Regan's Rumblings: Callupapalooza

We've already heard the term "FAABapalooza" in relation to the recent slate of prospect callups, so this isn't the most creative title, but hopefully the content will be better. We've seen a wave of prospect callups already this year, from guys like Chris Paddack, Eloy Jimenez and Fernando Tatis Jr. making big league rosters out of spring to Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Michael Chavis, Carter Kieboom, Griffin Canning and others debuting in April. May has seen even more, with Nick Senzel, Keston Hiura and Austin Riley headlining the next wave. This week, we will discuss a handful more, including a couple guys looking to show that their previous stints aren't truly reflective of their long-term abilities.

Willie Calhoun, OF, TEX

A true post-hype sleeper, Calhoun has been on fantasy owners' radars for several years now, coming over to the Rangers as the key piece in the 2017 Yu Darvish deal with the Dodgers. Due in part to his defensive limitations, Calhoun has yet to truly break through, batting just .233/.283/.338 over parts of two previous big league seasons. Calhoun also posted a modest .782 OPS in Triple-A last season, which isn't terrible by any means, but combined with poor glovework and high expectations, his stock has taken a hit in recent seasons. Flash forward to 2019. After hitting .304/.416/.557 in 138 PA for Triple-A Nashville this year, Calhoun got the call when Elvis Andrus hit the IL with a hamstring injury. Calhoun dropped 20 pounds over the offseason, making him one of many "best shape of their life" stories circulating this spring. Calhoun though posted just a .557 OPS this spring, earning him a Triple-A assignment. Despite that, he's hit the ground running with the Rangers, going 10-for-21 in four starts and one pinch-hitting appearance for a nice .476/.476/.810 slash line. So now what? Calhoun has made three starts in LF and one at DH, and for now at least, they don't seem to consider him an option at 2B, where he logged three games in Triple-A this year. Rougned Odor is hitting .167, so perhaps they will consider Calhoun an option there. Regardless, it would seem that one of Calhoun, Hunter Pence or Nomar Mazara will have to be on the bench at a given point in time, but clearly Calhoun is earning more playing time with each game he plays.

Nicky Lopez, SS/2B, KC

Ranking as RotoWire's No. 86 overall prospect, Lopez got the deserved call after hitting .353/.457/.500 with three homers and nine steals in 31 games at Triple-A. The power is the biggest surprise, as Lopez entered 2019 with a .103 ISO for his career, though with 60 steals over 321 games, he certainly had shown some upside in that category. With a strong 11.3 K percentage last year, Lopez does seem to have the ability to hit for average and steal bases, and his 10.2 percent minor league BB percentage gives us hope for a solid OBP at the top of the Royals' lineup (eventually). He's hit the ground running with the Royals, posting a .320/.393/.440 slash in six games to push Chris Owings to a utility role. If the Royals could find a competent first baseman, they'd have a pretty interesting infield with Lopez, Adalberto Mondesi and the emerging Hunter Dozier. Lopez probably isn't going to hit for a ton of power, but 10 to 12 home runs and 20-plus steals could be on tap this year.

Dawel Lugo, 2B/3B, DET

The key piece that brought J.D. Martinez to the Diamondbacks, Lugo hasn't exactly lived up to that sort of billing the past couple seasons. Lugo batted just .213/.267/.309 in 101 PA with the Tigers last year after hitting a modest .269/.283/.350 for Triple-A Toledo. Lugo does make good contact, posting a career 13.9 K percentage in close to 2,800 minor league plate appearances, but over that stretch, his BB percentage is a paltry 3.9, a mark of which MLB pitchers are sure to take advantage. He's 2-for-12 with a home run so far this year after a hot start in Triple-A (.341/.393/.468) got him the call. Lugo has replaced Jeimer Candelario as the team's everyday third baseman and he's been moved into the No. 2 spot in the order, which certainly helps his value. That said, like anyone unproven with a spotty track record, Lugo is going to have to hit to stick around, otherwise we could see more Niko Goodrum or even Gordon Beckham. I just don't have a lot of confidence that he will, based on his lack of plate discipline.

