The Wyshynski Awards for the first quarter of the 2024-25 NHL season: Best, worst, embarrassments and trends
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Greg Wyshynski, ESPN
The first quarter of the 2024-25 NHL season is in the books, having produced a few juggernaut teams counterbalanced by preseason favorites who have cratered early on — including the Boston Bruins, who fired coach Jim Montgomery after 20 games.
What can the best and worst from the first chunk of the schedule tell us about what’s yet to come this season?
Here are my NHL awards and superlatives for the first quarter of the season, from outstanding achievements to bitter disappointments to some unfathomable goalie gaffes.
The Jets aren’t lapping the field. The Minnesota Wild have caught up to them in the Presidents’ Trophy race. Teams like the Washington Capitals, Carolina Hurricanes, Vegas Golden Knights and New Jersey Devils are right in their rearview mirror. By the end of the quarter, Winnipeg was a lot like these other hot starters: Banking points early to decrease the pressure later in the season.
What separates the Jets from that pack is their utter dominance in banking those points. Through 24 games, Winnipeg was second in goals per game behind Washington, second in goals against per game and team save percentage behind Minnesota, with the second best power play behind New Jersey.
We went deep inside the numbers recently to figure out how Winnipeg became this early-season steamroller. Connor Hellebuyck is the most obvious advantage, not only in having the world’s best goaltender in the crease, but in what that does from a confidence perspective for everything else they’ve done. “Everybody knows if you don’t have goaltending, it makes for a long year. So Helly gives us that foundation,” head coach Scott Arniel said.
When Rick Bowness retired, Arniel moved up from associate coach and unlocked something in this group. Of course, it helps to have a receptive group. Back-to-back first-round exists — including one courtesy of the Colorado Avalanche last spring that left them motivated by their humiliation — can open a player’s mind to new possibilities.
If the Jets continue to play like this, their five-game playoff dismissal last postseason will also be the thing that keeps their egos in check. “It’s why we’re not over the top, living the high life right now, because we know what happened last year,” Arniel said.
There are a few smoldering piles of disaster that could have captured this dishonor.
The Edmonton Oilers lost in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final and offered up an encore of disastrous goaltending and curious underperformance from key skaters. The Pittsburgh Penguins earned more questions about their core’s future than points in the standings. The Detroit Red Wings appear unable to make the leap to playoff contention even if you spotted them a trampoline. The Bruins are outside a playoff spot, playing poorly enough to encourage the panic-firing of coach Jim Montgomery by management.
But the Predators are a special kind of terrible.
This was a 99-point playoff team that augmented a talented roster with three stunning free-agent coups: Forward Jonathan Marchessault, a former Conn Smythe winner jettisoned by the Golden Knights; defenseman Brady Skjei of the Hurricanes; and most significantly Steven Stamkos, goal-scoring superstar from the Tampa Bay Lightning.
But there’s an alchemy to building a championship-caliber team, and the Predators have failed that chemistry test. That infusion of offense talent somehow led to a massive regression, to the point where Nashville was last in the NHL in goals per game (2.32) and in expected goals at 5-on-5.
Even as Nashville has picked up a few points in the standings, things are getting uglier. Stamkos, who had one goal in his first 10 games with Nashville and only seven goals in 24 games so far, recently called out his teammates’ effort during this offensive drought. “If you’re not scoring, what else are you doing out there? What else can you do to help your team win? I’ve just felt like, for whatever reason, in these stretches, we tend to go the other way,” he said to a collective yikes from outside observers.
But there’s still hope in NashVegas. After all, this was a team that made the playoffs on the strength of 18 straight games without a regulation loss. All they need to do is rebook U2 at Sphere and then not attend their concert as a form of penance. Easy stuff.
Minnesota coach John Hynes was recently asked what has driven Kirill Kaprizov to the best start of his five-year NHL career. “He loves the game,” he said. “He’s the first guy on, last guy off. Great practice player, unbelievable physical condition, coachable. Willing to get better and learn how he can do things better.”
Those kinds of players are always easy to celebrate, but in Kaprizov’s case that work ethic is attached to a player with 174 goals in his first 300 NHL games. Kirill The Thrill has been the rocket fuel for the Wild’s torrid start, playing well in all facets of the game as he lead the league in points.
