Rotoworld’s brand-new Pickups of the Day column is designed to help fantasy managers uncover a handful of widely-available targets over the course of the season. It could be a breakout candidate, a prospect stash, an injury replacement, a pitcher with a favorable matchup or week, a player who is due some better luck, or any other number of scenarios. If there’s value to be found on the waiver wire, we will find it and bring it your way.
In today’s column, we’re looking at a couple of highly-touted prospects – one from today and one from many years ago – who should provide plenty of help to fantasy managers this season.
PICKUPS OF THE DAY
Bryce Miller, SP, Mariners
Available in 71 percent of Yahoo leagues
Bryce Miller burst onto the scene in spectacular fashion on Tuesday night, delivering one of the finest performances we have seen in recent memory from a player making his big league debut. The 24-year-old hurler retired the first 16 batters that he faced in order – carrying a perfect game into the sixth inning before Tony Kemp‘s one-out single spoiled the fun.
Miller racked up 10 strikeouts on the impressive evening, while ultimately allowing just one run on two hits in the ballgame. He did not walk a batter. He generated 13 swinging strikes on 81 pitches in the contest – 11 of those on his fastball which averaged 95.3 mph and touched as high as 97.3 mph in the ballgame. Miller registered an elite CSW of 38 percent in the game.
Sure, he’s not going to get the benefit of taking on the Athletics in every start, but Miller definitely possesses the type of strikeout upside that fantasy managers are clamoring for. In his minor league career, he punched out 196 batters over 162 2/3 innings.
There will be bumps in the road, and perhaps he’s better suited as a matchup-specific type of play, but there’s mixed league viability here for sure. Those in weekly leagues with free agent bidding on Sunday night will get the added benefit of watching him take on the talented Astros’ lineup on Sunday before having to make a final decision.
Nick Senzel, OF/3B, Reds
Available in 62 percent of Yahoo leagues
Senzel epitomizes what a post-hype sleeper looks like. For years he was considered one of the top prospects in all of baseball, only to struggle through scores of injuries and underwhelming performance over the past few seasons. It took him a while to make his 2023 debut, as he was slow to return from a toe injury that ended his 2022 season prematurely, but what we have seen from Senzel so far has been awfully intriguing.
Through his first 18 games, he’s slashing a healthy .290/.362/.468 with 14 runs scored, three homers, 12 RBI and a pair of stolen bases. He has registered a solid 12/7 K/BB ratio in 69 plate appearances and has a career-best chase rate of only 19.5 percent. Not only that, but he’s moving all over the diamond for the Reds and has carved out an everyday role. He has already added third base eligibility to his resume with 10 games played at the position – and more could be on the way as he has already appeared in four games at second base.
His exit velocity numbers aren’t anything special, so don’t expect a massive power breakout, but he does still play his home games in the Great American Smallpark so finishing the season with around 15 long balls looks to be firmly in play. If you combine that with double-digit stolen bases, solid counting stats and a plus batting average, then you have an interesting five-category contributor who could even be on the precipice of a bigger breakout.