Jared Walsh, 1B, LAA

Walsh pitched five innings of two-run ball for Triple-A Salt Lake City, but at least so far, it seemed he will be deployed exclusively as a hitter. Considering he was batting .302/.398/.604 with 10 home runs in 139 at-bats, that's understandable. Walsh has never ranked as a top prospect, but with Justin Bour sent to Triple-A, he'll get a chance to split time with Albert Pujols at first, and perhaps occasionally DH with Shohei Ohtani. He's off to good start at 3-for-7 with a walk, but he's also received the DNP in two of the four games for which he's been active. Pujols is batting a modest .241/.307/.448, though he does have eight home runs and seems unlikely to give away too much playing time, at least in the immediate term. Walsh, though, could start to steal playing time if he keeps this up, and his power upside is intriguing. In his last 167 Triple-A games, Walsh has hit .283/.368/.551 with 39 home runs despite a 27.4 K percentage. He's worth keeping around in AL-only leagues for now, but we'll need to see how the playing time shakes out over the next couple weeks to determine mixed-league viability.

Austin Riley, 3B/OF, ATL

Along with Keston Hiura, Riley is among the more high-profile prospects to debut this month. A third baseman by trade, Riley is expected to function as the everyday left fielder, thus pushing Johan Camargo to a reserve role. Riley ranks as RotoWire's No. 15 overall prospect after hitting a combined .295/.365/.563 in the minors since 2018, including 34 home runs in 617 plate appearances. He did post a bit of a lofty K percentage at 25.9, so that could expose him to some BA downside as a big leaguer, but despite six Ks in 19 at-bats as a big leaguer this year, Riley is off to a nice .421/.421/.789 start, including two home runs in five games. Riley has been a top prospect for a reason, but there are real concerns still in his approach. We saw a 29.3 K percentage in Triple-A last year, a mark that improved markedly in 2019 (19.1 percent), but are 162 Triple-A plate appearances enough of a sample size? We will see. The power is certainly real, but there's also a strong possibility he hits .250 or even less this year.

Brendan Rodgers, SS/2B, COL

As a former No. 3 overall draft pick (2015), Rodgers has historically rated well as a prospect, but his stock did dip a bit in 2018. After a decent .275/.342/.493 run in Double-A, Rodgers didn't fare nearly as well in Triple-A, batting .232/.264/.290 in 72 PA, including a 16:1 K:BB. This year has been a different story, as Rodgers destroyed Triple-A pitching, earning a promotion on the basis of a .356/.421/.644 start. Most notably, Rodgers' plate discipline was much better, including a 16.4 K percentage and 9.2 BB percentage. Rodgers should receive the majority of the second base at-bats with Garrett Hampson having been sent to Triple-A, but it's worth noting that after going 1-for-8 with four strikeouts in two games, Rodgers was not in the lineup for his third game, with Ryan McMahon handling second base duties. That said, Hampson was given 99 PA before his .493 OPS got him sent back down, so perhaps we can expect a similar sort of leash for Rodgers. No one knows whether Rodgers will hit enough to stick or whether Hampson will hit enough in Triple-A to get him another look.

Shaun Anderson, SP, SF

Anderson has never been high up most prospect lists, but after a 4.11 ERA and solid 37:11 K:BB in 35 innings for Triple-A Sacramento, he's getting a chance in the Giants' rotation. Anderson had a solid first start with five innings of two-run ball, though he did walk three. Manager Bruce Bochy has said that Anderson is in the rotation "for now," which while not a ringing endorsement, is enough to likely at least give him another couple of starts. When you look at the alternatives, they aren't pretty:

Derek Holland – 7.36 ERA, 1.61 WHIP

Tyler Beede – 10.67 ERA (career over five appearances)

Ty Blach – 6.35 ERA (Triple-A)

Look for Anderson to stick around for a while depending on performance, and while he's more of a back-end-of-the-rotation starter, he could provide some value in deeper formats as the Giants look to give their young players a look in a lost season.