Through 24 games, there was a 14-point gap between him and the next highest Minnesota scorer, Matt Boldy. That stat shouldn’t the sole harbinger of an MVP candidate … but it’s a very solid plank in his platform. He’s been delightfully dominant.
It brings us no joy to report that Connor Ingram, last season’s winner of the Masterton Trophy and general feel-good story with the Arizona Coyotes, landed in Salt Lake City with a thud. Through 13 games, Ingram was last in the NHL in goals saved above expected (minus-10.9, per Stathletes) and cost his team a league-worst 1.4 wins according to Evolving Hockey. His .871 save percentage was the worst among goalies with at least 13 appearances.
Again, he’s a likeable guy with an incredible backstory who just happened to be the worst goalie in the NHL statistically at the quarter mark. He’s been out recently with an upper-body injury. Here’s to Ingram turning his season around with the Hockey Club.
This goal by the Oilers defenseman had both the wizardry, and the distance traveled.
Bouchard collected the puck deep inside his own zone and then turns on the afterburners through the neutral zone to leave most of the Ottawa Senators in his wake. Thomas Chabot futilely attempt to defend him and gets toyed with, until Bouchard unleashes a pinpoint shot to complete this goal of the year candidate:
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Evan Bouchard submits his goal-of-the-year contender for Oilers
Evan Bouchard goes end-to-end before putting his shot in the top corner for an incredible solo goal for the Oilers.
It’s hard to imagine there’s another hat trick in NHL history that was completed this absurdly. Brayden Point’s third goal in a recent game against the Capitals was scored when goalie Charlie Lindgren put the puck into his own net.
OK, that description doesn’t do it justice. That happens all the time, with goalies accidentally nudging the puck over the line with their skates or misplaying the puck on a shot. Lindgren took the puck on his backhand, attempted to play it to the end boards and emphatically deposited this thing dead center into his net.
Point was the last Lightning player to have touched the puck before Lindgren was revealed as a possible double-agent, and was credited with the goal:
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This Charlie Lindgren own goal needs to be seen to be believed
Under no pressure, Charlie Lindgren somehow puts the puck into his own net to gift the Lightning a 4-3 lead over the Capitals.
Minnesota goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has been celebrated in many road arenas during his final tour in the NHL. But in a recent game in Edmonton, he decided to give Oilers star Leon Draisaitl the gift of a goal at the end of the season’s most bizarre sequence.
Draisaitl sent the puck from the opposite blue line and then watched it travel through the legs of a teammate and a Minnesota defender. The bounding puck found its way to Fleury, who tried to knock it away quickly with his paddle. Instead, the puck was already rolling through his five-hole before his stick was in motion. Fleury tumbled into his own net with the puck, having given up one of the biggest clunkers of his career.
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Marc-Andre Fleury concedes a shocker of a goal
Marc-Andre Fleury goes to make the easy pad save, but the puck sneaks past the pads and crawls into the goal.
“It was dumb. I should have just make sure I stopped it first,” Fleury said after the game, who shared that his Minnesota teammates made him feel better about the gaffe by joking about it. Eventually winning the game 5-3 helped ease the embarrassment, too.
Most remorseless decision
St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong does cold and calculated better than anyone. Whether it’s letting a beloved veteran walk over contract conditions or cutting bait on a season because the team isn’t playing to playoff standards, warm and fuzzies have no home in the St. Louis front office.
Just ask Drew Bannister, who was given 22 games as head coach before the Blues dumped him for Jim Montgomery, five days after the Bruins had fired him. Bannister got his first NHL head coaching job after 54 games as interim coach last season. “Having a full training camp and two-year term to put his stamp on this team, we’re looking forward to that,” Armstrong said six months ago.
In fairness, Armstrong also said the team conducted a search before committing to Bannister: “You’re just looking, like: ‘Is there any better out there? Is there something different that we’re missing?”
There was something better out there. Problem was he was the Bruins coach.
And so Armstrong became the hockey embodiment of the Distracted Boyfriend meme. He made it clear that the only reason Bannister was out was because Monty was available, giving the former Blues assistant a five-year contract. Again, he’s a general manager that’s never met a callous decision he couldn’t make. And many times, they’ve worked out.
