Fantasy Baseball Mlb Kids Are Alright

The Arizona Fall League is chock-full of young prospects looking to make their mark. Desert Diaries is your twice-weekly look at which of these up-and-comers could make a fantasy baseball splash in 2010.

It looks as if there will be a changing of the guard in Baltimore. Melvin Mora, who has 1,323 hits and 158 home runs during his ten year tenure with the Orioles, has been told that his $8 million option will not be picked up. Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun says that the Orioles will look into a number of options at third base this off-season. They'll even consider Josh Bell, who's faring well in the Arizona Fall League.

The Arizona Fall League is chock-full of young prospects looking to make their mark. Desert Diaries is your twice-weekly look at which of these up-and-comers could make a fantasy baseball splash in 2010.

It's an inevitable side effect of playing extra baseball in an instructional fall league -- injuries will crop up. As much as these prospects, and their parent major league team, want to prove that they can make it at the next level, it's also important to avoid injury. Unfortunately that's been proven impossible for a few Arizona Fall League participants.

Scott Sizemore, who is projected to take over at second base next season for the Detroit Tigers, fractured his left ankle as the result of a collision at second base trying to turn a double play. He just underwent surgery on Tuesday to repair the damage and Steve Kornacki of Michigan Live says that Sizemore should be ready for Spring Training and is still on track to play second base.

The Arizona Fall League is chock-full of young prospects looking to make their mark. Desert Diaries is your twice-weekly look at which of these up-and-comers could make a fantasy baseball splash in 2010.

In case you missed it while you were at that pesky place called work on Thursday, Washington Nationals prospect and first overall selection in the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, Stephen Strasburg, made his second appearance in the Arizona Fall League. He didn't do well.

Strasburg pitched 2.2 innings on Thursday, striking out four, walking one and giving up a whopping three home runs which lead to seven earned runs against him. According to Chico Harlan of The Washington Post, the seven earned runs he gave up in his outing yesterday were almost half of the number he gave up in his entire junior season at San Diego State.

The Arizona Fall League is chock-full of young prospects looking to make their mark. Desert Diaries is your twice-weekly look at which of these up-and-comers could make a fantasy baseball splash in 2010.

Hard-throwing New York Mets pitching prospect Jenrry Mejia certainly is an ambitious 20-year-old. And you would expect as much from a guy whose fastball sits between 93-96 miles per hour and reaches 98 at times. But Mejia fell short of a lofty goal he'd set for himself and now he's pitching in the Arizona Fall League to make sure he sets himself up for success in 2010.

"Somebody told me if you play in the big leagues at 20 years old, that's good," Mejia said. "I said, 'I know, but I wanted to play in the big leagues last year.'"

The focus of most Major League Baseball fans is directed towards the playoffs right now as teams fight for their chance to play for a World Series title. But the astute fantasy baseball GM should be looking in the desert as the Arizona Fall League has just started.

Why tune in and watch young baseball players with little or no major league experience? Well, in the Arizona Fall League last year, hitters like Drew Sutton, Gordon Beckham and Nolan Reimold tore up the competition -- showing that they could make contributions at the major league level.

You also should not forget about a pitcher by the name of Tommy Hanson. In seven AFL starts last year Hanson struck out 49 batters while only throwing 28.2 innings. He also had a 5-0 record with a 0.63 ERA. We all know what Hanson did for the Braves in 2008 -- and for fantasy GM's who knew his name on draft day.

Who will be this year's Tommy Hanson?

Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

All season long, we've been waiting for David Price to deliver on the hype. But Price's year has been up and down, with counting stats that resemble waiver-wire fodder outside of his strikeout total. Well, there's another Rays starter that may be on track to finish 2009 stronger than Price, and is well worth a spot in all keeper leagues.

Wade Davis, you now have our unbridled attention.

Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

By now we all know of the greatness of San Francisco pitcher Tim Lincecum. He's the best pitcher in baseball this season, with a 2.34 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 233 strikeouts in 200 1/3 innings. But there's another hard-throwing young kid in the Giants organization that, like Lincecum, has a shot to be one of the league's best very quickly. He's a guy you want to burn that No. 1 waiver priority on, in case he sticks in the rotation for the rest of the season. He is Madison Bumgarner.

For much of the season, it appeared the Giants were willing to leave Buster Posey in the minors for the duration of the 2009 season. After all, they have Bengie Molina on the major league roster and Posey is only 22 years-old. It would appear there has been a change of plans, possibly motivated by Molina's quadriceps issues of late.

As reported earlier today by Jim Henry of FanHouse, Posey has been beckoned and will suit up for Wednesday's game against the Phillies. Molina has been unable to start since August 24. The uninspiring Eli Whiteside has been getting the starts in the meantime, but Posey's presence is added insurance.

These Kids Are Alright is FanHouse's look at minor league prospects who could have a fantasy impact in the near future.

Even if you don't avidly follow prospects or the minor leagues, you have probably heard of Brett Wallace before. Remember, he went to the Oakland A's in the Matt Holliday trade. At the time of the deal, R.J. White mentioned that Wallace will likely end up at first in the future. He has played five games at first base for Oakland's Triple-A affiliate (the Sacramento River Cats), while staying at the hot corner 24 times. Another thing he's been doing? Hitting home runs.

These Kids Are Alright is FanHouse's look at minor league prospects who could have a fantasy impact in the near future.

With the news that Willy Taveras is heading to the disabled list came some new fantasy blood -- at least if you are looking for a late surge in steals. Taveras will be replaced on the Reds roster by a 24-year-old speedster named Drew Stubbs. Stubbs was the Reds' first round selection (picked eighth overall) in the 2006 major league draft. He's a highly touted prospect in the organization due to his incredible athleticism. In his lanky (6-foot-4, 200 pound) frame, Stubbs is a stellar defensive player with great base-running skills.