Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Sal Stewart leads September call-ups; Payton Tolle thrives in debut
Cristian Javier, Josh Jung also worth a look based on their weekend performance
By
Scott White
•
1 min read
September call-ups aren't what they used to be, not with active rosters no longer expanding to 40, as was true a few years ago. Instead, teams can promote just two additional players, bringing the roster size to 28.
Those spots will mostly be filled by spare arms to build in extra rest for the more valuable ones during this final stretch of the season -- players of little consequence to Fantasy Baseball, in other words. The biggest call-ups already happened in late August, beginning when there were only 45 days left in the regular season. Once we reached the point when new arrivals could preserve their rookie eligibility for next year, there was little incentive to keep them down.
But there are always exceptions, and the biggest this year could be Sal Stewart, who we learned Sunday would be joining the Reds when rosters expand Monday. The 21-year-old always rated highly for his plate discipline and bat skills, but after reaching Triple-A in mid-July, his power production exploded, seeing him homer 10 times in just 38 games.
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There wasn't anything fluky about it. He was hitting the ball with real authority, placing in the 93rd percentile for average exit velocity (93.1 mph) and the 96th percentile for max exit velocity (113.7 mph). Those readings are comparable to Gunnar Henderson, but with a strikeout rate (15.8 percent) that's comparable to Jose Altuve.
It means Stewart has a chance to be a big contributor in Fantasy, but we all know how difficult the transition to the majors can be for hitters, particularly 21-year-olds with little upper-level experience. It's also not immediately clear where or how much Stewart will play. He's a natural third baseman who's also gotten some exposure to second base in the minors. Those spots are filled by Ke'Bryan Hayes and Matt McLain, respectively, but neither brings much to the table offensively, at least not this year. The Reds are also lacking a dedicated DH, making for three spots that could accommodate Stewart on a part-time basis.
Could he cobble together full-time at-bats between the three? Possibly, if he hits enough. For now, though, I would prioritize Stewart only in leagues of some size, particularly Rotisserie formats with an extra middle and corner infield spot to fill. Basically, if Jordan Lawlar is worth adding in your league, then Stewart is as well..
Potential waiver wire pickups
Honestly, I hoped for more from Jonah Tong in his major league debut, which speaks to the enormous expectations that go along with a 1.43 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 14.2 K/9 in the minors. What's missing from the stat line above is that he also allowed three unearned runs and had just seven whiffs on 97 pitches. His carrying pitch, a fastball that he threw 61 percent of the time, had just two whiffs. Then again, it also had 22 inches of induced vertical break, which is another insane number to add to the whole pile of them in the minors. So, sure, I had hoped for more, but what I got was plenty enough to devote a roster spot to Tong in Fantasy Baseball as long as the Mets continue to devote a rotation spot to him. At the very least, he's confirmed for his next start Friday at Cincinnati.
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Now this was the debut that gave me goosebumps. Payton Tolle pitched with a swagger that belied his youth, staring into his own dugout with every Pirates hitter caught chasing his 98 mph heat through the top of the zone. His almost sidearm delivery made the shape of the pitch particularly effective and earned him high praise from a player who would know. "He kind of reminds me of Chris Sale a little bit with his arm angle and his extension," said the Pirates' Andrew McCutchen. "He's obviously bigger than [Sale] is, but just from the way he was releasing it, it felt a lot like Sale." The left-handed Tolle was a revelation in the minors this year, breezing through three levels with a 3.04 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, and 13.1 K/9, and I would guess he has more job security than Tong. If forced to choose between the two, I'm probably taking Tolle.
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Not every pitcher who made waves over the weekend is an unknown in Fantasy. Cristian Javier was thought to be a burgeoning ace before losing a mile per hour off his fastball in 2023 and then another a year later, ultimately culminating in Tommy John surgery. His return this year has seen him reach his highest velocities since his career-best 2022 season, and his fourth start back finally yielded the anticipated results. He no-hit the Angels over six innings, registering eight whiffs on his fastball alone. "It's the Javier we all know and love," third baseman Carlos Correa said. Is it, though, given the way his first three starts went? Looking at them one by one, though, the first was pretty good, the second was diminished by illness, and the third was ruined by poor control. The stuff was there all along, his patented invisi-ball once again generating whiffs at the top of the zone. If you miss out on Tolle and Tong, Javier should be your next target.
