The Stash List Week 5: Top 10 Pitching Prospects to Stash in 2026
The Pitcher Edition of the Stash List highlights the 10 best pitching prospects likely to make an impact during the 2026 season. While prospects are often seen as valuable only in dynasty formats, knowing which ones hold value for the current season can give you an edge in redraft leagues. Several have a 2026 ETA, and getting ahead of the curve on rostering these prospects is crucial for roster management. Last year, we saw more pitching prospects make their debut than ever before, and there's no reason to expect a change in 2026. Keep reading to discover 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 2026.
- 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.
Top 10 MiLB Starting Pitchers in Strikeout Rate through April 22, 2026 (minimum two games started)
The Stash List
Graduates/Call-Ups
Several top prospects joined the big league clubs over the last week, with three top 10 starters and a few honorable mentions called up.
Didier Fuentes (https://pitcherlist.com/player/didier-fuentes/) ATL made his return against Washington on Wednesday. His performance is detailed below.
JR Ritchie (https://pitcherlist.com/player/jr-ritchie/) ATL made his Major League debut on Thursday. See the breakdown below.
Payton Tolle (https://pitcherlist.com/player/payton-tolle/) BOS was phenomenal in his return on Thursday against the Yankees. He carried over his strong Triple-A performances to Boston, striking out 11 batters on 18 whiffs using a deeper arsenal than he featured in September. The four-seamer is still primary, but he blended the sinker, curveball, and cutter in equal amounts over six innings. He was tasked with improving his secondaries, and he appears to have done so. With Sonny Gray (https://pitcherlist.com/player/sonny-gray/) on the injured list, Tolle should be given at least one more start to earn a longer-term role on the Major League team.
Coleman Crow (https://pitcherlist.com/player/coleman-crow/) MIL made a successful Major League debut! Crow is known for a devastating curveball that drops 66 inches from a low arm angle. He was optioned back to Nashville and is now someone to monitor. The upside is minimal with his low-90s fastball and sinker as support pitches. He went 5.1 innings on short notice, striking out four batters while allowing two runs on four hits and one walk.
Kendry Rojas (https://pitcherlist.com/player/kendry-rojas/) MIN and Connor Prielipp (https://pitcherlist.com/player/connor-prielipp/) MIN were brought up as bullpen depth this week. Prielipp is viewed by most as the more complete pitcher, but his strikeout ceiling is low. Rojas is the more dynamic pitcher, but has control issues. He had three walks against the Mets in his Major League debut. It was Prielipp who got the start, giving up two runs on four hits and no walks across four innings. He struck out six batters, mostly on the high-spin slider. His fastball velocity was up a tick, and he makes for an interesting waiver wire add. Prielipp is tentatively scheduled for a two-start week at home against Seattle and Toronto.
Walbert Ureña (https://pitcherlist.com/player/walbert-urena/) LAA did his thing against San Diego with his 91 mph changeup and upper 90s fastball. Assuming he can maintain the control, Urena can develop into a José Soriano (https://pitcherlist.com/player/jose-soriano/) clone given their groundball tendencies with the sinker. He struck out 8 batters on 12 whiffs over six innings.
Christian Scott (https://pitcherlist.com/player/christian-scott/) NYM gave Jonah Tong (https://pitcherlist.com/player/jonah-tong/) believers a glimpse of hope as he served up five walks in his first Major League appearance since returning from surgery in 2024. Scott had gone five-plus innings in his previous two starts for Syracuse, but this lack of control may mean that he is not ready for prime time. He was optioned back to Triple-A on Friday.
Riley Cornelio (https://pitcherlist.com/player/riley-cornelio/) WSN is among the Minor League whiff leaders with a dynamite fastball and slider. Reportedly, it will begin in relief (https://x.com/markzuckerman/status/2047432758687920525?s=12), but following a shaky Miles Mikolas (https://pitcherlist.com/player/miles-mikolas/) makes sense. Cornelio struck out nine batters across five innings against one walk in his last Triple-A start.
Wilber Dotel (https://pitcherlist.com/player/wilber-dotel/) PIT was called up to bolster the bullpen.
Mason Barnett (https://pitcherlist.com/player/mason-barnett/) ATH appeared in one game for the Athletics (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/athletics/) before being optioned back down to Las Vegas.
