The Dynasty Digest: March 18, 2024

Grab a cup of coffee and read Chris Clegg runs down everything you need to know for dynasty leagues from the previous days action.

Cover Photo with image by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

Welcome to the Dynasty Digest! Baseball is back, and so are we, with our daily reports of everything you need to know from the previous days’ action for you to win your dynasty leagues.

Spring Training is always an interesting time, as box score stats don’t necessarily matter, but I am looking for other things of note. Has a pitcher seen an increase in velo or do they have a new pitch that compliments the arsenal well? Has a hitter simplified their approach, or did they post a new max exit velocity? The little things are much more important than box score stats for Spring Training, and we are going to talk about them. Unfortunately, nearly all of the Arizona games got rained out, but we still have plenty to talk about.

Another great day of Spring Breakout + Training is on Saturday, with a ton to cover. Let’s get to the action.

Kyle Stowers, OF, BAL

Well, hello there, Kyle Stowers; how about a three-home run performance? To my knowledge, this is the first three home run games of any hitter this spring. The three left the bat with exit velocities of 97.2, 103.6, and 107.2 mph.

Stowers now has seven home runs this spring and a slash line of .297/.316/.865. The crazy thing is that Stowers may not even make the Orioles roster due to the amount of depth the Orioles have. The current outfield is lined up to be Cedric Mullins, Anthony Santander, and Austin Hays, with Colton Cowser as the team’s fourth outfielder. With Jorge Mateo's flexibility, he can also play the outfield.

The larger issue is the contact skills, which have led to consistently high strikeout rates. It has been a fun spring, and while I hope Stowers gets a chance with the MLB squad, I don’t see him getting consistent playing time.

Reese Olson, RHP, DET

Olson continues to be one of my favorite pitchers to watch this spring. He pitched four innings on Sunday allowing just two hits, one run and did not walk a batter while striking out four. Olson threw strikes at a 66 percent rate and he posted a 29 percent CSW and whiff rate a piece.

The velocity continues to sit half a tick or more up on all pitch types, and the arsenal looks quite strong. I have been encouraged by the increased changeup usage, and Olson’s slider is extremely strong. The four-seam has been the biggest weakness, but if the location can improve, then there is potential for it to be a solid pitch to set up the secondaries.

Dylan Carlson, OF, STL

In a tightly contested battle for the Cardinals' centerfield job, Carlson turned in a big performance. He collected a double and a home run while driving in two. Carlson did turn in two hard-hit balls, with his home run leaving the bat at 104.1 mph, and all three batted balls were north of 90 mph.

While Victor Scott II feels worthy of the job, there is still a chance that Carlson does play centerfield until Tommy Edman returns and Scott begins the season in the minors. While that is no fun, it is a real possibility here.

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