Fantasy Baseball Prospect Watch: Nick Kurtz, Jordan Lawlar, Tirso Ornelas, More
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Several top prospects are making noise in the minors, putting pressure on their organizations for a big-league call-up. With standout performances from Nick Kurtz, Jordan Lawlar, and others, fantasy managers should keep a close eye on these rising stars.
1B Nick Kurtz, Oakland Athletics
The A’s must find a way to get Kurtz to the majors. He opened up his AAA season with an 11-game hitting streak (18-for-48 with 12 runs, six home runs, and 18 RBIs), which included a home run in three consecutive starts heading into Thursday night.
Nick Kurtz. RBI Machine.
— Las Vegas Aviators (@AviatorsLV) April 11, 2025
The A’s #1 prospect just keeps raking.#AviatorsUp #NickKurtz #AthleticsTopProspect #MiLBHitsDifferent pic.twitter.com/QoyP48e2UD
SS Jordan Lawlar, Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks bypassed Lawlar when looking to replace Ketel Marte in their starting lineup this week. Over his last nine games at AAA, he has 13 hits over 41 at-bats with 10 runs, one home run, nine RBIs, and four stolen bases. His strikeout rate (26.9) over this span has been an issue.
3B J.D. Davis, Los Angeles Angels
An injury to Yoan Moncada led to the Angels calling up Davis on Thursday. His Bat rounded into form over his last four games at AAA (9-for-15 with three runs, a home run, and seven RBIs). He’s been losing fantasy investment more times than not over the past five seasons.
OF Max Clark, Detroit Tigers
Heading into Thursday, Clark started his minor league season with a five-game hitting streak (7-for-19 with six runs, one home run, nine RBIs, and one steal) at High A. He already has eight walks while striking out six times.
Max Clark's first 5 games of 2025 for the High-A @wmwhitecaps:
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 10, 2025
7 H
2 XBH
9 RBI
8 BB
.368 AVG
1.135 OPS@tigers | @RoadtoDetroit pic.twitter.com/i7u0VyfHx3
OF Tirso Ornelas, San Diego Padres
Eleven games into his AAA season, Ornelas has 12 hits over 41 at-bats with 12 runs, one home run, six RBIs, and two stolen bases. He was hit by a pitch on Thursday night, leading to an early exit. With Jackson Merrill injured and Fernando Tatis battling a minor shoulder issue, Ornelas isn’t far away from his major league debut.
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With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
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