This week’s edition of Dynasty Baseball Buys is comprised of two prospects quickly rising up the ranks. Both players should still be widely available in most dynasty leagues. The dynasty baseball sells includes two of the best fantasy performers this season who could fade down the stretch. In case you missed it, you should check out last week’s edition of Dynasty Baseball Buys and Sells.
Dynasty Baseball Buys
CJ Kayfus, 1B/OF, Cleveland Guardians
Kayfus has flown under the radar as a prospect this season. He was drafted by the Guardians in the third round of the 2023 draft. He was not ranked on any of the mainstream top 100 prospect lists by Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, or MLB.com. Kayfus barely made the Cleveland Guardians’ top 30 prospects by MLB.com this preseason, coming in at 28th.
Kayfus has done nothing but hit this year. He started out in High-A, where he slashed .338/.437/.578 in 183 plate appearances. He did so well in High-A, that he received a promotion to Double-A in early June. In his first six games at Double-A, he has slashed .500/.607/.818. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Kayfus promoted to Triple-A at some point next month if he keeps performing even somewhat close to this level. I think he’s definitely a strong dynasty baseball buy or add at this point in the season.
Hayden Birdsong, SP, San Francisco Giants
Birdsong was another unheralded prospect coming into this season. He was not considered a consensus top-100 prospect entering this year. Birdsong was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the sixth round of the 2022 draft. Carson Whisenhunt was the Giants pitching prospect that everyone had their eyes on heading into this season, but Birdsong has emerged as their best fantasy pitching prospect.
He began this season in Double-A, where he dominated to the tune of a 2.05 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and 61 strikeouts in 48.1 innings. It earned him a promotion to Triple-A just a few days ago. He has been one of the biggest strikeout artists in the minor leagues, putting up a whopping 13.1 K/9 for his career. Birdsong is now knocking on the door of the major leagues. Since Birdsong is in Triple-A now, it would be wise to add or buy him in dynasty leagues.
Dynasty Baseball Sells
Jurickson Profar, LF, San Diego Padres
Profar has been one of the biggest surprises in fantasy baseball this season. He has a pristine slash line of .324/.424/.500 with 10 home runs, 45 RBI, 39 runs and four stolen bases in 71 games. He ranks in the top 12 in the majors in RBI. Profar even has more RBI than Shohei Ohtani this season. It’s been an outstanding year for 31 year old, but there are reasons to believe a regression is on the horizon.
Profar’s expected slash line is .299/.377/.451, which is significantly below where his slash line currently stands. He came into this year with a .238 career batting average, although he is hitting nearly 90 points above that this season. Profar has never hit more than 20 home runs in any season of his career, nor has he ever had 80 RBI. There is reason to be a bit skeptical of his hot start and whether he can keep this up for an entire season. Profar may end up having the best fantasy season of his career, but he will most assuredly experience a decline at some point. I don’t think his dynasty value will ever be higher than it is right now, so it would be a good decision to sell high and get the best possible deal for him.
Ranger Suarez, SP, Philadephia Phillies
Suarez has arguably been the best fantasy pitcher this year and is likely the leading candidate for the NL Cy Young Award. He has a microscopic 1.81 ERA and 0.85 WHIP. He has also racked up 85 strikeouts in 79.2 innings. Among qualified starting pitchers, Suarez ranks first in both ERA and WHIP. He also ranks in the top five of batting average against and HR/9.
The advanced metrics make the case that Suarez has been a bit on the lucky side this season. His xERA is 2.61, his xFIP is 2.68 and his SIERA is 2.85. Suarez is by no means a power pitcher, he has averaged 92 MPH with his four-seam fastball, which is his lowest velocity since 2020. There’s no doubt that Suarez is a very talented pitcher, however, he can return quite a haul right now that he may never be able to fetch again. I recommend him as a dynasty baseball sell based on his all-time high value.
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