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The Stash List Week 16: Top 10 Pitching Prospects to Stash in 2025

Top 10 pitching prospects to stash in redraft league

John Villavicencio
Dynasty 7/12/2025

The Pitcher Edition of the Stash List highlights the 10 best pitching prospects likely to make an impact during the 2025 season.

Prospects are often thought of as only holding value in dynasty formats. However, knowing which prospects hold value for the current season can help set you apart in redraft leagues. Several have a 2025 ETA, and getting ahead of the curve on rostering these prospects is a key part of roster management. Last year, we saw more pitching prospects make their debut than ever before, and there is no reason we should expect to see anything change in 2025. Keep reading to find out the top ten pitchers you should stash in your redraft leagues.

 

Ground Rules

  • The Stash List is for your redraft leagues and does not consider impact beyond 2025.
  • Only current minor league players who are expected to make an impact this season are included.
  • Upside, proximity, health, and opportunity are all weighed for each player.
  • The focus is on 12-team leagues with standard categories.
  • Rankings and roster percentages will be updated weekly.
  • Stats will be updated weekly for all players through Thursday’s games.

 

The Stash List

 

Graduates/Call-Ups

 

The following prospects got the call to the major leagues within the last week:

Joe Boyle may piggyback Drew Rasmussen for the remainder of the season. In his initial outing, he did exactly what we expected with seven strikeouts on 15 whiffs over five innings. He also only walked one batter with a 54% zone rate on his pitches, and more importantly, a 62% zone rate on his fastball. Load up on Boyle where you can in leagues with wins as a category, since he will seldom start and/or go six innings.

Cam Schlittler throwing 100 mph is unsustainable, but it was amazing to see in his debut. He earned the win in 5.1 innings with seven strikeouts and two home runs. Hopefully, he can reduce the long ball risk in his next Yankee starts since it ticked up during his Triple-A stint. He may be optioned down, but will likely get more run in the second half.

Ian Seymour was recalled to fill in long relief. With the Tampa rotation full, there is almost no room for him to go longer than a few innings here and there.

Nathan Wiles will fill the Didier Fuentes spot, and hopefully, it goes better than his one-inning, three-run outing back in April.

Shinnosuke Ogasawara’s knuckle curve and 90 mph fastball were greeted with six hits and four earned runs in his debut. The curveball is registering over 70 inches of vertical movement and got him three ground ball outs. He will hold a spot until Washington is forced to make a decision on him or Trevor Williams.

 

Top 10 Pitching Prospects to Stash

 

1. Bubba Chandler, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates

2025 AAA Stat line: 73.1 IP | 2.82 ERA | 29.9 K% | 11.9 BB%

2024 MiLB Stat line: 119.2 IP | 3.08 ERA | 30.9 K% | 8.6 BB%

 

Fantasy managers can now exhale a sigh of relief and relax their hovering mouse over the drop button after a much-improved outing from Roy Bubba Chandler.  The final line of six innings (July 4) and zero earned runs is as significant as the strong swing-and-miss rates continuing for a second start in a row. There were a few minor bumps along the way in the first two innings as pitches were sailing out of the zone for easy takes. Nevertheless, the fastball generated five whiffs while the slider was the star pitch with seven whiffs.

The breaking pitch has assumed the position of being his preferred secondary over the last three starts, as the changeup has fallen to a less reliable strike for him.  The slider possesses a gyro spin with almost no movement, performing well with a 52% whiff rate, a .030 average against, and zero walks. Chandler broke off four straight sliders to strike out Levi Jordan to cap off what would become his third victory

During the broadcast, Ben Cherington, Pirates General Manager, chimed in with his thoughts on Chandler’s current status. He stated that Chandler would be held out of the Futures Game, even though he was invited, to keep him on a regular turn and continue building up his pitch count. Well, Chandler is averaging 70 pitches per game on the season, due to a few short starts in June. He has already thrown over 90 pitches in a game three times. In his final seven games of 2024 at Triple-A, he was averaging 87 pitches. This feels like a hollow reason to keep him down in Triple-A, except to see Chandler be more consistent. Cherington followed up that statement by then dumbfoundingly stating Chandler was a “potential option” for the second half. What?! Thankfully, Chandler went on to complete the quality start and send a much stronger signal that he is ready for his debut.

