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The Dodgers may need a new third baseman. Max Muncy injured his knee Wednesday, and while we don't know the severity yet, it looked pretty bad. See for yourself:

My guess is that if this injury indeed lands Muncy on the IL, the Dodgers would use it as an opportunity to get Hye Seong Kim more regular playing time. The rookie has hit .368 and swiped eight bases in a part-time role, and while his exit velocity readings give reason for pause, he's earned the right to play more. I don't know if he'd play third base necessarily -- we haven't seen him do that yet -- but Tommy Edman could slide over from second to third, allowing Kim to take over at second.

But if Kim should falter or if the Dodgers simply decide to go another direction, Alex Freeland would be the most logical choice at Triple-A to step in. He's a shortstop by trade but has started 10 games at third base this year. He's not a budding superstar but does everything well offensively, reaching base at a nice clip while hitting the ball hard enough to send it out of the park from time to time. He's also an opportunistic baserunner. You can see the numbers for yourself:

player headshot
Alex Freeland SS
LAD L.A. Dodgers • #76 • Age: 23
2025 Minors
AVG
.269
HR
10
SB
13
OBP
.383
OPS
.835
AB
294

A Dansby Swanson-like outcome isn't too difficult to imagine, but I wouldn't bet on Freeland maxing out his potential right away. And again, it's not even clear that he'd be the Dodgers' choice to replace Muncy. I wouldn't say he's worth stashing ahead of time in most Fantasy leagues

So who is?

FIVE ON THE VERGE

(Here are the prospects most worth stashing in redraft leagues.)

Emmet Sheehan, SP, Dodgers

2025 minors: 1-1, 4.12 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 19 2/3 IP, 2 BB, 36 K
2025 majors: 4 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K

The Dodgers don't currently have a starting pitcher listed for Sunday's game, and Bill Punkett of the Orange County Register has suggested that the spot could go to Sheehan, who made one start previously, allowing one run on three hits with no walks and six strikeouts back on June 13. His return to the minors has been a mixed bag. The first start was brilliant -- six perfect innings with 13 strikeouts -- but he followed it up by allowing four earned runs in just 2 1/3 innings Tuesday.

I'm inclined to see the glass half full with him, though, because his bat-missing abilities are genuinely some of the best I've ever seen. His swinging-strike rate between the majors and minors this year, his first back from Tommy John surgery, is 19.9 percent. It was 19.2 percent in the lead up to his promotion two years ago and 19.7 percent in five September appearances for the big club. The major-league record for a qualifying starter is 18.9 percent by Spencer Strider in 2023.

Logan Henderson, SP, Brewers

2024 minors: 7-6, 3.32 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 81 1/3 IP, 15 BB, 104 K
2025 minors: 7-3, 3.12 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 57 2/3 IP, 20 BB, 68 K
2025 majors: 3-0, 1.71 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 21 IP, 6 BB, 29 K

Henderson may still be the second-best minor-leaguer to stash, but really, that's an indictment on all the others. His chances of returning keep getting worse. Part of that's his own doing. His last three starts at Triple-A have been pretty bad, with the latest Tuesday seeing him allow five earned runs in four innings. That hardly counts for more than his four excellent major-league starts, and the fact he's somewhat proven at the highest level makes the stash easier to justify. But the Brewers are looking to clear a rotation spot for Brandon Woodruff, who's set to return from the IL Sunday, and no matter who they ship out, he will likely have priority over Henderson the next time an opening develops. Shoot, it might even be Jacob Misiorowski.

Joe Boyle, SP, Rays

2024 minors: 1-3, 5.12 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 45 2/3 IP, 39 BB, 71 K
2025 minors: 6-4, 1.85 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 73 IP, 31 BB, 96 K
2025 majors: 5 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K

Boyle continues to simmer at Triple-A, delivering one strong outing after another while he awaits an inevitable opening in a rotation that's been too healthy to believe so far. His past couple outings have been a little shakier with regard to control, which is noteworthy given that poor control is why he's with his third organization despite having some of the best pure stuff in all the minors. But even so, his 3.8 BB/9 between the majors and minors this year is about half of what it was last year, and his 63 percent strike rate is also plenty workable. The Rays seem to have fixed him, and it's a shame that he's having to waste so many bullets in the minors right now. Eventually, something has to give.

