Why Spend All This Money?

It gives you a feeling of why bother? The Texas Rangers made a giant push this past winter to raise their competitiveness. They signed free agents, they significantly increased their payroll. At the trade deadline they were active and added significant veterans. And here they are on the Friday after Labor Day out of of a playoff spot. Just like the Mets, Yankees and San Diego Padres. You remember the Padres? They went out and added Xander Boegarts, extended Yu Darvish, and still have to figure out a way to pay Juan Soto. Ttey gave an extension to Manny Machado. And here they are in early September, 9 games under a .500 record. The Texas Rangers are so desperate to jump start their offense, they are calling up minor league prospect Evan Carter to give them a boost. What does this mean for the fantasy baseball player? Let's take a look.

Evan Carter is the number 8 prospect in Major League Baseball according to MLB Pipeline. He is a 21 year old, 6 foot 4 inch left-handed bat with excellent speed plate discipline and presence. By most accounts he will be a future star. However Evan Carter has only been in AAA about a month. Some would say under other circumstances he would not be getting the call this season. But for those teams that significantly increased their payroll, this is make or break time. The Rangers are half a game out in the wild card chase. They just got swept in a disastrous series with the Houston Astros. Everything about their play in September screams CHOKE! So Carter made his debut on Friday night batting 9th and playing right field. If you are playing in a dynasty league, it is very comforting to see the Texas organization show this kind of faith in a player. It could of course be the type of pressure that can set back a player’s development. But you have to respect the Texas organization for their willingness to throw their prospect into the chase like this.

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It is hard not to appreciate what the Yankees are doing with prospect Jasson Dominguez. He has taken to the major leagues like a fish to water. Teammate Everson Pereira has had a much rockier debut, striking out in over 40% of his plate appearances. There is the same amount of swing and miss in both of their profiles. So it is inevitable at some point to see Dominguez enter into a slump of some duration. But other Major League teams see his early success and would love to replicate it with their own roster. Smart fantasy baseball players have to figure out when to push this button and went to be more conservative. I am not going to lie, it is a flip of the coin. Mike Trout was terrible in his debut back in the 2011 season.

There are quite a few baseball players looking to make a healthy return to the field in these last three weeks of September. Cincinnati 2nd baseman Jonathan India is looking to return. Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout is looking to return to the field. Texas third baseman Josh Jung is desperate to get back from his injury given how Texas has slid in the standings. Mason Miller is close to returning to the starting rotation of the Oakland A's . Kansas City Royal first baseman Nick Pratto is close to returning. What doesn't seem to change in each and every season is that Byron Buxton cannot seem to stay healthy. The smart fantasy baseball owner knows that they can never count on Buxton, but like a moth to a flame, owners make a gamble on him every season.

As we barrel to the end of the season, some things have returned to normal. Trea Turner has put on an impressive power display. Gerrit Cole once again leads the American League in quality starts by a decent margin. Josh Hader returned to form as one of the most dominant relief pitchers in the game. Raisel Iglesias ends up with his customary dominant numbers out of the Atlanta bullpen. And the Mookie Betts vs. Ronald Acuna Jr. MVP battle has been exciting, as their nightly exploits raise to reach higher and higher heights. Good owners with a shot at prize fund money are closely watching the projected starters in order to maximize appearances. Owners that are mathematically eliminated playing in dynasty formats are watching the call ups each and every day. These are the things you are supposed to be doing, depending on which camp you find your boots in. I didn't take a gamble on catching too many falling knives this year. I left Alek Manoah off of my team as others thought they could resurrect him. I showed patients withTrea Turner. It would be nice to get a good final week out of Mike Trout. We are in week 23 out of 25. Best of luck to you all.