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Need saves? Well, Abner Uribe figures to provide them, at least for the next couple weeks. The Brewers have the best record in baseball, which is why Trevor Megill has racked up 30 saves for them, but he's out with a flexor strain. While he hopes to return after the minimum 15 days, he'd be defying the odds by doing so, and it just so happens that the Brewers have one of the most dominant setup men in Abner Uribe, who averages nearly 99 mph on his fastball. His numbers speak for themselves, and he's already proven to be an effective understudy with two saves since Megill went down, the latest coming Saturday. All three of Uribe's appearances since the injury have been to finish out the game, so it doesn't seem like manager Pat Murphy is interested in playing the leverage game, which is great news for those seeking saves. If your Randy Rodriguez bid didn't pan out, Uribe makes for a fine alternative.
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Josh Jung's full-season stat line may not do much to persuade you, but we all remember him as one of the big risers at third base when he homered 23 times as a rookie in 2023. And we all know how much he's been afflicted by injury since then. Third base as a whole has been afflicted by injury -- with Austin Riley, Isaac Paredes and Max Muncy creating three major voids at an already thin position -- and some of the earliest potential fixes, like Addison Barger and Matt Shaw, haven't sustained so well. Jung wants a piece of the action, collecting his eighth straight multi-hit game Sunday to give him a .500 (17 for 34) batting average, four doubles and two homers during that stretch. He might be your best bet if you've already missed out on Mark Vientos, who's now 74 percent rostered in CBS Sports leagues.
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Ian Seymour hasn't gotten the hype of Jonah Tong and Payton Tolle, but he has a longer history of success in the minors, with his performance at every stop resembling the 2.62 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 10.9 K/9 he put together at Triple-A this year. Of course, having a longer history means he's older, and at 26, he's never actually rated as a prospect. That's normally a bad sign, but it may just be an oversight in Seymour's case. Pitcher evaluation mainly focuses on stuff, and Seymour's is lacking, his fastball averaging just 92 mph, but with an unconventional delivery and crisp command, he's made it work. If his back-to-back starts with eight strikeouts over five innings are any indication, it'll work in the majors as well. Not to make too lofty of a comparison, but Seymour sort of reminds me of a left-handed Joe Ryan, another dominant minor league pitcher who was routinely passed over as a prospect for his lack of pure stuff.
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Shane Bieber, Kyle Bradish and Cristian Javier have all made successful returns from Tommy John surgery in recent weeks. Could Luis Garcia be next? We'll find out when the Astros activate him from the IL Monday for what may be a two-start week (or may not -- it's unclear if they plan to go six-man with Jason Alexander retaining a rotation spot). Garcia looked healthy enough on his rehab assignment. In addition to the numbers above, he had a 16 percent swinging-strike rate, and his latest start at Triple-A saw him allow just one run over six innings. The majors are a different story, though. The 28-year-old also wasn't of the same stature as those other three pitchers prior to his Tommy John surgery, but he did go 15-8 with a 3.72 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 9.0 K/9 in 2022, his last full healthy season.
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For all the high-profile hitting prospects the Orioles have called up in recent weeks, Jeremiah Jackson has made the biggest splash so far. Never heard of him? That's because he wasn't expected to amount to much. The Mets let him go this offseason after he hit .205 with a .618 OPS for their Double-A affiliate. The Orioles have been one of the best organizations at developing hitters in recent years, though, and Jackson earned his way to the majors with a .313 batting average, 15 homers and .879 OPS in the minors this year. He's too much of a free swinger to amount to anything in points leagues, probably, but his contact quality is high enough that he may be able to stick as a major leaguer. If nothing else, he's a worthy hot-hand play in deeper Rotisserie leagues, having started 11 straight games for the Orioles.
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