Fantasy baseball managers are a fickle bunch. We want our prospects to be promoted early, and we expect them to have instant success when they arrive. Those who fail to meet expectations are cast to the wayside before they have had a chance to recalibrate and show their true talent. In reality, the evolution of a successful pro is rarely linear. Most young players endure a setback or two before enjoying sustained success, which means that managers who give post-hype sleepers a second or third chance could find a diamond in the rough. Here are a few names who should not yet be dismissed.
This one is too easy. Once one of the most touted prospects in baseball, Kelenic was awful in 2021-22 before surging out of the gate last season (1.003 OPS in April). Unfortunately, he quickly came crashing back to Earth and logged a .670 OPS after May 1. The outfielder got a new lease on life in the offseason when he was traded to an Atlanta team that led the majors in runs scored last season and returns all its key players. This feels like the 24-year-old’s make-or-break season.
Jiménez fared well in his initial two seasons and seemed to be on the fast track to stardom. But injuries mounted over the next three campaigns, and he heads into his sixth season with just one 20-homer or 70-RBI campaign on his resume. The 27-year-old would be well-served to reduce his groundball rate, but even without making that change he still has 30-homer potential for the cost of a late-round pick.
A notable prospect when he debuted in 2019, Lux collected just 18 homers and 14 steals across 273 games in the next four seasons before missing all of last year due to a torn ACL. The 26-year-old is back at full health and will be the starting shortstop for a Dodgers team with a stacked lineup. Lux needs to take a step forward with his power skills, but he can already hit .280 with plenty of R+RBI.
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