I think I’d go Weglarz/Elbert/Tazawa/Swarzak. I tend to think Swarzak will have flashes, but settle into a mid-end of the rotation arm, the type of guy you can find. I gotta admit I’m just not too certain on Tazawa. I really like Elbert, but Weglarz seems safer to me to settle into LF at Progressive Field in the near future and be a solid starter, versus Elbert being a solid rotation arm in the near future.

So your Dynasty league is AL/NL and those are the best 4 options you have for a prospect keeper to pick up? I assume the bench/farm spots on the rosters are very deep.

1. Weglarz
2. Elbert
3. Tazawa
4. Swarzak

I wouldn’t waste a roster spot on Swarzak or Tazawa yet. Elbert might get the 2nd half call on a good ballclub which would merit a roster spot. Weglarz has the most potential out of the bunch in my opinon. You don’t have a Martin Perez or Ethan Martin or Jason Knapp out there as a really young keeper to look at by chance?

I’m in several dynasty/keeper leagues and understand where you’re at with the players. Those 3 were just the first 3 to come to mind for me to gauge the depth of players still available. I think it all really depends on how fast you need someone giving you stats. If you can afford to wait a few years I personally prefer Ethan Martin over the rest of the guys there. However, you will find some really smart people on here that can probably make the case for the other guys as well. My last thought on ranking those particular players is:

1. Ethan Martin
2. Martin Perez
3. Jason Knapp
4. Weglarz
5. Elbert
6. Tazawa
7. Swarzak

As far as who could contribute the fastest for your team I would lean towards Elbert. Of course, Swarzak has been up already so you just need to figure out if you want to go for help this year (Swarzak or possibly Elbert) or sitting on someone for a few years for greater gains down the road (Knapp and Martin are both 19 I believe). Hope this helps!

-E Martin (Stud)

-M Perez (Secondary stuff took a leap forward this year)
-Jason Knapp (super high ceiling, awesome fastball, questionable secondary offerings)
-S Elbert (injury risk w/shoulder, might not be a starter)
-J Tazawa (solid, stuff better than advertised, knows how to pitch)

-Nick Weglarz (HRs and BBs… but nothing else… not sure why people are rating him so high. He can hit, but might end up at 1B and had a shitty April & May. At his best, he will be a 1 category player who is a strong negative in SB and AVG).

-A Swarzak (Doesnt really shine anywhere, pretty good stuff, off field issues)

Yeah, if you can only take one, it has to be Ethan Martin, and its not even close. After that, the next 4 pitchers are all very dissimilar and all have different things that recommend them. Its a really interesting collection of guys with different strengths and weaknesses… really a personal preference thing. I might take Knapp because his velocity and fastball are just sexy as hell. Perez and Knapp are kind of a toss up for me and I really like them both. Flip flop em if you like – I did ten times or so. Elbert I have my questions about, but I could absolutely understand someone ranking him second on this list. Tazawa is really good, but IRL he is behind lots of good pitchers… could end up in the pen rather easily, which isnt ideal for fantasy purposes. Weglarz has to absolutely rake in the majors to justify his selection… I think he will hit, but he’s not exactly a slam dunk. He provides no speed at all, so its all HRs. He’s a one category player, and its a question mark how much exactly he will help in that one category. Oh yeah, he’s been awful this year until very recently. Swarzak? Nice arm, but unimpressive the last few years and a lot closer to run of the mill than the rest of these guys. Ethan Martin is your man, no question.