With the minor league season coming to a close, this week’s Fantrax Dynasty Stock Watch takes a look at seven players making some late-season noise and rising up the 2025 fantasy baseball dynasty rankings as we prep our end-of-season update. The vast majority of these players are household names for dynasty league managers, but it’s worth noting — especially with most of us focusing intently on fantasy football rosters at this time of the year — that their stock is trending upwards as a result of strong finishes to the year.
In case you missed it earlier this month, we released our preliminary Fantrax Top 500 Dynasty Rankings for 2025. There will be some changes to these rankings in the coming weeks, but these dynasty rankings should give fantasy managers an edge heading into next season. Without further delay, let’s dive into the prospects.
Dynasty Baseball Prospects Finishing Strong
JJ Wetherholt, SS, Cardinals
Among the hitters with the highest potential fantasy ceiling from this summer’s draft class, Wetherholt slipped to seventh overall after missing most of his final collegiate season due to injury. The 22-year-old shortstop hasn’t skipped a beat since making his professional debut, hitting .295/.405/.400 with two homers and two steals in 126 plate appearances for Low-A Palm Beach. He finished on a sizzling-hot stretch with five multi-hit performances in his final six contests. His late-season hot streak pushes him closer to top-100 overall status in the Fantrax Top 500 Dynasty Rankings heading into 2025.
Matt Shaw, INF, Cubs
We’ve always been exceptionally high on Shaw’s potential as a future Swiss Army Knife specialist capable of contributing double-digit homers and a plethora of stolen bases. That hasn’t changed after Shaw closed out the home stretch of the minor league regular season by going deep in three of his final four contests, slashing .283/.375/.493 with 21 homers and 29 thefts in 494 plate appearances between Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa. The 22-year-old former first-round pick figures to be in the mix for an Opening Day roster spot next spring and is borderline top-100 overall player for dynasty purposes heading into the 2025 campaign.
Jordan Lawlar, SS, Diamondbacks
It’s been a lost season overall for Lawlar, who entered the year as one of the most exciting prospects in the dynasty landscape after getting a quick cup of coffee last season after a strong showing in the upper minors. The 22-year-old speedster has missed a significant chunk of time this season due to an onslaught of injuries, including right thumb surgery and a series of hamstring issues, but he’s fully healthy heading towards the final stretch of the year and is batting .278 (5-for-18) with one homer and one steal in five contests since returning back on September 8. Even with all of the missed time, he’s a surefire top-20 dynasty prospect entering 2025 and is clearly Arizona’s shortstop of the future. Assuming he can stay healthy next spring, he has a clear path to everyday at-bats at the highest level. We’re hesitant to label him a buy-low candidate, but it certainly feels like his dynasty stock will continue to rise heading into 2025.
AJ Smith-Shawver, SP, Braves
Speaking of forgotten prospects, Smith-Shawver looked impressive earlier this year in a brief one-game spot start with the Braves before suffering a Grade 2 left oblique strain in late May that put him on the shelf until right around the All-Star break. The 21-year-old righty doesn’t possess top-of-the-rotation upside at this juncture of his development, but has looked pretty sharp over his last few outings at Triple-A Gwinnett. On the heels of an 11-strikeout performance back on September 7, Smith-Shawver closed out the regular season allowing one run over six frames over the weekend in his regular-season finale. There’s a possibility he gets a look with the Braves down the home stretch, which would inflate his dynasty value heading into the offseason. We’re fairly confident he’s a top-25 pitching prospect heading into 2025.
Spencer Jones, OF, Yankees
The omnipresent strikeout concerns are the big x-factor here with Jones, but he’s started to really show some signs of life to close out the regular season at Double-A Somerset, batting .264 (14-for-53) with three homers and one steal in 14 contests since September 1. The towering 23-year-old slugging prospect boasts arguably the highest raw power ceiling of any hitter currently in the minors, but he finished the year striking out 36.8 percent of the time across 544 plate appearances. Simply put, Jones isn’t going to be able to make enough contact at the highest level to emerge as a significant fantasy contributor with his current plate skills. However, we’re unwilling to dismiss the possibility that he’ll
George Klassen, SP, Angels
We haven’t talked about Klassen much since he was the biggest prospect on the move at the trade deadline when he was shipped to the Angels in exchange for reliever Carlos Estévez, but he put together one of his best outings of the year last weekend, piling up a season-high 12 punchouts over six hitless innings. The 22-year-old right-hander’s control has taken a step in the wrong direction since heading to Double-A Rocket City upon arrival in Los Angeles’ system, but the strikeouts are still there in abundance. He’ll need to limit the free passes to make it as a starter at the highest level, but his ability to consistently miss bats makes him fantasy-relevant until further notice. If the control returns to early-season levels he has a chance to be extremely impactful for dynasty managers in the near future.
Zac Veen, OF, Rockies
Yet another somewhat forgotten dynasty prospect after missing significant time the last few years due to injury, Veen has homered six times and also stolen six bases in 20 games since being promoted back in late August to Triple-A Albuquerque. The 22-year-old former first-round pick’s power/speed combo is going to work for fantasy purposes once he reaches hitter-friendly Coors Field, which makes this upcoming offseason a strong time to roll the dice on Veen as a buy-low addition to dynasty rosters.