Andrew Painter, SP, Phillies

2022 minors: 6-2, 1.56 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 103 2/3 IP, 25 BB, 155 K
2025 minors: 3-4, 4.18 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 51 2/3 IP, 19 BB, 57 K

"July-ish" has always been the timeline for Painter's promotion to the majors, in the words of president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, and well, here we are in July. Granted, the conventional thinking now is that the Phillies will wait until after the All-Star break to bring up Painter, but that's not so far away either. It's also not a guarantee.

"We will keep him on our plan," manager Rob Thomson said Monday. "There's nothing that says he's coming up here at all. He's got to be healthy. He's got to be pitching well. We've said that all along."

The 22-year-old is seemingly healthy after missing most of the previous two years due to Tommy John surgery, but is he pitching well? Neither his game log nor his full-season stat line would suggest so. The walks have run high, and the whiff rate has been underwhelming as well. In discussing this with Chris Towers recently, he suggested that the Phillies likely consider Painter to be a finished product already and are using this ramp-up period as a chance to experiment, which is a plausible, if somewhat fanciful, idea. He may end up getting the call just by necessity, though. Mick Abel, a lesser prospect who nonetheless got called up sooner, has been a train wreck of late, allowing a combined seven home runs and nine walks in 13 innings over his past four starts. He clearly needs to go. Would it make more sense for the Phillies to try out Painter or turn back to Taijuan Walker?

Chase DeLauter, OF, Guardians

2024 minors: .261 BA (142 AB), 8 HR, .841 OPS, 19 BB, 22 K
2025 minors: .278 BA (126 AB), 6 HR, .887 OPS, 25 BB, 24 K

When DeLauter has been healthy, he has hit. The problem is that he's been hurt more than he's been healthy since the Guardians selected him 16th overall in the 2022 draft. He's healthy now, though, and given the Guardians' never-ending search for outfield help, they might want to strike while the iron's hot. They seem to be acknowledging as much.

"He's now really for the first time making himself an option for us to consider," president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said Saturday, noting that it's not just about performance but also how DeLauter's body is responding to the day-to-day rigors. "We had a very deliberate buildup in that volume and there were times where his body was more sore than it had been in the past, so we had to pull things back. But now he's been able to play five or so days a week and not have it impact him negatively."

Indeed, DeLauter has had a chance to play more consistently in recent weeks, even starting three days in a row a couple times, and his production has only improved with the increased workload. His keen strike-zone awareness and penchant for line drives could make him an immediate success in the majors.

FIVE ON THE PERIPHERY

(Here are some other prospects doing something of note.)

Colson Montgomery, SS, White Sox

2024 minors: .214 BA (485 AB), 18 HR, 8 SB, .710 OPS, 69 BB, 164 K
2025 minors: .215 BA (233 AB), 11 HR, 4 SB, .711 OPS, 21 BB, 86 K

Why highlight a guy with such bad numbers? Well, because Montgomery isn't just some guy but a consensus top-50 prospect each of the past three years. He got a pass for a down performance at Triple-A last year, but his career looked to be on the rocks earlier this year when his already bad strikeout rate swelled to nearly 40 percent. That's when he got sent to the White Sox's Arizona complex (i.e. Rookie ball) to work one-on-one with their hitting director. He's shown some promise since returning in mid-May, cutting his strikeout rate down to 28 percent, which is about where it was last year, but it's only over the past week that his production has exploded, seeing him go 11 for 25 (.440) with two multi-homer games.