Carlos Rodríguez (https://pitcherlist.com/player/carlos-rodriguez-3/) MIL has had some brief moments of success, but is not generating the same level of excitement as Logan Henderson (https://pitcherlist.com/player/logan-henderson/) , Robert Gasser (https://pitcherlist.com/player/robert-gasser/) (had triceps soreness, but will continue starting on Friday night), Shane Drohan (https://pitcherlist.com/player/shane-drohan/) , or even Coleman Crow (https://pitcherlist.com/player/coleman-crow/) .
Doug Nikhazy (https://pitcherlist.com/player/doug-nikhazy/) CHW was recalled the previous Friday and optioned back to Triple-A.
Eduardo Rivera (https://pitcherlist.com/player/eduardo-rivera/) BOS had two strong Double-A starts before being called up to the Red Sox. He was picked up as a reliever in the middle of 2024 by Boston, who then turned him back into a starter. In his first Major League outing, he finished out the game against the Yankees by using a heavy fastball (95 mph) and slider combo. No runners scored as he allowed only one baserunner and struck out three on eight whiffs. Let’s see how they use the big lefty.
Alan Rangel (https://pitcherlist.com/player/alan-rangel/) PHI was called up as long relief for his only appearance against the Cubs before being optioned back to Triple-A. Rangel utilizes an extreme over-the-top delivery. He racked up five strikeouts, three on the changeup, on six whiffs overall. He offers Philadelphia a unique arm slot to deploy whenever he returns to the team.
Note: There have been multiple innings during various Minor League games where Statcast data has not been gathered. In some instances, this absence of data significantly affects the overall marks of some pitchers due to the small number of pitches at the start of the season.
Top 10 Pitching Prospects to Stash
- JR Ritchie (https://pitcherlist.com/player/jr-ritchie/) , RHP, Atlanta Braves (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/atlanta-braves/)
2026 MiLB Stat line: 27.1IP | 0.99 ERA | 26.2 K% | 12.1 BB%
2026 MLB Stat line: 7 IP | 2.57 ERA | 25.9 K% | 7.4 BB%
JR Ritchie (https://pitcherlist.com/player/jr-ritchie/) uses a death-by-a-thousand-cuts approach against opposing lineups. Ritchie used all six of his pitches each of the three times through the Memphis order last Saturday. He continues to get positive results without an overwhelming arsenal, rather with a savvy attack plan. Similar to Robby Snelling (https://pitcherlist.com/player/robby-snelling/) , Ritchie doesn’t have a high-power fastball, but is built with a rubber arm that can go deep into games. This outing represented his third consecutive game reaching the sixth inning. He finished the scoreless appearance with three hits and three walks allowed, along with eight strikeouts on twelve whiffs.
Heck of a MLB debut by JR Ritchie (https://pitcherlist.com/player/jr-ritchie/) . 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/fTjlBj9vnd (https://t.co/fTjlBj9vnd)
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 23, 2026 (https://twitter.com/PitchingNinja/status/2047392815139688825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
Ritchie is now at 27 Triple-A innings in 2026 after throwing 59.1 Triple-A innings in 2025. It does appear that he is replacing the sinker as his primary pitch with a four-seamer. Neither of these pitches aren’t heaters, but they are a tick up in velocity while serving as eye candy for hitters. His main weapons appear to be the changeup and the curveball, each of which has more spin. The breaker was and still is an effective weapon for Ritchie as his number-one strikeout and whiff pitch. He mixes it in whether ahead, behind, or even in the count. With this one standout pitch, Ritchie is locating well enough with the rest of his arsenal to create advantages each at bat. The next thing to observe is if he maintains his success with higher and sustained velocity on the fastball.
- Didier Fuentes (https://pitcherlist.com/player/didier-fuentes/) , RHP, Atlanta Braves (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/atlanta-braves/)
2026 MiLB Stat line: 16.2IP | 2.16 ERA | 31.7 K% | 9.5 BB%
2026 MLB Stat line: 7 IP | 6.43 ERA | 33.3 K% | 6.1 BB%
Yay, Didier Fuentes (https://pitcherlist.com/player/didier-fuentes/) got the return trip to Atlanta’s rotation. Unfortunately, it was a one-day stay. After being a healthy scratch from his weekend Triple-A start, Fuentes was tapped with a favorable start against Washington on Wednesday. However, it made it two games in a row where he did not have an ideal first inning.