Cole Irvin, SP, PHI

Due to his fastball that sits in the upper-80s, Irvin has never been a highly regarded prospect, but he's made a nice impression in his two MLB starts. Irvin is already 2-0 with a 2.77 ERA, posting quality starts against the Rockies and Royals. True to form, he has just seven strikeouts, but he's minimized the damage through just two walks and a home run. In 394.1 career minor league innings, Irvin has an impressive 2.78 ERA and 0.71 HR/9 with a 7.1 K/9. Irvin isn't guaranteed to stick around beyond his next start. Vince Velasquez should return from a forearm injury next week, and Nick Pivetta just fanned 11 over seven one-run innings in his last Triple-A start to take his ERA down to 3.09, though Pivetta still does have a 4.5 BB/9. Figure Irvin makes one more start and is sent to Triple-A to bide his time. Many people feel Velasquez is better suited to the bullpen due to his mid-90s fastball/erratic control profile, but it doesn't seem the Phillies are going to make that switch yet.

Keston Hiura, 2B, MIL

I figured Hiura would get his shot this year, but I didn't see it happening in May. Travis Shaw, however, hit just .163/.266/.281 before going on the IL with a wrist injury, opening the door for Hiura. How long will that door remain open though? Shaw had posted back-to-back 30-plus HR/.800+ OPS seasons in 2017-2018 before getting off to an awful start this season. Do they then give up on him as an everyday player? Does Shaw split time at first base with Jesus Aguilar and act in a super-utility role? That all probably stems on how Hiura hits. He's at .250/.333/.375 through 24 at-bats, with four hits coming in his last three games. For a guy who hit .333/.408/.698 this year in Triple-A, Hiura obviously has big-time upside with the bat, so it's really too early to tell what his prospects are for the rest of the year. It's tough to forecast what happens when Shaw is ready to return. Is he optioned to Triple-A? Will there be a trade to alleviate the roster crunch? Either way, I'm not convinced Hiura is up to stay.

Corbin Martin, SP, HOU

This wasn't exactly the prospect we thought would be getting the call to replace an injured/ineffective starter when we mulled such things over a month or two ago, but Forrest Whitley has a 10.48 ERA in Triple-A, so it was Martin who ended up with the promotion. It was well-deserved, as Martin had a 1.48 ERA in five Triple-A appearances, though one red flag was a 4.1 BB/9. After a stellar debut on May 12 (5.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K), those control issues resurfaced Saturday in Boston as Martin walked four but escaped with allowing just two earned over four innings. He also failed to strike out anyone. Overall, Marin has had an excellent minor league career, tallying a 2.31 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 179 innings with a solid 193:55 K:BB. His 95.3 mph average fastball should allow him to miss plenty of at-bats, but considering Martin had zero Triple-A or MLB experience prior to this year, he may not be quite a finished product. He should get at least another couple starts, but if Saturday's issues persist, the Astros could look elsewhere, including even Dallas Keuchel after next month's draft.

Oscar Mercado, OF, CLE

Mercado entered 2019 with a modest .252/.317/.350 career minor league slash line, but it was his 53 stolen bases per 162 games played that garnered him some attention in deeper dynasty formats. Mercado was off to a .294/.396/.496 start this year, which included 14 stolen bases in just 30 games, so with the Indians in desperate need of talent in the outfield, he got the call and has gone 3-for-9 with two doubles and a pair of walks. Right now, Mercado looks like a fourth outfielder, but the Indians have a number of guys whose time he can steal and potentially make the team better, including:

Carlos Gonzalez - .584 OPS, terrible against lefties, poor defensively

Leonys Martin - .700 OPS overall, but an ugly 31.2 K percentage

Jordan Luplow – Strong start, but small sample size and spotty track record

Jake Bauers - .669 OPS

We don't know whether Mercado is the answer, but he makes good contact (career MiLB 17.3 K percentage), is a solid defender, and he adds to the team's speed and athleticism. He should get an extended look.