Chandler also pitched another six shutout innings with seven strikeouts on 15 whiffs on July 10. The velocity, spin, and movement were all within his normal range. Bubba looks ready for the second half, whatever it holds for him.

 

2. Andrew Painter, RHP, Philadelphia Phillies

2025 A, AAA Stat line: 62.0 IP | 4.79 ERA | 25.0 K% | 7.8 BB%

2024 MiLB Stat line: 15.2 IP | 2.30 ERA | 30.5 K% | 6.7 BB%

 

Have we been fooled by the Andrew Painter hype? Let’s gather around the campfire for a little chat to discuss how he was lit ablaze by eleven fire emojis, aka hard-hit balls, against Syracuse on June 8. To his credit, Painter battled throughout his 5.1 innings to limit the damage, but only salvaged a final line of eight hits, five earned runs, one walk, and an unsightly three home runs. The home runs allowed are the extra-thick logs keeping the fire going, as Painter now has an 18.4% home run to fly ball ratio in his 11 Triple-A starts for Lehigh Valley. The pork is certainly being fried in Bacon USA with Painter’s fastball being the kerosene. This pitch features the velocity you want to see (97 mph) and a solid average induced vertical break (16.7 inches), but perhaps it is just too hittable coming in at a 0.5-degree approach angle. Over 516 tracked throws, he has given up five home runs, two triples, three doubles, a .334 xWOBA, and an 18% whiff rate. Psst…his cutter isn’t performing much better with three home runs allowed, a .332 xWOBA, and 26.8% whiff rate on the season.

On the merits, there is no way Painter can be the number one stash as poor performances surface pessimistic takes…Yet, this has happened before when other pitchers go through a difficult period, only to bounce back to their typical selves. Painter falls on the stash list, but stays near the top due to his pedigree and strong metrics. PLV rates three of his five pitches as good pitches, with the cutter being the highest at 5.36. There is nothing special about his release extension on any pitch, so we turn to the velocity.

Of all the pitchers who have thrown at least 99 cutters this season, Painter’s 91 mph, is three ticks above the average cutter velo, with spin at 2538 rpm that is a few hundred revolutions better than average. Yet, he has the aforementioned whiff rate on the cutter at 26.8% which is a notch below average. Thus, his cutter is probably best viewed as a bridge to the slider, given their similar release point and movement profile, but different in speed. Whatever the case, Painter’s pitch mix will need tweaking before his Major League debut, something that has been in the works as the changeup gains more use. Pour some water on these flames because this story is over.

 

 

 

3. Logan Henderson, RHP, Milwaukee Brewers

2025 AAA Stat line: 62.2 IP | 3.16 ERA | 29.0 K% | 7.9 BB%

2025 MLB Stat line: 21.0 IP | 1.71 ERA | 35.8 K% | 7.4 BB%

 

Unless they have an extreme dropoff, the Milwaukee Brewers have set themselves up well to make the 2025 postseason for the third consecutive year. They are top ten in runs scored, runs allowed, and top two in outs above average with their great fielding. They have a solid grasp on a wild card spot, all while allocating funds for a bottom ten team salary. It must feel good to squeeze such productivity out of one’s resources…except when you are the player being productivized. Logan Henderson is a legitimate Major League starter who is toiling away in Triple-A Nashville with no immediate sign that any of their current Major League starters are replaceable. Henderson’s current 40-man rostermates, Chad Patrick and Tobias Myers, have more Major League innings and might take a spot first, given Henderson’s low workload in 2024. There is also a tiny home run issue that Henderson needs to address in his time with Nashville.