Worst coaching move
While Luke Richardson’s decision to make Taylor Hall a healthy scratch without nary a hint to the former league MVP that it was a possibility — something Richardson acknowledged should have happened — he wasn’t the coach that submitted the wrong starting lineup before the game to earn a minor penalty.
That would be Predators coach Andrew Brunette, who submitted a lineup with Steven Stamkos in the starting lineup but started the game with Filip Forsberg in his spot. Seattle Kraken coach Dan Bylsma’s staff noticed the error. Just 43 seconds into the game, the Kraken notified the referees of a violation of NHL Rule 7, which states “no change in the starting line-up of either team as indicated in the submitted line-up, or in the playing line-up on the ice, can be made unless reviewed and approved by the referee prior to the start of the game.”
Brunette told TNT that the No. 1 was accidentally added to Forsberg’s No. 9 to make Stamkos’s No. 91. This did not make things better.
Nashville killed off the Seattle power play, but lost the game 3-0. In what’s been an embarrassing season for the Predators, this was downright comical.
Best trade condition
The Wild saved David Jiricek from a life of driving between Columbus and AHL Cleveland in perpetuity by trading for the 21-year-old Blue Jackets defenseman on Nov. 30. Among the draft picks changing sides in the deal was the Wild’s 2025 first-round pick.
Wild GM Bill Guerin doesn’t just hand out first-round picks like food samples at Costco, so he made this a conditional pick: If Minnesota’s first-round pick in the 2025 draft is one of the first five selections, the Wild will retain the pick, and transfer its 2026 first-round selection to the Blue Jackets.
Yes, that’s right: a team that was 16-4-4 on the night of the trade and tied for first overall in the NHL via points percentage wanted to ensure this Jiricek trade didn’t muck up their lottery odds if the bottom falls out on the season. You have to respect that level of underlying dread for an NHL franchise.
Biggest trend: Even-strength scoring
Scoring is actually down a tick from last season after 386 games, with 3.08 goals per game per team. That’s despite average save percentage hitting .900, which would be its lowest point since the 1995-96 season.
Where scoring is way up: even-strength play. The NHL reported that through the first quarter of the season, 77.6% of all goals were scored at evens. That’s the highest such rate in 51 seasons! One must go all the way back to 1972-73 (79%) to find the previous high mark.
This even-strength surge makes up for the fact that while power-play conversion rates remain quite high — tracking to be the fourth straight season over 20% — power play opportunities are down slightly. But again, it’s early.
Worst trend: Dismissing the Champs
In ESPN’s preseason predictions for the 2024-25 season, 11 experts picked the Oilers to win the Stanley Cup, followed by the Stars (8), Bruins (1), Maple Leafs (1) and Rangers (1). That the Toronto Maple Leafs had more support as a potential champion than the Florida Panthers speaks volumes about the respect the reigning champions still don’t seem to garner.
Maybe it’s the idea that a team won’t make the Stanley Cup Final in three consecutive seasons, even though a team that plays in the Panthers’ home state just did that. Maybe the personnel losses, including standout defenseman Brandon Montour, were seen as too deleterious. Maybe we saw those videos of Cup celebrations at the Elbo Room and wondered if these guys would ever be steady on skates again.
Yet here’s Florida, chugging along at a .620 points percentage in the Atlantic. Sam Reinhart is having an MVP season (18 goals, 16 assists). Aleksander Barkov made up for missed time to injury with 24 points in 17 games. Matthew Tkachuk is nearly a point-per-game player for an offense that’s been in the top five.
They’re not perfect, ranking 25th in goals against per game thanks to below-replacement goaltending by Sergei Bobrovsky. But he’s the best example of “it’s all about the postseason,” which might be the mantra for a team that’s gone Super Saiyan in consecutive postseasons.
Anyway, the point here is that the defending champion doesn’t always get their flowers because the odds are long on a repeat. Despite, you know, it happening twice in the last decade.
What a time to be alive during Alex Ovechkin’s first 18 games of this season.
