September Call Ups for Each Team

The time for an impactful prospect of Minor Leaguer/Major Leaguer down in the Minors is coming. From September 1st through the rest of the season, all 30 teams must carry 28 players on their rosters, two more than usual. There is a limit of 14 Pitchers, however, so bullpens will be heavy in this postseason push, and some teams may use a six man rotation. We’ll cover each division and team, as I give who the most likely be called up to help in September.

AL East

1. Blue Jays – The most likely call up for the Blue Jays would be Infielder Addison Barger. He’s rocketed his way up from Rookie ball to Triple-A Buffalo in the organization, being able to provide a Lefty bat who can play Shorstop, Third, Second as well as a little bit of Right Field.
2. Orioles – The Orioles have a boatload of Prospects whom they could call up to the Majors, but the most likely of them all is Outfielder Heston Kjerstad who hit well over .300 at both Double-A and Triple-A in 2023, and has also shown gap power with double digit Doubles at both levels. This’ll probably put McKenna on the back burner as they would have five Outfielders, but Heston would only be the second Lefty batter.
3. Red Sox – The Red Sox are playing to stay out of last place, so this may be the right time to give OF/INF Prospect Ceddanne Rafaela some at bats with the big club. He currently sits as the #3 Prospect for the team, and is able to bring versatility and youth being 22 years old, and plays Centerfield and Shortstop while being a DH option if needed. While not being quite as flashy as some of the other names on this list, he gets on base well enough.
4. Yankees – The Yankees will most likely bring up RHP Randy Vásquez to help out in the rotation and bullpen as a longman down the stretch. A longshot call up name is Catcher Austin Wells, who sits at #8 on the top 30 prospects for the Yankees. New York could use a bit of youth at that position, both of their current Catchers between the age of 25-30. Wells can also play the corner Outfield positions, if needed.
5. Rays – 3B/2B Prospect Curtis Mead will most definitely get the call back up to the Majors, as he’s already spent some time there this season, with a small 11 Game taste where he hit .250 in 36 At Bats. He currently is the teams most polished and experienced Infielder down in the Minors.

AL Central

1. White Sox – After sending almost all of their veteran players go in a wild fire sale, the South Siders can now bring up one of the many Prospects whom they received in the many trades that they made this year. Their most polished Prospect, sitting at #9 in their top 30 is LHP Ky Bush who they received in the Giolio/Lopez trade from the Angels. He could certainly help in the Bullpen, just so the team can limit his workload and keep him in his “Prospect” status for 2024.
2. Guardians – The Guardians weren’t a huge part of the trade deadline, but do have some young and exciting Prospects in their farm. As they’re already carrying seven Outfielders, yet only three Infielders, the most obvious choice is 2B/SS Brayan Rocchio, their #1 Prospect. He’s already had a small cup of coffee with the team, playing in 19 Games, so the team doesn’t need to make any moves to place him on the 40-Man Roster.
3. Tigers – The Tigers are technically still in the hunt as far as playoffs go, but would need a miracle to get past the Guardians and Twins. No matter, they can bring a spark to their Rotation with RHP Ty Madden who has spent the entirety of his season at Double-A.
4. Royals – Kansas City looks to be a possible 100 loss team this year, yet they can provide some excitement to the fans in the form of Utility Player Nick Loftin. He’s been fairly healthy since a short IL stint in early July, and can play multiple positions in the Infield.
5. Twins – As exciting as it would be to have Brooks Lee, the Twins #2 Prospect and Shortstop be called up, rumors are that he won’t be. With that in mind, if any Prospect gets the call, it will probably be LHP Brent Headrick to shore up the Bullpen during their Playoff run.

AL West

1. Mariners – As the M’s have now pushed their way past the Rangers for first place in the division, and Julio Rodriguez on fire, not many names come to mind as far as call ups. RHP Ty Adcock could be an addition to the Bullpen as the Mariners keep their position players as they are now.
2. Rangers – The Rangers got rid of one of the most highly touted Prospects in baseball when they sent Luisangel Acuña to the Mets for Max Scherzer. He most likely would not have been called up this year anyway, at least not with the Rangers, that is. 3B Prospect Jonathan Ornelas may return to the big club after playing in only two Games with them earlier this season; He’ll be the teams backup Thirdbaseman.
3. Astros – The Houston Astros have a plethora of Infielders and Outfielders, as they trudge their way towards first place. Their #3 Prospect in RHP Spencer Arrighetti can help solidify their Bullpen this year, while showing if he’s ready for the rotation in 2024.
4. Angels – The Angels have already pretty much called up all of their top prospects in Logan O’Hoppe, Nolan Schanuel, Ben Joyce, and Zach Neto throughout the season. The only player in their top 30 Prospects who would make any sense is their #17 in SS/2B Livan Soto, who has already made an appearance this season and last to fill in at Shortstop.
5. A’s – With the surge of rookies in Oakland, it’s not hard to see the team recall Catcher Tyler Soderstrom. He wouldn’t come back as the main Catcher after just being optioned down to Triple-A in late August, of course. The team would be smart to carry a third Catcher, however.