Henderson has amassed 32.1 innings since his last game with the Brewers in late May. In that time, he has done well enough with a 24% strikeout rate, 6.5% walk rate, 3.86 ERA, but also five home runs. The home run issue is a continuation from last season, 1.9 HR/9 to 1.15 in 2025. The batted ball profile shows that he is getting more ground balls (25.4% to 33.5% in 2025), but Triple-A batters are also hitting more line drives (up seven points to 29.9%) and making more solid contact (34.4% hard hit rate in 2024 to 39.9%). Hitters are also pulling more of his pitches (39% to 52% in 2025) as they time up his one-two punch of the fastball and changeup. And we are talking about one of the biggest breaking changeups in the Minor Leagues of over 18.9 inches of arm-side break. He only trails the following Minor League starting pitchers with over 50 changeups thrown that are tracked by Statcast: Cameron Weston (20.3″), CJ Van Eyk (18.8″), and Isaac Coffey (18.7″). Since June 1, his 129 changeups thrown have a .289 average, .385 wOBA, a 28% whiff rate, and three home runs allowed. Although movement doesn’t dictate supreme success, we would expect better results with this pitch.

In his latest start on June 6 against Memphis, Henderson’s changeup generated two whiffs with one tick up in velocity to 83 mph. He threw all but one of the changeups to left-handed batters, a new strategy to tamp down on their effectiveness against him. Lefties hit all three of the home runs he allowed when he was up with the Brewers. The four-seam fastball is still his primary pitch to hitters on both sides of the plate, and it generated four whiffs in the game and no solid contact. After completing a few six-inning games early in the season, the Brewers’ pitching staff is likely content with Henderson reaching the 70-80 pitch threshold as he now works beyond the total 81.1 innings he threw in 2024. This will make him less valuable this season in fantasy leagues with the category quality starts instead of wins. Pitching health in the Major Leagues is always unpredictable, so Henderson is still a quality stash, but not with the same upside as earlier in the season.

 

4. Nolan McLean, RHP, New York Mets

2025 AA, AAA Stat line: 87.0 IP | 2.17 ERA | 26.6 K% | 10.6 BB% 

2024 MiLB Stat line: 109.2 IP | 3.78 ERA | 25.1 K% | 9.1 BB%

 

Nolan McLean has come a long way from pitching at the University of Oklahoma in relief as a relief pitcher to now featuring a legitimate six-pitch arsenal. McLean appears to be every analyst’s favorite Mets’ prospect pitcher because he has all of the underlying data backing up his dominant performances. He was promptly promoted to Triple-A after one month in Double-A Binghamton, where he had a 1.37 ERA, 27.8% strikeout rate, and 11.1% walk rate. What a week it has been for McLean, who came through with back-to-back ten-strikeout games. His balanced approach was rewarded with a solid line on July 3. A week later, McLean turned in an even better start. His 17 whiffs in the game are a season high as he used the sweeper and four-seamer a touch more than usual. The effectiveness of the entire arsenal is what is drawing him so much praise.

In his latest start against Lehigh Valley on June 9, McLean drew three or more whiffs on four of his five main pitches. The sweeper headlines the arsenal with an exceptional speed of 85.5 mph. This velocity puts him in the top 95% of Minor League pitchers tracked by Statcast, and his standout spin of 2,900+ rpm rate sets his pitch apart from notable prospects in this query like Jack Perkins, Cristian Mena, Mason Barnett, Sean Sullivan, and Cam Schlittler.

He elicits more indecision from hitters by pairing the sweeper with a curveball that is a few miles slower and has a much bigger drop. It also helps that he has the two fastballs humming at 95+ mph, but with different movement patterns. This package is further enhanced by a competitive spirit that has him hesitate in his delivery at times to add even more things for the hitter to consider. Late in his outing on June 9, he was charged with a pitch timer violation that he was displeased with. McLean proceeded to sit Oscar Mercado down on a big time curveball after setting him up with a high heater that almost knocked his noggin off. He is now the top Mets prospect pitcher to stash, assuming he can continue to get the strikeouts and whittle down the walk rate.

 

5. Troy Melton, RHP, Detroit Tigers

2025 AA, AAA Stat line: 65.2 IP | 3.43 ERA | 30.9 K% | 6.2 BB% 

2024 MiLB Stat line: 100.2 IP | 3.27 ERA | 27.7 K% | 7.0 BB%

 

Quick counts, easy balls in play, and strikeouts led to an extremely efficient outing for Troy Melton on June 5 against Columbus. He landed 76% of his pitches for strikes and ended his appearance with only three two-ball counts. It was all clicking for Melton who only threw 63 pitches over six innings and had to match zeroes with Parker Messick on the other side of the field, who was also impressive with seven scoreless and nine strikeouts. Melton has the more interesting five-pitch mix supported by his elite extension. The Clippers’ hitters were getting fooled by the one-two punch of the four-seamer and slider, which generated 13 of his 14 total whiffs.

