September call-ups have arrived for Major League Baseball and fantasy baseball alike. But just because a prized rookie comes up in this period does not make him worthy of a roster spot. Often, rookies are brought up just to give them a few plate appearances or innings and get them acclimated to Major League life.
Not all rookies are created equally this time of year, so be sure to pay attention to teams’ intentions when they bring up rookies with expanded rosters for the last four weeks.
This weekly piece will track some of the notable performances from rookies during the 2024 season now that we are near the end of the fantasy season. In dynasty and keeper formats, most of these players will be long gone, but in seasonal leagues, is it worth clogging up a roster spot with a rookie? Diving into their performance this season will hopefully help us look into a little bit of their future.
Fantasy Baseball Rookie Report: Hitters
Jackson Chourio (OF, Milwaukee Brewers)
- .273/.323/.454, 17 HR, 63 RBI, 20 SB, 66 R
Jackson Chourio has been absolutely dominant in the second half, hitting .340/.380/.588 with eight home runs and 10 stolen bases. With Skenes now facing an innings limit, Chourio is now trying to give Jackson Merrill a late run for his money for the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
Spencer Horwitz (2B, Toronto Blue Jays)
- .260/.350/.421, 9 HR, 29 RBI, 0 SB, 37 R
Even though the Blue Jays are scuffling, Spencer Horwitz stayed hot this week with a .304/.385/.435 line including a home run and four RBI. Even though the Blue Jays have started giving their veteran regulars more days off as the season nears its close, Horwitz is out there almost every day as the cleanup hitter.
Nolan Schanuel (1B, Los Angeles Angels)
- .248/.342/.366, 12 HR, 43 RBI, 5 SB, 55 R
Nolan Schanuel’s production has fallen off a cliff lately and he hit just .143/.208/.190 this week. He is also starting to see time at the third spot in the lineup, but he still has not been able to get his bat going despite the switch from leadoff.
Michael Busch (1B, Chicago Cubs)
- .253/.340/.435, 16 HR, 52 RBI, 2 SB, 63 R
It appears Michael Busch will not be able to recapture the magic of homering in five straight games as he did at the beginning of the season. Busch hit just .200/.273/.250 this week and is on a prolonged (almost 10 days) homerless streak.
Tyler Fitzgerald (SS, San Francisco Giants)
- .295/.351/.540, 14 HR, 30 RBI, 16 SB, 42 R
After his homer barrage when he came up from the minor leagues, Tyler Fitzgerald has cooled down considerably. He is still hitting well at .273/.333/.273 this week, but he has a two-week homerless streak, with his last one coming on August 14th.
Colton Cowser (OF, Baltimore Orioles)
- .245/.322/.448, 20 HR, 60 RBI, 8 SB, 64 R
On the surface, this doesn’t appear to be the profile of the player leading in the AL Rookie of the Year race (-230 odds), but it speaks to the lack of better options to come out of the American League this year. Most of the top prospects have busted or been sent back to the minors.
Ceddanne Rafaela (OF, Boston Red Sox)
- .254/.284/.401, 14 HR, 63 RBI, 17 SB, 65 R
The Red Sox are fading and it’s because of many of their bats like Ceddanne Rafaela. He hit just .125/.125/.375 this week and among rookies only had the 34th-best OPS over the last seven games.
Jackson Merrill (SS/OF, San Diego Padres)
- .289/.321/.492, 21 HR, 79 RBI, 16 SB, 68 R
Jackson Merrill (-900 odds) is now an overwhelming favorite to win NL Rookie of the Year over Paul Skenes (+550), just because of the innings limit. His fellow rookies Jackson Chourio is trying to chase him, but when Merrill has weeks like this one where he hits .296/.345/.556 with two homers and three stolen bases, he is going to be hard to catch.
Wilyer Abreu (OF, Boston Red Sox)
- .268/.334/.497, 14 HR, 53 RBI, 7 SB, 53 R
Wilyer Abreu continues to hit well, batting .278 this week with a .444 slugging percentage. Abreu has stayed steady as the AL player with the third-best odds to win the rookie award in that league (+2800).
Masyn Winn (SS, St. Louis Cardinals)
- .283/.330/.424, 12 HR, 49 RBI, 10 SB, 68 R
Masyn Winn brought the power to the lineup this week, hitting three doubles and a home run as part of a week where he hit .355/.412/.548. He has missed one game since July 10th and remains one of the most consistent and reliable rookies in the league this year.
Austin Wells (C, New York Yankees)
- .254/.343/.439, 12 HR, 42 RBI, 1 SB, 37 R
With Luis Gil and others falling out of the AL Rookie of the Year race, Austin Wells (+170) is trying to catch Colton Cowser for the award with a late-season push. He hit three home runs just this week and had a 1.137 OPS across six games played.
