Fantasy Baseball Dynasty Outlooks for Struggling Youngsters: Corbin Carroll, Jackson Chourio, Jackson Holliday and Colt Keith

Being a fantasy owner in a dynasty/keeper baseball league is quite difficult at times, especially when it comes to making decisions on young players.

Do you cut ties with a young player who is struggling, or stick with them and hope they live up to the hype? That’s exactly what we’ll discuss today for four young hitters. 

Explore the best in-season tool to manage lineup/start decisions including waiver pickups, projections, trade suggestions, trade value charts, rest of season rankings, power rankings, and tons more with Fantasy Assistant. Use our fantasy baseball trade analyzer and trade value charts to break down trade scenarios and weekly projections to find the best fantasy options.

Corbin Carroll Dynasty Outlook

Carroll was not only one of the most promising young players in the game coming into the season, but also one of the top hitters overall.

The reasoning behind that can be seen in his 2023 season numbers. He hit for a .285 average, got on base at a .362 clip and stole 57 bases. Carroll had 65 extra-base hits (including 25 home runs), 76 RBIs and 116 runs scored.

In 40 games this season, Carroll is hitting .197 and getting on base at a .291 clip. He’s stolen eight bases, collected six extra-base hits (two homers), driven in 14 runs and scored 17 times. If you multiply these numbers by four, the numbers are way behind what he did a season ago.

It’s hard to imagine Carroll producing similar numbers for the rest of the season, but if these kinds of seasons are possible for him, should fantasy owners be trying to deal him away right now?

The short answer is no.

Carroll is still just 23 years old, and a tough start to just his second full MLB season isn’t enough to scare me off Carroll. We’re not even a full season removed from an MVP-caliber season, and that alone should keep fantasy owners on board with his high dynasty value.

Now, if you are trying to compete and roster Carroll, the start to this season has probably been really rough. I could understand at least entertaining the thought of trading him for immediate help this season. Still, I doubt the struggles continue all season, and as long as you can tread water for the next couple weeks, I think Carroll will be a big help to fantasy teams in the final few months of the season. 

Jackson Chourio Dynasty Outlook

Chourio was the No. 2 prospect in baseball until he recently graduated from the list.

In 37 games so far this season, Chourio is hitting just .207, with a .254 on-base percentage. He’s got six extra-base hits (four homers) among his 25 total hits, has driven in 13 runs and scored 15 times. Chourio has six stolen bases, eight walks and 36 strikeouts.

This is Chourio’s first full season in the big leagues, so there’s nothing to compare this season’s numbers to. While his numbers are pretty underwhelming, you have to remember that he’s just 20 years old. Most prospects aren’t even in Double-A by that age.

If you didn’t expect some ups and downs during his rookie season, then that’s on you. All MLB hitters go through rough patches over the course of a season, and a young rookie is getting his first taste of how to adjust to things.

With Chourio, I think you need to trust the hype and that he will get things turned around. There’s really no point in selling him now, because his value is going to be lower than his true worth. If he can become the player many expected him to be (which might not be for a couple years), he’ll be one of the best fantasy hitters in the game - these guys don’t come around that often.

Just trust that Chourio will get things going again at some point this season and maybe keep him out of your lineup until that point. Don’t trade him away, because you’ll likely end up regretting that move for years to come.

Jackson Holliday Dynasty Outlook

The No. 1 prospect in baseball is Holliday. He was called up to the big leagues in the middle of April and struggled mightily across 10 games played.

He had just two hits in 36 plate appearances, while walking twice and striking out on 18 occasions. He drove in one run and scored five times.

Because the Orioles are contending and are loaded with talent, they decided to send Holliday back to Triple-A, where he can get some more needed minor league seasoning.

The reason I included Holliday here is because he’s struggled in his return to AAA. Many fantasy owners that roster him are probably wondering if his struggles at the MLB level have destroyed his confidence.

The numbers might suggest that, and maybe some of that is rolling around Holliday’s brain right now, but to expect a talented prospect like him to continue to struggle forever is just silly. He’s one of the top-hitting prospects in the game in recent memory and will get things going again soon. He’ll return to the big leagues at some point this season and fare much better than he did in the first go round.

Now, that doesn’t mean he’ll be a fantasy superstar right away, but I also wouldn’t worry too much about his dynasty value. Sure, it took a little bit of a hit after his short MLB stint and struggles upon return to Triple-A, but there’s no reason to panic.

He’s also 20 years old and will get things figured out at some point. Have some faith in the youngster and just be patient with him.

Colt Keith Dynasty Outlook

Keith is another top-end prospect who has struggled in his first taste of the big leagues.

Across 35 games, Keith has a .174 average and .238 OBP. He’s only got three extra-base hits (all doubles) among his 20 total hits. Keith has 10 RBIs, eight runs scored, three stolen bases, 10 walks and 21 strikeouts.

Those numbers are definitely not what fantasy owners expected out of Keith, but at the same time, I see some positives in the numbers. With far less than a strikeout per game played, Keith looks like he belongs in the major leagues. Usually when a player can consistently put the ball in play, success follows, and Keith’s numbers will improve at that point.

Keith had a .300 average in the minor leagues, and while it might take a few seasons for Keith to reach that kind of mark in the MLB, I’m definitely not giving up on him this early. 

He’s only 22 years old and is going to figure things out. It’s not often these top-end prospects fizzle out and struggle mightily at the big league level. 

His past five games show that Keith might be already figuring things out, as he has five hits over that span. Sometimes it just takes a couple off days or one knock to get things going. 

So much like the other three players we already discussed, I’m not ready to bail on Keith. Sure, maybe his leash is a touch shorter than Chourio or Holliday because he’s a couple years older, but I don’t think we are even close to time to panic.

It’s easy to overreact to the MLB season and fantasy players, especially over a 162-game season. It’s even more difficult to stay patient in a dynasty league. A lot of times though, the patient fantasy owners are the ones that have continued success (the owners that acquire the young players off to cold starts also enjoy lots of success, so don’t help anyone else out).