The 6’4″ righty is gaining traction on the stash list for those extension marks hovering around seven feet. His four-seamer extension is averaging 6.86 feet (6 feet and 10.3 inches) and 96.8 mph over 26.2 Triple-A innings thus far. The swinging strike has ticked up over that time to 15.6% while maintaining a solid ratio of strikeouts to walks, 30.9% strikeout rate to a 6.2% walk rate. One reason for his success is his superb four-seamer.

Suppose we reduce the Statcase database to view Minor League pitchers who have thrown 200 four-seamers with a minimum velocity of 96.8 mph, we are left with names like Jacob Misiorowski, Kyle Nicolas (RP), Nate Pearson (RP), Bubba Chandler, Ryan Jensen (RP), Bobby Miller, and Joe Boyle, among others. Essentially, Melton is expelling relief pitcher-type energy into a fastball that he is harnessing over a starter’s workload. He is someone to closely monitor as he already possesses a solid repertoire that supports a well-performing fastball.

 

6. Brandon Sproat, RHP, New York Mets

2025 AAA Stat line: 80.0 IP | 4.67 ERA | 17.9 K% | 10.9 BB% 

2024 MiLB Stat line: 116.1 IP | 3.40 ERA | 28.3 K% | 9.1 BB%

 

Phew! Brandon Sproat came through with the clutch scoreless outing to celebrate being added to the stash list last week. The Mets are in a transition period with their starting rotation, where anything could happen. Kodai Senga is likely back first off the injured list and will be followed by Sean Manaea shortly after the All-Star break. In addition, Clay Holmes may be in for a workload reduction since he has accrued 117.2 innings in 2025, blowing past his 2024 total (80.2, including spring training and postseason). This leaves a small crack for a prospect to start if they end up short on starters at any time in the next three weeks. They have a favorable schedule after the break, with three consecutive weeks with only six games. Sproat is building up his pitch count to get ready for the possibility that his name is the one called.

Over the last two starts, Sproat is up on everything: velocity, spin, and movement. The fastball velocity is now sitting at 98 mph, with his curveball coming in at 81 mph as his slowest pitch. The sinker, which is loved by PLV, has not been part of this mini-resurgence with a low whiff rate (15%) and worst xWOBA (.403). The four-seam, curveball, and changeup each have a 50% whiff rate over the last two games, with neither an average or wOBA against above .175. These are steps in the right direction for a pitcher that is being surpassed by higher voltage arms like McLean and Tong. Sproat may not have the same strikeout upside as those guys, but he is demonstrating his versatility by making the most effective use of his six-pitch arsenal.

Sproat did himself even more favor by completing seven innings on July 10 with an impressive 71% strike rate. That ratio led to zero walks and four strikeouts as he put the sweeper in his back pocket. He threw the curveball more often than usual and only topped out at 98 mph on the fastball. Whatever the case, it was a great outing to put momentum into his case for a Major League call-up.

 

7. Jonah Tong, RHP, New York Mets

2025 AA Stat line: 78.2 IP | 1.83 ERA | 40.8 K% | 11.4 BB% 

2024 MiLB Stat line: 113.0 IP | 3.03 ERA | 34.2 K% | 10.0 BB%

 

If this most recent outing represents his worst outing, then Jonah Tong needs that promotion asap. On the Fourth of July in front of a packed house for the postgame fireworks show, Tong came through with his fifth 10-strikeout game of the season. He came through with 16 whiffs on his north-south arsenal that had spotty location in this game. Although the 61% strike rate is acceptable, it felt like he lost his release point on numerous occasions in the game, especially in the first inning. That initial inning was a 26-pitch slog that featured both of his walks and earned runs. He was removed once he sniffed the 90-pitch mark, sixth time on the season and third time in a row. Although he was not in line for a win, it was a victory from the standpoint that he battled back from early game mechanical flaws to strike out ten batters

