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Three Pitching Prospects To Stash Now

By Richard Haake
Matthew Liberatore Fantasy Baseball Pitching Prospects

Every year injuries take out starting pitchers during the season and leave dynasty managers to scour the waiver wire for a suitable replacement. Look no further as I have three pitching prospects for you to stash now so when the injuries keep piling up you won’t be sweating it. Because I want you to get ahead in your dynasty leagues I’ve thrown in a bonus prospect to check out. Have a great baseball week!

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Three Pitching Prospects To Stash

Matthew Liberatore, STL

It’s becoming clear that Liberatore has gotten his confidence back and the results are fun to watch at AAA Memphis. At still just 23 years old, Liberatore feels like he has been around for a long time. The 6’4” lefty has strung together three impressive starts, putting up a 1.06 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 17 innings and holding batters to a .172 AVG. Liberatore is second to another name on this list in all the minor leagues for strikeouts and earned run average.

Matthew Liberatore’s curveball is one of the best in minor league baseball with a massive break. His fastball velocity has ticked up a notch, topping out at 97 mph but sitting in the mid-90s. The slider and changeup have been a work in progress for Liberatore since being drafted out of high school but are now starting to prove as effective secondary pitches to pepper in to right-handed batters. With Liberatore as the best pitcher in the minor leagues currently, it’s only a matter of time before the Cardinals replace the struggling Jake Woodford.

Logan Allen, CLE

With Cleveland being a pitching factory it should come as no surprise to see a Guardians pitcher making a stash list at any time. But make no mistake, Logan Allen is earning his spot on this stash list as he is currently tied for fourth in the minor leagues in strikeouts. Allen has made a strong impression in his first three starts in AAA Columbus, striking out 20 batters in 14.1 innings while holding at a 1.26 ERA and a .189 AVG. Allen’s 12.56 K/9 currently ranks third in the minor leagues and has been a bright spot in his minor league career never dropping below 11.01 at any stop. The left-handed Allen also eatures two plus secondary offerings in his sweeping slider and a changeup that features big fade and sink. These off-speed pitches are so effective thanks in part to pinpoint plus control and a fastball that has steadily gained velocity in his time in the Guardians organization. With Battenfield and Gaddis getting their chance in the Guardians rotation due to injuries it’s only a matter of time before we see Allen get his with a strong AAA start.

Cody Bradford, TEX

The Texas Rangers have seemed to revamp the entire organization into an exciting new ballpark and a who’s who of elite starting pitching and hitting. The minor leagues have been no exception with the additions of Jack Leiter, Kumar Rocker, and Brock Porter over the last two drafts. But do not make the mistake of overlooking what has been steadily rising for the shiny new toy.

Cody Bradford is a left-handed pitcher with a starter’s build at 6’4”, Bradford features a four-seam fastball that hits 95 MPH that he commands well and gets great swing and miss rates from. Last season, Bradford saw more success after he scrapped his slider and moved to a cutter. Rounding out the pitch mix is a plus graded changeup that has fade and sink causing swing and miss with his ability to locate it with pinpoint control.

On the surface, the 2022 season looks underwhelming as Bradford had a 5.01 ERA with 124 Ks in 118.2 innings and a batting average against of .248. Don’t let these surface numbers blind you to the strides made by Bradford. After making some mechanical changes in-season and scrapping the previously mentioned slider, Bradford had a 2.63 ERA in his final seven starts.

Now with a refined pitch arsenal, Bradford has gone to work in AAA Round Rock in 2023 striking out 16 batters in 16.1 innings pitched and giving up only 5 hits. His lone earned run came via a solo home run. Bradford leads the minor leagues with at least 3 starts in ERA and AVG with a 0.55 ERA and a stellar .093 average against.

With the early success, Bradford needs to be on your radar as Degrom, Eovaldi, and Heaney have dealt with injuries costing them time in the past.

Bonus Stash

Andrew Abbott, CIN

For those who keep an eye on the minor league leaders over the last two seasons, you have seen Andrew Abbott’s name at the top in strikeouts. How many strikeouts you might ask? Abbott had 159 in 118 innings in 2022 across two levels (A+ and AA). Currently back at AA Chattanooga, Abbott leads all the minor leaguers in strikeouts (25), K/9 (21.09), and is tied for first with ERA (0.00). In Abbott’s two starts at AA, he has 25 strikeouts in 10.2 innings with a .059 AVG against and a 0.00 ERA showing pure dominance that has to be moved up to AAA Louisville or even the majors? It’s not out of the realm of possibility as Luke Weaver (Making his start on Wednesday 4/19) and Luis Cessa are (Barely) holding down the back end of the Reds rotation.

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