Having averaged a major league-worst 2.65 runs per game over their past 20 contests, the Kansas City Royals will reportedly make a significant change to their roster in advance of their Tuesday series opener at St. Louis' Busch Stadium.
Jac Caglianone, the No. 6 overall selection from last July's amateur draft, and the Royals' top prospect in Kiley McDaniels' most recent team prospect rankings update, will be promoted from Triple-A Omaha, despite the fact that the team is already set at his most natural position of first base. Caglianone should see the majority of his playing time in right field, where he played six of his 12 games for Omaha, but could also see time at designated hitter, first base or even in left field.
Wherever he settles defensively, Caglianone is a top, universal pickup for fantasy baseball managers, thanks to his massive power potential. To illustrate, he had 11 batted balls struck at least 105 mph, per Statcast, among his 40 overall while with Omaha, including all six of his home runs there, which averaged an astonishing 109.4 mph. In 50 total games between Omaha and Northwest Arkansas this season, Caglianone batted .322/.389/.593 with 15 home runs.
Though Kansas City's Kauffman Stadium is one of the worst power environments in baseball -- Statcast's three-year averages for left-handed hitters, in fact, grade it the worst -- Caglianone's ability to muscle the ball well beyond the fence makes him less of a concern in the home run department than would be an average player. Salvador Perez (27 in 2021), Jorge Soler (21, 2019) and Bobby Witt Jr. (19, 2023) are all hitters whose power numbers weren't completely reined in by their home ballpark.
Expect somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 homers from Caglianone the remainder of the year, though his big swing might cause him to strike out at a greater rate and hit for a much lower average in the majors than college (.355 career for Florida) or the minors (.292 across parts of two seasons). He's capable enough of drawing walks, however, to help neutralize that in points-based leagues.
Caglianone isn't the only lefty slugger to add. Let's get to the next, an older hitter, but one in an environment much more conducive to big run production numbers.
Max Muncy, 3B, Los Angeles Dodgers (available in 69.4% of ESPN leagues): A three-homer, eight-RBI weekend goes a long way toward elevating a hitter's fantasy profile, but in Muncy's case, he's a player who shouldn't have been let go in as many leagues as he was during the season's early weeks. He's a perennially underrated points-league hitter, thanks to what has been nine consecutive seasons with at least a 14% walk rate, five of which also saw him deliver at least .260 isolated power. Muncy's Statcast metrics are well within range of his 36-homer campaign in 2023 that saw him finish 48th among hitters with his 363 fantasy points. He'll continue to play regularly against right-handers, with the occasional start against lefties, while batting fifth or sixth in one of baseball's most loaded lineups.
Rotisserie-style player to add
Daniel Palencia, RP, Chicago Cubs (available in 85.3%): His candidacy as a universal fantasy pickup, let alone only in rotisserie leagues, isn't a difficult one to make. Since Ryan Pressly lost his grip on the Cubs' closer role and Porter Hodge subsequently landed on the injured list with an oblique issue (not to mention his IL stint extending after he also suffered a setback with his hip), Palencia has saved five of the team's past eight victories. It might not be a temporary fill-in arrangement, either, as Palencia has the raw stuff that could equip him to maintain the role, as his 99.2 mph average fastball has filthy movement and has helped him hold lefties to .061/.184/.121 rates this season. Late-inning relievers on a hot streak like this are well worth the speculative add, as teams often don't want to change roles in these situations and the Cubs should offer their closer many save chances.
Two-start value pickup
Drew Rasmussen, SP, Tampa Bay Rays (available in 62.0%): He has three consecutive outings of exactly six shutout innings, and for the season has seven outings (among 11 total) with at least five innings pitched and no greater than one run allowed. Rasmussen's 2025 performance has snuck beneath the radar in fantasy, though his limited role -- the Rays have afforded him more than 80 pitches in an outing only four times -- does partly explain his roster rate in standard leagues. Nevertheless, if your league uses weekly lineups, he's well worth the pickup for a pair of home starts against the Texas Rangers and Miami Marlins.
Deeper-league pickups
Cole Young, SS/2B, Seattle Mariners (available in 97.9%): Another top prospect who recently got the call to the majors, Young's prospect profile isn't quite that of Caglianone's, but he can be a handy pickup for those who need a speedster and on-base specialist. Young has walked in 13.2% of his career trips to the plate in the minors and swiped 22 bags in 2023 and 23 in 2024, and now he'll get an extended look as the Mariners' starting second baseman. He's a high-floor middle infielder well worth a look in any league larger than ESPN's standard.
Ernie Clement, 3B/2B/SS, Toronto Blue Jays (available in 94.3%): Another player who shouldn't have been dropped in quite as many leagues as he has in the season's early weeks, Clement is nevertheless a player whose profile isn't quite good enough for consideration in ESPN standard formats. In anything deeper, however, his contact ability and defensive versatility can be an asset. He's already eligible at three infield positions and is halfway to adding first base to the mix.
Ryan Yarbrough, RP/SP, New York Yankees (available in 92.9%): Initially a rotation fill-in for the Yankees, Yarbrough seems to have settled into the No. 5 starter role for a team that has been unexpectedly thin on starting pitching. He's getting more swings and misses on both his sweeper and changeup this season than he has in any year prior, and he rates among the best in the game at minimizing hard contact. It's not unthinkable that Yarbrough's contribution to the Yankees could finish somewhere in the neighborhood of his first two seasons with the Rays, in which he had a collective 4.02 ERA and 1.15 WHIP.
