Cincinnati Reds 2B/3B Sal Stewart sure is doing his best to force the franchise to promote him to the major leagues soon, and fantasy managers must notice. Stewart, outside the top 100 prospects in the original Kiley McDaniel list entering this season, has thrived and is among the better options now, appearing at No. 31 on his updated list, published last week.
Stewart, 21, is hitting .311/.383/.526 across Double-A and Triple-A this season, with 19 home runs (including three last week) and 17 stolen bases. The Reds, certainly in the thick of the NL wild-card race, haven’t received great production from second base this season, as only four clubs present a lower wOBA from the position. Blame 2B Matt McLain, who is hitting a disappointing .221/.300/.331, albeit with 11 home runs and 16 steals. Stewart would appear to be an upgrade.
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MLB rosters expand from 26 to 28 on September 1, with each organization likely to add one position player and one pitcher. Fantasy managers, as always, should pay attention to all potential moves and react accordingly, but there might not be much to watch. Would the New York Yankees really promote slugging OF Spencer Jones? Which hitter would they sit? The same goes for the Philadelphia Phillies and speedy OF Justin Crawford.
Unless a Yankees or Phillies outfielder suffers an injury, we’ll probably wait until 2026 with these fellows. Jones has 32 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A this season, but he has sputtered in August, and his high strikeout rate is concerning. Crawford might win the International League batting title — he is currently hitting .328 — but he rarely puts the baseball in the air.
With Stewart, far more contact-oriented than McLain, a promotion makes sense, especially as the Reds lack right-handed hitting production this season. Relying on prospects (both in real life and in fantasy) is risky, but the Reds might have to find room for this youngster.
Here are several other names who might debut in September, both for contenders and those already playing for 2026. We recently removed Baltimore Orioles C/1B Sam Basallo (he debuted on Aug. 17) and Tampa Bay Rays SS Carson Williams (he debuted this past Friday) from consideration.
JJ Wetherholt, SS, St. Louis Cardinals: Wetherholt, the No. 7 selection in the 2024 draft, has been at Triple-A Memphis for barely a month, and he already looks as if he’s ready for the majors with a .328/.413/.648 line. He has 16 home runs and 19 stolen bases across two minor league levels. The Cardinals boast strong-armed SS Masyn Winn at Wetherholt’s main position, but he can play second base and third base, too. Perhaps the Cardinals promote Wetherholt up in these final weeks to get him acclimated, since he should be in their 2026 Opening Day lineup.
Trey Yesavage, RHP, Toronto Blue Jays: The AL East leaders have been quite aggressive with this Pennsylvania product, who has hurled at four different levels this season — and they might not be done promoting him yet. Yesavage, 22, is striking out nearly 42% of the hitters he’s facing. With RHP Shane Bieber debuting this past weekend, there might not be an available rotation spot open, but a future ace lurks.
Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat, RHP, New York Mets: Tong, 22, dominated at Double-A (1.68 ERA, 41% K rate), and little has changed over two outings at Triple-A Syracuse, with 17 strikeouts over 11⅔ scoreless innings. Sproat, 24, has been at Triple-A Syracuse all season long, posting a 4.70 ERA. The sputtering Mets should be “all in” to win now, and these arms might join RHP Nolan McLean in the major leagues soon.
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Bryce Eldridge, 1B, San Francisco Giants: Eldridge, 20, is an intimidating, lefty slugger who has hit 21 home runs across two minor league levels this year, though he also served injured list stints for wrist and hamstring injuries. This is the future first baseman for the organization (it is certainly not Rafael Devers), and the future might arrive soon.
Andrew Painter, RHP, Philadelphia Phillies: Painter, 22, was supposed to make his MLB debut around July, at least according to the preseason expectations given by club officials. However, he simply hasn’t performed consistently well at Triple-A Lehigh Valley (5.11 ERA, 1.49 WHIP in 18 starts). Losing RHP Zack Wheeler to a blood clot hasn’t forced the team to promote Painter yet, but things might change soon.
Prospects to watch for 2026
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Konnor Griffin, SS, Pittsburgh Pirates: Griffin has vaulted into the top prospect spot for many analysts on the strength of a breakout 2025, as he hit .332/.414/.524 with 16 home runs and 59 steals over 101 games at A-ball before earning a promotion to Double-A Altoona. There are other teenage shortstops on the fast track (Leo De Vries, Athletics; Sebastian Walcott, Texas Rangers; Kevin McGonigle, Detroit Tigers) who might also debut next season. Make sure they are rostered in your dynasty formats.
Max Clark, OF, Detroit Tigers: Clark, 20, has hit well for Double-A Erie (.274/.376/.481), showing power, speed and excellent plate discipline. We should expect him to debut next season. Clark and Minnesota Twins OF Walker Jenkins were top-five selections from the 2023 amateur draft out of high school, so they were expected to need more development time than college products such as Washington Nationals OF Dylan Crews and Rangers OF Wyatt Langford. Jenkins thrived at Double-A Wichita (.309/.426/.487) and earned a promotion to Triple-A St. Paul over this past weekend.
JR Ritchie, RHP, Atlanta Braves: Ritchie, 22, has pitched at three levels this season with little trouble, posting a 2.58 ERA and an 0.95 WHIP, with nearly one strikeout per inning. Perhaps he lacks the upside of Painter or Pirates RHP Bubba Chandler, but we also should assume nothing. Ritchie underwent Tommy John surgery in 2023. He might open 2026 in Atlanta’s rotation.