NL East

1. Braves – The Braves have an easy choice to make here, as they stomp through the East. Their #1 Prospect in AJ Smith-Shawver is currently finishing out his time on the 7-Day IL with right shoulder inflammation. Luckily, the next six Prospects on their list are also RHPs. Their #10 Prospect also happens to be RHP Darius Vines, who may be the guy who ends up getting the call if AJ isn’t healthy enough to come back.
2. Phillies – The Phillies find themselves in a fairly tight race for the Wild Card, all things considered, with a month left. To help bolster their Rotation, #6 Prospect in RHP Griff McGarry could end up getting a call to the Majors. The safer bet would be #2 Prospect Mick Abel, also a RHP.
3. Marlins – The Marlins have gone 3-7 in their last ten and are 19.5 Games back of first in the East, looking very lost. While they do have a slim chance of the last spot in the Wild Card, it may not be the smartest move to call up a bright prospect. I think the Fish will go with some more offense, and bring back up Outfielder Dane Myers, their #14 Prospect.
4. Nationals – Well out of the Playoff race, the Nat’s have some young talent in their core, so this could be the time to bring up some more. If you wanted to be brazen, they could simply call up their #1 Prospect in Outfielder, Dylan Crews, the #2 Pick of this year’s Draft. They are mainly relying on Lane Thomas to play Right Field, after all. But, if anyone will be called up, I think they’ll play it safe and go with Robert Hassell III, who has had several years to play in the Minors and brings a Left-Handed bat to an all Righty Outfield.
5. Mets – The Mets traded away their two star Pitchers to two different Texas teams, as well as trading away many other players for a package of prospects this past trade deadline. I feel that they could use either a Catcher or some help in the Bullpen, so my prediction for a September call up would be in-house, RHP Grant Hartwig.

NL Central

1. Brewers – The Brewers could very easily bring up their #2 Prospect in Catcher Jeferson Quero so they have a third in the bag, but I think they’ll go the Pitching route. The Brew Crew has RHP Jacob Misiorowski who sits as their #4 Prospect. He has been at Double-A all season as a Starting Pitcher, and could be a longman out of the Bullpen as well as spot starter.
2. Cubs – I believe the Cubs could use the help of their #1 Prospect in Outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, possibly taking AB’s away from Tauchman. If they need A LHH with pop, Pete has it in spades as he’s hit 24 Doubles, 6 Triples and 18 Homeruns this season in the Minors.
3. Reds – The Reds are another team who have benefited from the power of calling up Rookies to help out. They’ve gotten help in the Rotation, Outfield and Infield. The most likely Prospect for them to call up is #5 in their farm, RHP Connor Phillips who has pitched both as a Starter and Reliever down in the Minors this season.
4. Pirates – The Pirates are in need of another Starting Pitcher, and with Mike Burrows on the shelf until 2024, #6 Prospect Quinn Priester having trouble in his 6 Starts this year, they may just go ahead and give #14 Prospect and LHP in Jackson Wolf a shot. He already had one Start and Win with the Padres earlier in the season, so they may as well start using their new arm.
5. Cardinals – The Redbirds don’t have much to show for the 2023 season in terms of their division, or even Playoff chances, but they do have some talent on the farm. Matthew Liberatore could be moved to the 60-Day IL if his back tightness doesn’t improve, allowing the team to add #6 Prospect and RHP Gordon Graceffo. Graceffo is someone to look out for in the future as his Fastball can hit 100MPH from time to time.

NL West

1. Dodgers – The Dodgers seem to be built for the long haul, as their near 30 games over .500 show with an 80-49 record as of writing. Their trades have been working out decent enough, although Relief Pitcher Joe Kelly has had to go on the 15-Day IL, and his return has been pushed back. This in mind, their number one pick will be #10 Prospect RHP Ryan Pepiot, who has already twice been called upon as the 27th man in Double Headers for the team as a bulk inning man out of the Bullpen after pitching in nine games for the team in 2022. He had made a case for a Rotation spot out of Spring Training, before a rib cage injury took him out of the running.
2. DBacks – As of writing, the DBacks sit in second behind the Dodgers, but only 1.5 Games separating themselves and the Giants. Adding another big bat to their team would help, and #10 OF/3B Prospect A.J. Vukovich could be that man. He already ranks with fairly high power, as his 20HR and 19 Doubles in Double-A this season show, though he is very raw and doesn’t have the best patience at the plate as he has 124K in 100 Games played this year.
3. Giants – The Bullpen will be the place where this team focuses their power at the end of the month, calling upon their best Relievers. Their Closer just snapped a streak of 4 Blown Saves today against Atlanta, so veteran options on the 40-Man Roster may be where it’s at. If they do have to go with someone younger, they do have 23-year old José Cruz who has 3 Holds and 5 Saves in 7 Opportunities.
4. Padres – The Padres have dealt with injuries to a few of their Infielders lately, so it would only make sense that one of their call ups on September 1st be #14 2B/SS/3B Prospect Eguy Rosario, who played in seven games for the Friars in 2022 and remained on the 40-Man Roster. He would be the easiest to bring back up, unless the team is afraid of wasting an Option year for a simple filler in a wasted September.
5. Rockies – The Rockies are using a mixture of Jones, Tovar, McMahon, and Castro to play at First, Third and in the Outfield currently. They would make it interesting if they were to bring up #5 Prospect OF Zac Veen, but I think they’ll save him for 2024 and go with #6 Prospect 3B/OF Sterlin Thompson. He has shown more promise as far as bat on ball skills, getting on base, and moving over with the Steal this season.