With the over-the-top delivery, Tong’s pitches would be expected to travel up and down the strike zone. Yet, he does feature a changeup that can help him change planes on a hitter. A good example is when he had to battle back from a 2-0 count on Cole Carrigg in the fifth inning. He broke off a 96+ heater, followed by a changeup to the outer edge to get even. The finisher was not the fastball, but was a splitter-like pitch that dove down hard to elicit a swinging third strike. Tong eventually settled in, Tong recorded nine of his ten strikeouts in the third through sixth innings. With Jonah Tong heading to the Major League Baseball Futures Game, you can take a brief pause from regular analysis to listen to him talk about his journey to this point in his career, as he may not pitch for another week or so.

 

 

8. Noah Schultz, LHP, Chicago White Sox

2025 AA, AAA Stat line: 68.0 IP | 4.76 ERA | 23.2 K% | 14.4 BB% 

2024 MiLB Stat line: 8.1 IP | 2.16 ERA | 41.9 K% | 16.1 BB%

 

Noah Schultz is headed to the 2025 Futures Game and didn’t pitch a new game so here is the write-up from last week. Of all the underperforming prospects (Chandler, Mathews, Painter) on the stash list, Noah Schultz is the one who leaves the most bitter residue after examining his outcomes. The hope for greater success was born in 2024 when he had a 32.1% strikeout rate and a minimalist 6.7% walk rate over 88.1 innings. Schultz was doing well with a 64.4% strike rate back then, but has fallen to 62.4% overall and dipped even further to 61% in Triple-A. The frustrating part is that he isn’t wild, landing 49.3% of his pitches in the zone. Hitters are better at picking up his stuff and are swinging slightly less often (45.9% to 43.9% in AAA) and are not putting the ball on the ground as often as they are in the air (GB/FB ratio 2.02 to 1.67 in AAA). Even with a generous interpretation of his plate discipline and batted ball metrics, Schultz has issued eight walks and accrued a 1.89 WHIP over 11.1 AAA innings. This is unsustainable and discouraging for future inclusion in the stash list if it doesn’t regress towards 2024 numbers soon.

Schultz was unable to complete the shutdown inning after his team spotted him a big lead. He got to two outs before giving up four baserunners in a row that brought in two runs. The long ball also doomed his day as Graham Pauley took him deep twice. With velocity down a half tick and a poor 58.6% strike rate, Schultz has to throw much more competitive pitches to generate the weak ground contact he normally thrives upon. Despite having a big lead, the manager, Sergio Santos, pulled the plug after Schultz completed four frames. He allowed four earned runs on five hits and three walks. We insist on a tidier game next time out!

The Chicago White Sox are in full rebuild mode and should be ready to test everything they have without breaking anything. Grant Taylor received the big league call, and it should be clear that Schultz deserves a similar trial. Although there are no hard caps on innings, he could probably reach a minimum of 120 after completing 88.1 innings in 2024. You are stashing Schultz because you believe he can harness his stuff to produce enough strikeouts in an organization that greatly needs his talent at the major league level.

 

8. Hunter Barco, LHP, Pittsburgh Pirates

2025 AA, AAA Stat line: 63.1 IP | 1.85 ERA | 31.9 K% | 11.0 BB% 

2024 MiLB Stat line: 66.0 IP | 3.27 ERA | 31.2 K% | 8.3 BB%

 

The Pittsburgh Pirates have done an amazing job bringing up strong pitching development over the last 15 years with Gerrit Cole, Tyler Glasnow, Mitch Keller, Paul Skenes, and Jared Jones all having reached ace status for all or portions of recent seasons. The Major League roster currently receives contributions from Mike Burrows and Braxton Ashcraft, with Bubba Chandler, Thomas Harrington, and Hunter Barco all waiting to make their mark on the team. There are rumored trades as the Pirates holding up the rest of the division from the cellar in the standings along with rumored trades, someone in the system is going to the call-up around the July 31 trade deadline. The rotation could say goodbye to Heaney (free agent in 2026), Falter (free agent in 2026), or Keller (free agent in 2029) over the next several weeks. None of this guarantees that Chandler, Harrington, or Barco get to the Major Leagues, but they are doing their part to signal that they are ready.

