PLIVE+ Deep Sea Diving: 5 Hitter Newcomers 4/15/26

Welcome to another season of diving deep into the minor league ocean with PLIVE+. This week I'm highlighting players who were drafted or signed as a undrafted FA in 2025. Some may have played some games at the end of last season while others may be in their very first taste of professional ball.

The purpose of the Deep Sea Diving series is to find players who are 0-1% rostered on Fantrax who are popping up in PLIVE+ rankings and peak projection filters. These players are not always slam dunk free agent additions. However, they are often great options to churn the back end of your minor league roster in leagues with 500+ prospects owned.

Process

I like to highlight the process I take to find these players, as then it makes it an option within PLIVE+ to replicate yourself. You can find the PLIVE+ leaderboard in the PLive Rankings where you can sync your Fantrax league to automatically see who is available.

Today I'm looking through the top of the "No Reg" column for non-DSL/CPX players with between 15-55 Career BBE (says Career PA for filter but is actually BBE).

With our filters set, we see some popular FYPD options this offseason in Daniel Pierce, Taitn Gray, Charles Davalan, Bruin Agbayani, Korbyn Dickerson and Josiah Hartshorn. If any of those players are available in your league, I'd invite you to take a closer look at them, especially Pierce & Davalan.

Below are 5 hitters who stand out with low Fantrax ownership. Michael Carico is not included because he was drafted in 2023, nor would he be a recommended add.

Jackson Lovich, 1B/SS/3B (NYY)

Fantrax rostered: 1%

Far and away Lovich's 231 No Regression PLIVE+ value is the highest of any prospect. This was primarily due to his insane 6 game sample at the end of last season after being drafted. He slashed .636/.692/1.000 with 3 SB at Single-A as a 21 year old. He didn't hit a HR in that stretch, but in his 4 games this year he's added his first.

In his first Daily Sheet appearance this season, Matt Seese had the following to say:

All Jackson Lovich does is crush baseballs. Lovich combined 221.1 mph of exit velocity across his two doubles on Friday, giving him three batted balls across two games over 105 mph. At 22 years old, it's hard to imagine Lovich stays in Low-A for long at this rate.

I agree with Matt here, it's likely he gets a quick promotion if he continues to hit like he is now. Playing in the SEC at Missouri last year, we'd expect him to hit well here. What's interesting is he's defensively played SS and 3B this season after only playing at 1B in his professional debut. In college, the 16th round pick played in the outfield as well, so there is certainly more utility than one would assume with the 1B indicator on Fantrax.

The main concern to look out for is the swing and miss as he struck out a lot in college and is running double digit SwStr% in both 2025/26 small samples.

Verdict: I'd add to a churn spot in leagues with 500+ prospects rostered. I'd like to see him hitting against higher levels before investing in shallower leagues, but if we see that, you'll want to get agressive.

Chase Heath, C (STL)

Fantrax rostered: 0%

The Cardinals selected Heath in the 20th round last year out of D2 Central Missouri where he hit 25 total HRs with over 1.000 OPS across 2024-2025. He also excelled in his 52 PA in the MLB Draft League.

Heath then continued to hit in his 58 PA at the end of the year in Single-A, swatting 3 HR while walking as much as he struck out. Through his first 6 games in back in Single-A to kick of 2026 he's hit another 2 HR. Listed at 5'10" 200 lbs, it's safe to say the kid can mash.

C Chase Heath pulls a solo shot 379 ft. for his second home run of the year.

Heath, 22, has hit safely in all six of his starts this season and has reached safely in 21 of 22 career games since being selected in the 20th round of the 2025 MLB Draft. pic.twitter.com/lu7sURoDKA

— Cardinals Player Development (@CardsPlayerDev) April 12, 2026

Verdict : Heath is proving he belongs after coming out of a D2 school. Obviously we want to see that he can do this over a larger sample and at higher levels, but you don't want to just wait around to find out with guys like this. Being a catching prospect, he may not progress as quickly as we'd like him to, but overall there are much worse players to bet on for your last minor league roster spot. Go and add in leagues with 600+ prospects rostered.

Jake Casey, OF (TOR)

Fantrax rostered: 1%

Last year Casey was drafted in the 15th round out of Kent State and debuted late in the season at Single-A where he hit 3 HR with 4 SB over 82 PA. He appeared in just one game at High-A this season before hitting the IL. We'll have to await what is in store moving forward but his overall numbers from last season give him a solid 147 No Regression PLIVE+. There's certainly some power and speed here, but he'll need to hit to move up the ladder, especially given he's already 23 years old.

Verdict: The Blue Jays have a knack for getting the most out of these older college bats like RJ Schreck and Spencer Horwitz. Once Casey gets back from injury I'd add him in 500+ prospect leagues.

Tanner Smith, C (ATL)

Fantrax rostered: 0%

Smith was signed last year as an undrafted FA out of the University of Miami where he posted a .801 OPS his senior year. He was immediately assigned to High-A for three games before going to to Single-A for six games to finish out the season. Smith has started the year back in Single-A as a 23 year old. PLIVE+ likes him because across his 49 professional PA he's hit 4 HR while already peaking at High-A. Unfortunately he's already struck out in 35% of those PA.

Verdict: We can pass on Tanner Smith for now. Not much of a history with the bat and he's back down in Single-A. Might be some swing speed of EV reading that are inflating his PLIVE+ number.

Jacob Humphrey, OF (COL)

Fantrax rostered: 0%

The Rockies signed Humphrey as an undrafted FA out of Vanderbilt where he slashed .279/.400/.422 with 19 SB his senior year. He's started off the year strong with 2 HR and 5 SB over his first 8 games at High-A. Playing six of those games in CF he offers some defensive prowess to go along with the speed on the basepaths.

70% of the earth is covered by water. The other 30% is covered by Jacob Humphrey. #GoSpo pic.twitter.com/OtebtEnCDn

— Spokane Indians (@spokaneindians) April 11, 2026

Greg Hoogkamp covered Humphrey in the Daily Sheet a few days ago:

It's not as often we see Vanderbilt hitters performing in the minors as compared to their pitchers, but Humphrey has been raking this year. The 2025 UDFA is a bit undersized (5'10, 180 lbs), and there isn't a ton of power here, but he's a good athlete and should be a stolen base threat. He's another watch-list hitter in leagues with 750 prospects.

Verdict: While I agree with Greg's assessment of league depth of 750 prospects, I'd add him instead of watch-listing him. The Rockies are more likely to push a guy like Humphrey if he continues to hit. They waited to long and lost Braiden Ward who is on the verge of an MLB debut with the Red Sox and Humphrey could very much end up in the same mold.