The Capitals star scored 15 goals for the fastest offensive start of his 20-year NHL career, shattering or threatening records for a 39-year-old player in the process. He was scoring goals in a variety of ways. He looked faster and more impactful than he did last season, and especially last postseason. Ovechkin moved to within 27 goals of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time career mark (894) and in the process dramatically moved up his timeline for claiming the goal-scoring throne.
And then he broke his fibula. Scoreus interruptus.
The hockey world now waits to see if Ovechkin can continue his mastery on the other side of that injury. When he does return, Ovechkin will find a Capitals team that’s just kept rolling in his absence to the top of the Metro Division. That’s something Ovechkin wanted most during his goal-record chase: To play relevant, important hockey with a playoff-bound team. Not every star veteran can be so lucky. (Glances at Pittsburgh.)
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Ovechkin’s 2nd goal of the night gets him to 868
Alex Ovechkin nets his second goal of the game to put the Capitals up 4-1 over the Utah HC, and moves within 26 goals of tying Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.
Most important document: “The Memo”
The New York Rangers were in a playoff spot at American Thanksgiving, and have a .587 points percentage through 23 games. But playing good isn’t playing great, and the latter is what a team needs to do when it’s chasing its first Stanley Cup since 1994.
GM Chris Drury decided to light a fire under his team by sending a memo to 31 other general managers letting them know that the Rangers were open for business on the trade market. He mentioned two players by name: Defenseman Jacob Trouba, which was no surprise given the team tried to trade him in the offseason; and winger Chris Kreider, who was a surprise given his 13 seasons with the franchise and 127 goals over the previous three seasons.
Whether Drury was seeking deals — difficult, considering six members of his group of veterans have trade protection — or looking to have that memo hit the media as a message to his team, the Rangers have yet to turn their play around, with a shakeup still looming.
Between “The Memo” and “The Letter” back in 2018, the Rangers have produced the most landscape-shifting documents by a New Yorker since Alexander Hamilton.
In fairness, GM Craig Conroy said this wasn’t going to be a rebuild but a retool for the Flames … even if a rebuild might have been the most effective path back to championship contention. For better or worse, he got what he was after with this Flames team. Calgary has a 25% chance of making the playoff cut and is in a wild-card spot in the West as of Dec. 1.
Their offense remains without much pop, ranking 28th in goals per game average and with no player with more than 15 points after 25 games. But Dustin Wolf has been a revelation in goal, with a .918 save percentage and a 2.59 goals-against average, saving 3.5 goals above expected per Stathletes while playing himself into Calder Trophy contention. Hot goalies, forever the antidote to tanking.
For two seasons, Necas had been the subject of trade rumors and questions about his offensive output, which tumbled from a career-high 71 points in 2022-23 to 53 points (and a minus-9) last season for the Carolina Hurricanes. He avoided arbitration with a two-year bridge deal worth $6.5 million annually against the cap.
GM Eric Tulsky didn’t really need any more evidence of his genius, but we can add “got one of the league’s best scorers at a discounted rate” to the list.
Necas, 26, has 37 points in 24 games, easily the best scoring pace of his career to lead the Hurricanes to near the top of the conference. Necas always had this kind of season in him. Carolina fans are relieved to finally see it happen — and happen in Raleigh.
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Martin Necas scores power-play goal vs. Stars
Martin Necas scores power-play goal vs. Stars
Is this a sophomore jinx, or the reality of playing for the current incarnation of the Chicago Blackhawks? Whatever the case, Bedard has been ineffective and frustrated in his second NHL campaign after winning the Calder Trophy last season.
He has four goals in 23 games after potting 22 goals in 68 games last season, and 17 points overall. Bedard’s defensive numbers have improved year over year, which was by design: Coach Luke Richardson moved him to the wing and had him playing with more defensively oriented linemates this season. But they need him to be Connor Bedard, not Connor Brown. Beyond his stat line, Bedard has clearly shown frustration about the way his season has played out, and what could be year-over-year regression for the Blackhawks.
Memo to Connor: Patience is a virtue in a total rebuild. Crosby had Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Jordan Staal and Marc-Andre Fleury with him the first time his Penguins made the postseason. Ovechkin had Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green as teammates when he made the playoffs for the first time. Granted, those examples were from when Bedard was around three years old, and our bones just turned into dust writing that.