Barco is the oldest prospect here and the only lefty in the upper minors showing big-league stuff. He was promoted to Triple-A after showing better control, a 7.4% walk rate, over 25.2 innings in Double-A Altoona. Despite a poor season mark in walk rate, Barco has shown improvement to a 9.8% walk rate and serviceable 1.10 WHIP since June 1. He isn’t being punished by the walks (yet), especially when he isn’t allowing any hard contact as he did on June 5 versus Louisville. Over six dominant innings, Barco saw five baserunners, and only twice did the opponent reach second base.

He held them in check with his four-pitch arsenal that generated 14 whiffs and seven strikeouts. The repertoire featured a 93 mph sinker that had 12 inches of rise and 15.5 inches of run, along with a gyro-type slider that generated eight whiffs. The splitter is an exciting pitch that has a 31.6% whiff rate and darts downward at 85 mph. Barco uses a low arm angle and wide release point that adds a bit of delay and deception to his delivery.

 

10. Hurston Waldrep, RHP, Atlanta Braves

2025 AAA Stat line: 79.2 IP | 4.97 ERA | 21.8 K% | 12.7 BB% 

2024 MiLB Stat line: 93.1 IP | 3.47 ERA | 23.7 K% | 11.0 BB%

 

The Atlanta Braves currently feature Spencer Strider, Grant Holmes, Bryce Elder, Didier Fuentes and…Hurston Waldrep? Well, that could happen now that Spencer Schwellenbach has joined Chris Sale, AJ Smith Shawver, and Reynaldo López on the injured list. Waldrep is on the 40-man roster, has Major League experience, and a solid four-pitch mix. Wait, that also applies to Nathan Wiles? Hmm…Should we write about him, too? Nah, there’s always next week! Back to Waldrep, who has shown occasional flashes but has mostly experienced a bumpy road to Triple-A after being a 2024 first-round draft pick out of Florida. In his final college year, he compiled 156 strikeouts over 101.2 innings but also gave out 57 free passes to earn him a 10-3 record. His walk rates have remained high since college, but the concern is over the strikeout rates that have steadily declined. Atlanta faces the scenario of calling up one of their younger prospects, Wiles or Waldrep, or bringing Davis Daniel in to eat innings. My initial take is that they will start with the youth.

Waldrep enters the weekend with a 2.78 ERA, 4% K%-BB%, and four home runs allowed over his last four starts. Most recently against St. Paul, Waldrep completed five innings with zero earned runs, three runs, four walks, and four strikeouts. He may not have the best swing-and-miss stuff, but he did get 21 called strikes in the game. The split-fingered fastball and curveball led the way with five whiffs. Although the PLV model does not favor his splitter, their outcomes have been great with a 50% whiff rate and a .143 average against. He uses the splitter a few more percentage points over the curveball, which also has a strong 39% whiff rate and .0.061 average against. Waldrep’s splitter has the lowest spin rate among Minor League pitchers who have thrown the pitch at least 100 times this season. Joe Boyle, Carson Ragsdale, and Shintaro Fujinami each throw their splitter at a higher velocity, but Waldrep’s whiff rate is the highest. Given that both of his best pitches are “feel” pitches, he needs to have stellar command to make them both effective in the same game. One strategy Waldrep may want to employ is to fill up the zone more often. He does have a 53.5% ground ball rate, and he would be better served to allow his defense to make more plays.

After all that about Waldrep, you may be better off stashing Nathan Wiles as your proximity play for the Braves’ final spot. He doesn’t throw as hard, but his walk rates have never wavered much above 7%. In addition, Waldrep tossed 84 pitches over six innings on July 10. This outing likely eliminates him from any possible appearances over the weekend.

 

On The Bubble

Here are the next several pitchers that were in consideration for inclusion on this week’s list:

Miguel Ullola HOU, Ryan Johnson LAA (Currently at A+, but already has 14 MLB innings), Robby Snelling MIA, Marco Raya MIN, Mick Abel PHI, Henry Baez SDP, Carson Whisenhunt SFG, Kai-Wei Teng SFG, Michael McGreevy STL, Tekoah Roby STL, & Cade Cavalli WSN.

 

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