You could say that's grasping at straws, given the overall numbers, but I'll note that the underlying indicators still point to a serious offensive talent. Montgomery's 115.3 mph max exit velocity is among the best in all the minors. The ball comes off his bat at the optimal angle for doing damage. He rarely swings and misses on pitches in the zone and doesn't chase at an alarming rate either. In theory, this profile should work, and the past week may indicate that the 23-year-old is close to putting it all together.

Nathan Church, OF, Cardinals

2024 minors: .268 BA (482 AB), 9 HR, 24 SB, .705 OPS, 43 BB, 60 K
2025 minors: .329 BA (222 AB), 10 HR, 11 SB, .937 OPS, 21 BB, 24 K

Church was an unknown in prospect circles coming into the year, which is never a good sign for a 24-year-old in the upper minors, but his performance has forced everyone to sit up and take notice. It's only gotten better with his move up to Triple-A Memphis in June, where he's batting .344 (31 for 90) and has continued to show surprising pop despite the larger venue. His bat-to-ball skills are exemplary, best modeled by his 9.8 percent strikeout rate, but he stands out most for his defensive prowess. If Lars Nootbaar's intercostal issue ultimately does land him on the IL (an outcome that he's managed to avoid for now), Church would be a fine choice to step in.

Joe Mack, C, Marlins

2024 majors: .252 BA (472 AB), 24 HR, .807 OPS, 57 BB, 133 K
2025 minors: .272 BA (239 AB), 10 HR, .808 OPS, 26 BB, 66 K

His performance so far might lead you to believe that Agustin Ramirez is the Marlins' catcher from now until the end of time, but if the White Sox can graduate two catcher prospects in the same year, why not the Marlins? They too have no dedicated DH. You could argue Mack would make three, actually, given that Liam Hicks is also a rookie, but Mack is the sort of defender that would warrant most of the time behind the dish. He's showing he has something to contribute offensively as well, having homered five times in as many games heading into Wednesday. The plate discipline leaves something to be desired, but if Mack is a passable option at the plate for the Marlins, it'll likely trigger Ramirez's relocation elsewhere.

Cam Schlittler, SP, Yankees

2024 minors: 8-8, 3.36 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 120 2/3 IP, 55 BB, 154 K
2025 minors: 6-6, 2.82 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 76 2/3 IP, 26 BB, 99 K

While the Yankees have a number of interesting pitching prospects a couple steps lower on the ladder, Schlittler is the one making a push for a promotion already, putting together a 1.69 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 13.9 K/9 in his first four starts after moving up to Triple-A (his fifth one Wednesday didn't go as well). The 6-foot- 6 righty throws strikes at a nice clip and has shown the ability to go five-plus innings with regularity, which is how he already has six starts with eight-plus strikeouts.

He offers a typical fastball/slider power arsenal, throwing those two pitches a combined 88 percent of the time, but supercharged velocity has led to him making the leap he has developmentally. That's especially true for the slider, which is up 5 mph from a year ago, averaging 90.4.

Cody Freeman, 3B, Rangers

2024 minors: .264 BA (470 AB), 14 HR, 15 SB, .752 OPS, 37 BB, 94 K
2025 minors: .316 BA (288 AB), 10 HR, 7 SB, .859 OPS, 27 BB, 29 K

The Rangers just optioned Josh Jung to the minors because of suboptimal performance. They now have Ezequiel Duran filling in there, but it's fair to say his .152 batting average and .457 OPS are suboptimal as well. Might they consider turning to Freeman? The pint-sized infielder (he stands only 5-feet-8) offers more of a utility profile, but he's caught fire at Triple-A, leveraging his short stroke for a .452 (19 for 42) batting average in his past 11 games and a .367 (51 for 139) batting average in his past 33. Six of his 10 home runs came in June.

The overall profile is reminiscent of Thomas Saggese, who also started out in the Rangers organization, except that Freeman hits the ball a little harder and strikes out much less, only 9 percent of the time. No major publication lists him among the Rangers' top 30 prospects, but he's the sort of upper-level overachiever who could turn himself into something halfway useful in Fantasy if he gets the opportunity.