- Robby Snelling (https://pitcherlist.com/player/robby-snelling/) , LHP, Miami Marlins (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/miami-marlins/)
2026 AAA Stat line: 19 IP | 1.89 ERA | 41.9 K% | 12.2 BB%
2025 MiLB Stat line: 136 IP | 2.51 ERA | 30.3 K% | 7.1 BB%
The reins are being loosened on the workhorse, Robby Snelling (https://pitcherlist.com/player/robby-snelling/) , who may be on the precipice of his next string of deep starts after going six innings for the first time in 2026. He took advantage of an aggressive Charlotte lineup to rack up eight strikeouts on only 75 pitches. Snelling never threw more than 19 pitches in an inning, and twice had innings with ten or fewer pitches. For the strikeouts, two were on the curveball, and seven were on the fastball, which is gaining velocity each start as it ticks back up to the highs at the end of last season. The four-seamer was sitting at 95 mph, but hitting almost 97 mph on multiple occasions, including in the sixth inning. With momentum growing, Snelling is laying down the case that he is ready for his first Major League ride.
- Tanner McDougal (https://pitcherlist.com/player/tanner-mcdougal/) , RHP, Chicago White Sox (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/chicago-white-sox/)
2026 AAA Stat line: 23 IP | 3.13 ERA | 27.4 K% | 13.7 BB%
2025 MiLB Stat line: 89.2 IP | 2.31 ERA | 38.6 K% | 13.6 BB%
Tanner McDougal (https://pitcherlist.com/player/tanner-mcdougal/) escaped serious injury while avoiding a comebacker in his latest start against Nashville. During the fourth inning, McDougal dodged an 87 mph grounder off the bat of Luis Lara (https://pitcherlist.com/player/luis-lara/) and appeared to stumble like he pulled something or rolled an ankle. He acted as if he could stay in the game, but the team removed him precautionarily. You can see the play and his reaction in the embedded video below. It’s too bad for the early exit because McDougal was serving them up a cold dose of spin from his curve and slider. Those two pitches each had a called-strike and whiff rate above 41%. This was on top of the four-seamer sitting 99 mph. This game represents the best version of the 6’5″ righty, where he lands strikes with his best three pitches and avoids the free passes.
- Thomas White (https://pitcherlist.com/player/thomas-white/) , LHP, Miami Marlins (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/miami-marlins/)
2026 AAA Stat line: 14 IP | 1.93 ERA | 43.6 K% | 16.4 BB%
2025 MiLB Stat line: 136 IP | 2.51 ERA | 30.3 K% | 7.1 BB%
Thomas White (https://pitcherlist.com/player/thomas-white/) fans will key in on one stat every time he starts: total walks. His followers will rejoice after seeing that he did not walk a single batter in his first Triple-A start of the season. A deeper dive reveals that this may be a one-off revelation, given that he was at three balls on five of the 14 batters he faced. Nevertheless, he did the job in this game and didn’t buckle in as he struck out three of those five batters with the count including three balls. White only went four innings as he continues to return to full strength after a spring oblique injury.
- Logan Henderson (https://pitcherlist.com/player/logan-henderson/) , RHP, Milwaukee Brewers (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/milwaukee-brewers/)
2026 AAA Stat line: 12.2 IP | 0.71 ERA | 32.7 K% | 15.4 BB%
2026 MLB Stat line: 2.0 IP | 3.60 ERA | 33.3 K% | 11.1 BB%
Logan Henderson (https://pitcherlist.com/player/logan-henderson/) fans have had a sinking suspicion about his shorter outings, which has been confirmed by manager Pat Murphy. Henderson will be limited to preserve his health for the late stages of the season. This severely dampens his value as a stash in April and May. On the other hand, these 3-4 inning appearances could mean that he is more likely to go 5+ innings “when it counts” in the Major Leagues. You can decide how to roster him, but know that his debut is not imminent.
- Kade Anderson (https://pitcherlist.com/player/kade-anderson/) , LHP, Seattle Mariners (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/seattle-mariners/)
2026 AAA Stat line: 14.0 IP | 0.64 ERA | 41.5 K% | 7.5 BB%
2025 NCAA Stat line: 119.0 IP | 3.43 ERA | 37.4 K% | 7.3 BB%
Kade Anderson (https://pitcherlist.com/player/kade-anderson/) continues plugging along with solid five-inning outings with Double-A Arkansas. He struck out five batters, while walking only one and allowing only three hits, despite a lot of balls in play. The batted ball data continues to support a ground ball pitcher profile, which is a strong foundation for when the strikeouts aren’t present. Either way, he throws strikes and
- Elmer Rodríguez (https://pitcherlist.com/player/elmer-rodriguez/) , RHP, New York Yankees (https://pitcherlist.com/teams/new-york-yankees/)
2026 AAA Stat line: 21.1 IP | 1.27 ERA |
