One of the most exciting moments of a season is when the young, highly touted prospect you’ve been stashing on your bench all season finally gets the call to The Show.
You finally get to see if this unproven entity on your team will live up to the hype, or if he will have just eaten up valuable roster space, which could have been used to stream a pitcher or grab that much-needed backup player for one of the five guys on the disabled list, for several months.
Andrew Heaney, one of the top pitching prospects in the game heading into the season, made his highly-anticipated Marlins debut Thursday night against the Mets. The 23-year-old lefty was denied his first career win, but the outing was a victory for fantasy owners. He allowed just one run on four hits over six innings while striking out three.
Yes, this is was just Heaney’s first start. And, yes, he did this against the Mets, a team ranked 29th in batting average (.230) and OPS (.657) and 24th in runs (277) heading into Friday night’s action. But, here’s the truth: This kid is major league ready, and has been for a while.
Before getting the call to the Marlins, Heaney was dominating the minors, going 7-2 with a 2.47 ERA, 79 strikeouts and a 1.10 WHIP in 13 appearances (12 starts) between Double-A and Triple-A. Since being drafted with the ninth pick in the 2012 draft, Heaney was 17-7 with a 2.31 ERA, 198 strikeouts and a 1.13 WHIP in various minor league stops.
With Jose Fernandez lost for the season to Tommy John surgery, Heaney is a part of Miami’s rotation, period. He’s not going to put up Fernandez-like numbers, but he’s not going to get a start here or there and be thrown back to the minors either. He’s here for good (he was the most added player in ESPN leagues this week — now owned in 58 percent of leagues). If he’s available, grab him.
Here’s a look at two other prospects who have hit the ground running since their call ups:
Gregory Polanco, OF, Pirates: Talk about a hot start to a career! The 22-year-old already became the first rookie in the franchise’s 128-year history to start his career with a hit in each of his first eight games. (Roberto Clemente (1955) and Zip Collins (1914) reached seven games.) In his first nine games, Polanco was 17-for-45 (.378) with a homer, six RBIs and a .883 OPS. He had been stashed by many owners and is now owned in 100 percent of ESPN leagues, and it’s clear to see why this was a smart move.
Jon Singleton, 1B, Astros: Since being called up on June 3 and signing a historic rookie contract, the first baseman has four homers, 10 RBIs, one stolen base and a .823 OPS. The only downside to this 22-year-old thus far (outside of the fact he’s on the Astros) is he strikes out a lot (18 times in his first 15 games), which doesn’t help his batting average (.241). He’s still available in 25 percent of ESPN leagues and worth picking up.
Quick hits
Before going 0-for-4 Thursday night, Omar Infante (83 percent available) was 13-for-34 (.382) with two homers, 11 RBIs with a .980 OPS over during his nine-game hitting streak. … J.J Hardy doesn’t have a homer after 63 games. After 63 games in 2013, he had 13. Just saying. … After going 2-0 with a 0.73 ERA, 29 strikeouts and holding opponents to a .198 batting average over his last four starts, it’s time Chicago’s Jake Arrieta is owned in more than just 27 percent of ESPN leagues. … Adam Wainwright owners can breathe easier as he will make his start on Saturday. … Yangervis Solarte was the third-most dropped (-30.4 percent) player in ESPN leagues this week, after going 0-for-21 in his last six games before Friday. He has hit that rookie wall hard and now he’s just banging his head against it.
Fantasy Team Name of the Week: I Can’t Believe it’s not Butler