveline Baseball to implement a cutter, which is a fantastic idea. A cutter would split the difference in horizontal movement between his fastball and slider. It would keep hitters honest, and allow Brash to get the most out of his uniquely incredible slider. Not to mention, the cutter itself could wind up being a good pitch too. It could even help him get more easy outs against left-handed batters. He has the natural ability to spin the heck out of the ball, so a cutter for Brash could be a very good one. 

As of now, Matt Brash has very little fantasy stock heading into 2023, and I understand why. He was a reliever most of 2022, he won’t be a closer, and the Mariners rotation is pretty loaded. So no, I would not draft him. But, the Mariners have made it very clear that they believe in his potential as a starter, and that’s where they ultimately want him to end up. So while I do think that his redraft value is off waivers in the case of an injury in the Mariners rotation, I think there’s longer-term dynasty value here as well.

BUT, for anyone in holds leagues, Brash had 9 holds in 34 relief appearances last season and could be in line for many more this year. He could also provide some great quality in those relief innings like he did last year; with his 2.35 ERA and 12.6 K/9 as a reliever. On top of that, for anyone in ESPN leagues, Brash has the “RP, SP” designation. Meaning that for those in leagues with starting pitcher limits, he will not count against that limit.

While we’ll still have to wait on Brash to reach his full potential as a high-upside starter, there are some creative ways to use him this season. His spring performances have been rough so far, that’s for sure. But I’ll continue to monitor him closely as he settles into his new arsenal. It will probably take time. But if he can find comfort in the cutter, he’ll have the chance to take major steps forward this season.

Lastly

We’re rolling out quite a bit of new fantasy baseball content as draft season approaches. I’ll have more pre-draft content and spring analysis soon. But in the meantime, check out my last piece looking at the first five players I’m excited to follow this spring. Make sure to check out the rest of our fantasy sports and fantasy baseball content here. And feel free to give me a Twitter follow as well!