The Phillies promoted third baseman Cody Asche to the big leagues Tuesday, presumably to take over for Michael Young, who some have speculated will go to the bench even if he's not traded. Anytime a new starter emerges, Fantasy owners should take notice, particular when it's a prospect. In Asche's case, though, I use the term pretty loosely.
His numbers at Triple-A Lehigh Valley -- specifically, the .295 batting average and 15 home runs -- are decent enough. But his .837 OPS is nothing special at that level, and his 95 strikeouts to 35 walks are downright discouraging. If he had a Christian Yelich-like pedigree, I could overlook the numbers. Talent is talent, and as Wil Myers is showing, it counts for more than Triple-A numbers. But unless you count the Phillies-specific ones, Asche wasn't appearing on any top prospect lists that spring.
Granted, I'm probably being a little overly critical of him just because, with any midseason call-up, the hype has the potential to get out of control. I've actually had Asche stashed in an NL-only league in anticipation of this move, so I think he can be useful. But nothing more than that. Personally, I'm expecting Trevor Plouffe-like production from him as a rookie.