Overwhelming offseason goalie acquisition: Anthony Stolarz
After posting impressive numbers as a backup goalie with Anaheim and Florida, with whom he won the Stanley Cup, Stolarz signed in Toronto as the latest attempted solution to their goaltending issues.
Through 13 games, he’s looked the part: 7-4-2, .921 save percentage and a 2.33 goals-against average. Stathletes has him with 3.6 goals saved above average. All that for $2.5 million against the salary cap.
Underwhelming offseason goalie acquisition: Jacob Markstrom
The Devils hit on most of their offseason additions. Brenden Dillon and Brett Pesce added veteran presence to their blue line. Stefan Noesen and Paul Cotter have produced more offense than expected from depth forwards. But the centerpiece of their offseason resurrection plans hasn’t actualized quite yet.
Jacob Markstrom is 11-6-1 on the season. His .902 save percentage is just over league average. But his underlying numbers are rough: minus 6.6 goals saved above expected (Stathletes), underwater in save percentage above expected (MoneyPuck) and hasn’t added a win to the Devils in the standings (Evolving Hockey).
Again, it’s a little unfair when the bar is set at “positional savior” after poor goaltending subverted the Devils last season. There’s still plenty of time to find his footing in New Jersey, but at this point backup Jake Allen has had the better season among Devils goalies.
The first NHL Awards Watch of the season made it clear that the only thing keeping some voters from crowing Celebrini as the top rookie this season was the number of games he had played. He’s appeared in only 15 games through Saturday’s action but had scored eight goals and six assists in those games. Eventually, the sample size concern will give way to acknowledgment that Celebrini is a special player.
It couldn’t have come at a better time for the Sharks. Seeing Joe Thornton honored the other day conjured memories of this franchise’s glory years as a Stanley Cup contender, back when the Shark Tank would vibrate from the volume of its fans. San Jose might not create much chaos in the standings this season, but thanks to Celebrini, Will Smith and other players in the franchise’s next wave, the Sharks are fun again.
It’s been a while since San Jose gave the East Coast a reason to stay up late for home games. Celebrini is that reason.
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Macklin Celebrini lights the lamp for Sharks
Macklin Celebrini lights the lamp for Sharks
What’s next? Biggest storylines for next quarter of the season
1. Can the Bruins stabilize?
While Jim Montgomery appears to have the Blues pointed in the right direction, can the team that fired him find its footing under interim coach Joe Sacco? Results are mixed in the early going, but it’s clear GM Don Sweeney believes this roster can succeed based on the timing of the firing. Any turnaround needs goalie Jeremy Swayman to be at his best, and he’s finally finding his form after a disastrous first six weeks of the season.
2. The 4 Nations Face-Off Fallout.
This week, we’ll learn who made the cut for the U.S., Canada, Sweden and Finland for the first 4 Nations Face-Off tournament this February. There will be some surprises and some snubs. How will players react to missing the cut, especially with 2026 Olympic roster spots potentially on the line? Or, more to the point: How many young scorers will try and light up the Minnesota Wild because Team USA GM Bill Guerin left them off the national team roster?
3. Who is the best in the West?
As mentioned, the Jets aren’t alone at the top of the Western Conference, with the Wild and Golden Knights both within a reasonable distance of the lead. Vegas has gotten an MVP performance from Jack Eichel so far this season. Speaking of MVPs: Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid could power the Avalanche and Oilers back up the standings before the midpoint of the season. Are the Los Angeles Kings for real after a solid start? Can Dallas start playing like the Stanley Cup champ many expect them to become? What’s the Blues ceiling with Montgomery behind the bench?
The West is going to be wild.
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Kiley McDaniel
Much has changed since we ranked all 30 MLB farm systems before the 2025 season. A big part of that shift has come in the past few weeks as the most recent prospects joined their new teams via the MLB draft and then front offices added — or subtracted — young players at the MLB trade deadline.
With two of the most impactful periods for any farm system in the rearview, it’s time to see how all 30 organizations stack up and what has changed most since Opening Day.
These dollar figures are a little lower (roughly 5% on average) than they’ll be in the winter, basically because when I do the deep dive on each system, it will reveal/upgrade more lower-tier prospects for each team, but it mostly won’t affect the higher-tier prospects.
