The prospects listed here are all ready to debut in 2021 and make an impact in MLB and your fantasy team. Prospects are a huge part of both dynasty leagues and standard one year leagues as well.
A dynasty league will require teams to have many prospects and keep those prospects every year. A standard one year league is solely focused on winning that year meaning most of those prospects will be in your fantasy leagues free agency or waiver wire until they get promoted. If that's the case you better know which ones to keep an eye on before they make their big league debuts.
Dylan Carlson is headed into 2021 ranked as Baseball Americas number nine prospect. Carlson already made his debut in 2020 where he started off poorly but did finish the season strong. Heading into this season I expect Carlson to be an everyday starter, he does have competition, however. Tyler O'Neill just won a Gold Glove award and should remain the starter in LF or move to CF. The St. Louis Cardinals have been reluctant to bench Harrison Bader and Dexter Fowler in the past but this should be the season. The easy option would be to place Fowler at DH but as of now there won't be a DH in the NL for 2021. As a lifelong Cardinals fan I hope they play Carlson as much as he needs to turn into a star. I think Carlson should be drafted in standard leagues anyway but if you can get him for a discount his potential is worth the risk.
Andrew Vaughn might be the most exciting prospect right now. His hit and power tools have the potential to be elite. On the 20-80 scale Fangraphs rates his hitting as a 70, game power as a 60 and raw power as 60. 60 is above average and 70 is well above average(or all-star level). Vaughn is currently ranked as number 21 on Baseball Americas 2021 prospect list but is sure to rise as others lose their prospect status early in 2021. He does have a chance of making his MLB debut in 2021 and will be a priority add in standard formats. On the contrary, The Chicago White Sox are a World Series caliber team and I don't think they would rush to call him up unless needed.
Josh Jung finished 2020 as Baseball Americas 93rd ranked prospect and begins 2021 as the number 49 prospect. Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports Texas Rangers manager Chris Woodward said he expects Jung to reach the majors at some point in 2021. This news comes after The Athletic reported that Elvis Andrus will be a utility player on the bench for 2021 and current third baseman, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, will move to SS. This leaves 3B open for Jung who could start the season in the big leagues even though he has yet to play a game over Single A. He is projected to be an average fielder according to Fangraphs and as long as he plays well on defense his offensive prowess speaks for itself. Even if Jung doesn't start 2021 in MLB keep him on a watchlist and wait till he gets promoted for his debut as he will make an impact right away.
Jeter Downs came to the Boston Red Sox in the trade that sent Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Alex Verdugo to Boston. Downs played 2019 with the Dodgers Double A affiliate where he had a .333 batting average and five homeruns through 56 plate appearances. The rest of 2019 he was playing at the high A level. He batted a .269 batting average, 19 homeruns, and 23 stolen bases through 479 plate appearances. Downs is likely to begin 2021 in Triple A. As of right now Christian Arroyo is the best candidate on their current roster to get the bulk of playing time at second base in 2021. With plenty of talent still left in free agency there is a chance the Red Sox sign a free agent to be their everyday starter. This would hurt the chances of Downs seeing the major leagues this season but if Arroyo or another big league player struggles Downs would be first in line for a promotion and able to make his MLB debut in 2021. He is the type of player that can end up hitting 20 homeruns and get 20 stolen bases, although I like him more for his bat skills than running ability.
These four prospects are all likely to make their debut in 2021 and will be rostered in dynasty leagues but they should also be on every standard league watchlist as well in anticipation for their debut. They all project to be really good hitters and should be owned in all leagues if they make it to to the majors.
Feel free to leave a comment or suggestion down below or reach out to me on social media as I am always down for a conversation about baseball or any sport for that matter.
All statistics from fangraphs.com.
Featured image courtesy of Getty Images.
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