Weekend Dynasty Baseball Pickups - May 31/26

By the time this article comes out we will be just one day away from the start of the Dominican Summer League. Every year there are exciting names who start to pop seemingly out of nowhere in the DSL and throughout the remainder of the summer we will try to help you identify which of those names matter. For those who have been following this article series for a couple years, you might remember back to a mid-June article in 2024, when I recommended a certain Brewers prospect in the DSL who was just 1% rostered at the time. After just 30 professional plate appearances, I called out Jesús Made as a deep league add because he was setting the world on fire. It is unlikely that we uncover another Made-level prospect, but hopefully we can find some more intriguing names once the Dominican season gets rolling.

Weekend Dynasty Baseball Pickups - May 25/26Kyle Sonntag (X: @sonny_108 / Bluesky: @sonny108) highlights MLB and MiLB players you should add and drop each weekProspects LiveKyle Sonntag

This week’s article features a trio of arms, including one college draftee who just got the bump to High-A, and a pair of prep draftees dominating the complex level who could probably use a promotion of their own. On the hitting side, we have got something of a post-hype sleeper who has shown up in a big way in his first taste of stateside ball, and a bat who just got the bump to High-A that you may recognize from Taylor’s articles last year. Now let us get into those names that you need to know this week.

Note: all stats current through Friday May 29/26 and all minor league Statcast data is sourced from TJ Stats unless otherwise stated.

Weekend Pickups

Dean Livingston - 19/SP/ARI/CPX

Photo Credit: Hebron Christian Academy

Height/Weight: 6’4”/205

Throws: R

Fantrax Roster%: 2%

PLive-: 97

PLive Prospect Ranking (May 2026): Unranked

PLive Tools (2026): Fastball: 60, Curveball: 45, Slider: 50, Changeup: 45, Command: 45

2025 Stats: N/A (did not pitch professionally or in college)

2026 Stats (CPX): 17.2 IP, 2.04 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 26.1% K%/11.6% BB%

Why To Pick Up

Livingston was the Diamondbacks fourth-round pick (123rd overall) in 2025, signing for nearly twice the slot value at $1 million. He is a strong athlete who also played shortstop in high school, and was considered a legitimate two-way prospect by some scouts after batting .415 with eleven home runs and 21 stolen bases in his senior season (per hebronathletics.org). That said, his pro career will be on the mound. Our scouts graded his fastball as a plus pitch. He was sitting around 91-94 mph, touched 98 at the MLB Draft Combine, and as the post below outlines, his average velocity has already ticked up significantly - he has been sitting more in the mid-to-upper-90's early on in his pro career.

Absolute cinema from Dean Livingston tonight:

5 IP | 3 H | 0 R | 0 BB | 5 K

Fastball consistently sat 96-97 mph. The mid-80s slider was downright lethal to both sides of the plate.

Got a feeling he won't be with the ACL #Dbacks for long! pic.twitter.com/TwtzQkk3FZ

— Diamondbacks Prospects 🐍 (@dbacksprospectz) May 16, 2026

Our scouts also noted that he “ flashes feel for spin ” despite only giving his slider and curveball 50- and 45- grades respectively. However, with the post above mentioning his slider as “ downright lethal, ” it is possible that pitch has ticked up already as well. There is also belief from our scouting team that Livingston's changeup could develop into a true weapon, and if that happens he could have the makings of a strong three- or four- pitch mix.

Through four outings (three starts), Livingston has an impressive 15.5% swinging-strike rate. While things like swinging-strike rate and even overall strike rate should be taken with a bit of a grain of salt in Complex ball, Livingston has also thrown a respectable 62.1% of his pitches for strikes (per Fangraphs). While his walk rate does fall just on the wrong side of 10%, it does back up the respectable rate of strike throwing.

Why To Think Twice

Our scouts mentioned coming out of the draft that Livingston’s command can be hit or miss, and while he does have one outing without allowing a walk, he has also walked a pair in another two of his outings, and he walked four in his most recent appearance (the only one in which he failed to complete at least four innings). It has also been a very short sample of success for him in pro ball, and, as with any young pitching prospect, there is significant risk involved in his profile.

** Final Thoughts**

Props to Darren Eisenhauer who called Livingston the player he does not want to leave drafts without in our FYPD rankings. He was speaking specifically to deep 30-team leagues, and said you can probably leave him undrafted in shallower formats, but the time to act in those shallower leagues is fast approaching. According to hebronathletics.org, Livingston did not even make the school’s starting rotation until his senior year, and he did not give up hitting until he was drafted. That means there is likely a lot of untapped potential in his right arm, which could make him a fast riser as his sample size continues to grow. I think there is a good chance he ends the year inside our top-200 consensus rankings, and that might even be conservative, but because the hype has not built up yet, you will not have to add him in leagues that shallow. For now, consider Livingston a medium-depth target, but a name you will want to pounce on quickly in shallower leagues if the hype does start to build.

Where to pick up: Leagues with 300+ prospects rostered

FAAB bid: Minimal (0-5%)

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