Rhys' Pieces: August 22, 2026

Let’s get Rhys’ Pieces back up and running with a bang after a long time away to focus on top 30s and other things… deep FYPD sleepers, specifically highlighting prospects that I like for some of your deepest leagues. This article is not meant to be something that I victory-lap later on in a year because, well, I have better things to do than victory-lap getting a 1/10000 sort of gamble correct. This is just a fun flag plant for some guys who stuck out to me during this most recent draft class as the dust has settled and all the players have signed or not signed, so we know who is eligible for FYPD drafts.

Everyone knows about Roch Cholowsky, Grady Emerson, and Vahn Lackey, but there are other prospects who were drafted that are worthy of stashing in your deepest of deep leagues. I am looking at prospects outside the top 5–8 rounds here, and in this bit of a dive, I am going to focus mostly on prep hitters because the least is known about them.

One thing to always look at is signing bonuses for guys; this allows you to know what teams think of their newly signed players. Were they overslot? By how much were they overslot? These sorts of questions give you a good idea of what an organization thinks of a player and whether they were able to come to an agreement on a signing bonus to lure them away from their college commitment.

All of these guys were drafted post-Round 10, which allows for a few different things. After the 10th round, the slot value of the pick for every pick between the first pick of Round 11 and the last pick of Round 20 is $150K. Round 11 is especially interesting because teams have had time to get through the first 10 rounds and budget how much of their bonus pool they have left to play with, which is why you will see some teams go overslot with their 11th-round selections. Just for funsies, 23 of the 30 selections in Round 11 were overslot.

Will Adams, 1B/OF, Detroit Tigers

Let’s start with the biggest signing bonus from the 11th round in this past draft, Will Adams. He was selected by the Detroit Tigers and given a one-million-dollar signing bonus to buy him out of his commitment to Louisiana State University. Below is what I wrote about him for the Tigers list.

“Will Adams is signing with the Tigers for puts pinky near lip one million dollars after being selected in the 11th round of the MLB Draft. Will Adams is a big and physical athlete whose fantasy calling card will be power.

It is still to be determined whether he ends up in a corner outfield spot or as a first baseman. There aren't a lot of moving parts in his swing: it’s a toe-tap, a stride toward the mound, dropping his hands, getting the bat out in front of the ball, and looking to drive it. He might end up being an average contact guy at the next level, to go along with plus power.

He has more than enough plate skills to profile at either first base or right field. The dream here is a middle-of-the-order bat who smashes 25 homers during his peak years.”

His ability to hit for power is impressive, and getting around top-of-the-third-round money should get fantasy managers excited. Also, keep in mind the Tigers have done a good job of rounding out the defensive spectrum lately; maybe he can be the power-hitting outfielder that we all want. But if he does go to first base, that’s fine—that isn’t hurting Josiah Hartshorn’s or Ralphy Velazquez’s value all that much.

Cody Boshell, 1B, Arizona Diamondbacks

Speaking of potential first-base prospects, let me introduce you to another one that you are going to want to keep track of late in your FYPDs: it’s Cody Boshell of the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was drafted in the 11th round by the D-backs, is already physically imposing—standing at 6’4”, 220 pounds—and swings from the left side.

His swing is geared toward lofting batted balls, he has solid bat speed, and he has the physical strength to routinely square up the ball. He needs to fix his lower half in his swing, as he starts a slight toe-tap and then strides toward the mound, but that can be an easy fix for a team.

The University of Tennessee commit’s avenue to fantasy production is easy to dream on: it’s 30-homer potential if it all comes together. He is a big and strong athlete who has a present feel for lofting to the pull side. He probably gets run out in a corner outfield spot in pro ball just to see if he can do it, which, if he can, will provide a slight bump in his profile.

Juriel Collazo, OF, Colorado Rockies

The next prospect is a bit of a different story from the first two, and it’s Juriel Collazo of the Colorado Rockies. They drafted him in the 13th round of the draft, and his calling card is easy plus-speed. It might be plus-plus.

There is a lot of room to dream on more power coming, and it’s not like he is a 30-power guy; he could very well see a couple of pounds of muscle added to his thin and projectable frame, and we could see him take a big jump in the power department.

Right now, the issue outside of the present power is the launch angles. When you watch some video of him, he has an issue with hitting the ball on the ground, which can get cleaned up; you can’t teach his speed, though. He will be a menace on the basepaths, and his plus glove in center will give him every chance to be fantasy-relevant if he can hit 15–20 homers a year. Oh, and did I mention he will be 18 for all of next season?

Ryne Barker, SS, Atlanta Braves

Let’s go with a mix of projectable tools and a present feel for hitting: Atlanta Braves 11th-round selection Ryne Barker. The Braves gave him almost $550,000 overslot in the 11th round. It’s a frame you can dream on for more power, and he is a fantastic athlete, posting easy plus-run times in showcase environments.

He has a present feel for hitting that is nice to see, and he has the ingredients for a good approach. It is easy to see where some grown-man strength would come in and really help the profile, as he is wiry, but you can see him try to get balls in the air.

The Texas Tech commit can go a lot of ways; he can stay a slap-and-dash sort of shortstop, which hurts the fantasy appeal, but if you see him come in with more muscle, then he is going to be someone you spend some FAAB money on early next season.

The Texas Tech commit can go a lot of ways; he can stay a slap-and-dash sort of shortstop, which hurts the fantasy appeal, but if you see him come in with more muscle, then he is going to be someone you spend some FAAB money on early next season.

Josiah Kemp, OF, San Francisco Giants

The last prospect is the Giants' 12th-round selection in the draft, Josiah Kemp, out of an Oklahoma high school. Oklahoma has become a nice spot to draft prep players from; Eli Willits is from Oklahoma, Jackson Jobe, just to name a few. Josiah Kemp is hoping to be the next interesting Oklahoma prep product.

Kemp has plus speed, posting a 6.53 60-yard dash, to go along with some present power. The question will be how quickly the Giants will roll him out next year, because they showed this year they are okay with allowing guys to marinate at the complexes.

There is power here as well; he isn’t just a speed threat, as he could get to above-average power at the end of the day. His swing is geared toward loft, and if you want to know who he models his swing after, look up some video of his uncle, Matt Kemp, who is not the worst person to model your swing after because Matt Kemp was a dawg (on and off the field if you are able to date Rihanna). He doesn’t quite have the tools his uncle did, but there are enough tools here to buy in in your deepest of leagues.

Thank you so much for reading this! I hope this was able to be of use to you in your FYPDs, whether they are happening right now or in February. Keep these guys in the back of your mind when you are on deck in leagues where well over 100+ players are drafted in your FYPDs, because it’s not just about the first couple of rounds. I mean, look at prospects like Josiah Hartshorn and Eric Hartman, just to name a few; they were drafted much later than a lot of prospects and now are household names in the dynasty streets. I think next week I will go over college pitchers; I will hit up my data plug, aka Chris.