James Wood (OF, Washington Nationals)
- .273/.368/.414, 5 HR, 31 RBI, 11 SB, 31 R
James Wood’s power has gone missing (zero home runs in more than a week and a half), but he is making up for it with his speed. He stole four bases just this week despite only a .462 OPS in his six games.
Colt Keith (2B, Detroit Tigers)
- .257/.309/.385, 12 HR, 52 RBI, 7 SB, 48 R
Colt Keith continued his trend of being the streakiest rookie in the Major Leagues this year. A week after smashing the ball all over the ballpark, Keith was the worst rookie regular in the league this week, hitting .105/.150/.105 with no home runs and no steals.
Fantasy Baseball Rookie Report: Pitchers
Spencer Schwellenbach (SP, Atlanta Braves)
- 16 Starts, 92.2 IP, 5 W, 3.69 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 104 Ks
Spencer Schwellenbach had a mediocre start against the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday night but continues to improve his ERA and WHIP each week. His ERA across two starts last week was a minuscule 1.74.
Shota Imanaga (SP, Chicago Cubs)
- 25 Starts, 146.1 IP, 11 W, 3.14 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 148 Ks
Shota Imanaga threw a quality start this week (six innings, three runs, eight strikeouts), but there is a sense batters are starting to catch up to him. In the first half, he was unhittable (12 home runs allowed in just 92 innings). But in the second half, he has allowed 11 home runs in just 49 innings.
Spencer Arrighetti (SP, Houston Astros)
- 24 Starts, 124.1 IP, 7 W, 4.63 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 151 Ks
In an alternate universe where Spencer Arrighetti didn’t start out the first half with an ERA over 6.00, he might be in the conversation for AL Rookie of the Year. In August, Arrighetti had a 1.95 ERA with a 38% strikeout rate. He has made a case for being a starter when the postseason rolls around.
Paul Skenes (SP, Pittsburgh Pirates)
- 18 Starts, 109 IP, 8 W, 2.23 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 136 Ks
It appears five innings (six if he is VERY economical with his pitches) is all we are going to get each start the rest of the way from Paul Skenes. Of course, there is also a possibility that he gets shut down at any point, so he is dangerous to have on a roster right now.
Simeon Woods Richardson (SP, Minnesota Twins)
- 23 Starts, 117.0 IP, 5 W, 3.85 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 102 Ks
After a series of strong starts Simeon, Woods Richardson got rocked this week to the tune of a 7.71 ERA. Woods Richardson’s pinpoint command and control can sometimes get him in trouble because he is not a big strikeout pitcher. This was one of those times.
Tobias Myers (SP, Milwaukee Brewers)
- 21 Starts, 114.0 IP, 6 W, 3.00 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 101 Ks
It was a mixed bag for Tobias Myers this week, as he carried a 4.22 ERA across two starts and did not get a single win. He did strike out more than a batter per inning and often missed bats. He just needs more consistency with the walks (five in 10.2 innings this week).
Yoshinobu Yamamoto (SP, Los Angeles Dodgers)
- 14 Starts, 74.0 IP, 6 W, 2.92 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 84 Ks
Yoshinobu Yamamoto has not pitched since June 15th with a rotator cuff injury but has been cleared to begin a rehab assignment. That began on Wednesday and it’s possible Yamamoto could join the Dodgers for the majority of September.
Who’s Next?
This section will look at any noteworthy rookies who have just debuted, are on the verge of debuting, or might be on their way up soon, and whether they are worth the roster position on your fantasy squads.
Coby Mayo (3B, Baltimore Orioles) – Maybe the second time will be the charm for Coby Mayo. He got one hit in seven games he played with Baltimore in early August and was promptly sent back down. Now, on September 1, he got a hit in one of his two plate appearances and appears ready to be back in the Majors after destroying the minor leagues. In the minor leagues this season, Mayo was hitting .299 with a .377 on-base percentage and a .981 OPS including 25 home runs. Ramon Urias is on the IL so Mayo should get a good chance to play every single day for a couple of weeks.
Kyle Manzardo (1B, Cleveland Guardians) – Kyle Manzardo made a triumphant return back to the Cleveland Guardians lineup when he blasted two home runs and drew a walk against the Pirates on Sunday. He struggled in his first stint with the big club, but this is a fantastic way to restart his Major League career. He may take over the DH role now from David Fry and Will Brennan and provide another power bat in their lineup for the postseason. If Manzardo is available in your league and it’s clear he is getting playing time, rush to grab him for your squad. He has awesome, awesome power.