This is a pretty objective process (each prospect has a dollar value based on their rank). Obviously, there’s some subjectivity in the process, too (how the players are ranked), and roughly the top-50 prospects in the sport have an empirical, but to most fans disproportionate, value. Having the most players in the top half of the Top 100 is the best way to be the top-ranked team in this exercise. On that note, let’s get to that first team.
Preseason rank: 9
The Mets have hovered in the middle third of my farm rankings for years — until the beginning of this season, when they moved up to ninth. They’re now on top, at the peak valuation of this crest of young talent, with a top-heavy system featuring prospects who are largely in the Top 100 and either in Triple-A or the big leagues.
This also isn’t a random occurrence or glut of players who are about to graduate from being prospects at once. Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuna already graduated this year, Christian Scott graduated last year, Brett Baty and Mark Vientos the year before that, Francisco Alvarez before that — and there have also been several midlevel prospects traded out of the system over the past two deadlines: Jesus Baez, Drew Gilbert, and Kade Morris lead the way.
At this time next year, I’d expect six of New York’s top eight prospects, if not more, to have either graduated or be up in the big leagues to stay, so this ranking won’t last very long, but that’s also because the Mets will have a roster teeming with useful big leaguers: the whole reason this list exists.
Preseason rank: 1
If you’re a regular reader of my rankings, the Dodgers have fared well for a while; they’ve been in my top-10 farm systems the past five rankings, dating back to after the 2021 season.
They have graduated Dalton Rushing, Justin Wrobleski, Ben Casparius and Jack Dreyer this year, with Alex Freeland possibly joining that group before the end of the year. The top of the system mostly position players in A-ball, so the Dodgers are likely to rank high for many years.
Preseason rank: 7
The Mariners have quietly put together a great system built on solid scouting and development while not trading their top-tier prospects. Instead, Seattle has dipped into its second tier when needed, such as moving first baseman Tyler Locklear and pitcher Brandyn Garcia to upgrade the lineup at the trade deadline
The Mariners’ draft focus a few years ago was heavily on prep position players, but that has shifted a bit to include pitchers, with potential frontline starters Ryan Sloan and Kade Anderson added over the past two summers.
Preseason rank: 20
A huge part of this ranking is that the Pirates have the No. 1 prospect in the sport in Konnor Griffin. They would be ninth on this list if he were the second prospect in baseball because there’s a premium in being the best prospect.
Bubba Chandler, Hunter Barco, Rafael Flores, Thomas Harrington, and Nick Yorke are expected to be important players for next year’s team. Griffin will likely move into that conversation by the second half. I don’t know if this group will be enough to propel the big league team into contention, but the prospects will give Pittsburgh a chance to make that kind of move up the standings.
Preseason rank: 6
The deadline teardown wasn’t designed primarily to boost the Twins’ farm rankings, but obviously, it did that, too. The addition of young talent in trades that cut the MLB payroll, coupled with Minnesota having no major prospects graduate from eligibility this year (though Luke Keaschall is close), helped the Twins move up. Minnesota has been in the top 10 farm systems since the end of the 2023 season.
The talent is largely in the upper minors and will be relevant to the big league team next year. There’s also quality depth here, with the third-most prospects above 40 FV of any system.
Preseason rank: 8
The Brewers are bordering on the “Breaking Bad” “He can’t keep getting away with this” meme as they continually field a competitive (if not excellent) big league team on a shoestring budget but also have young players regularly appearing in the big leagues and have a strong farm system. The Brewers might have four players get votes for Rookie of the Year this season: Jacob Misiorowski, Isaac Collins, Caleb Durbin, and Chad Patrick. It should be no surprise that Milwaukee also leads the league in quality depth in its farm system, too.
Preseason rank: 11
The Brewers and Rays lead the “How do they keep doing this?” teams, but the Guardians are quietly in third by being competitive, if not good, almost every year. 2B Travis Bazzana, the No. 1 pick in 2024, is tracking like another impact-type talent as soon as next season, while deadline acquisition RHP Khal Stephen might be the next standout pitcher who wasn’t a high pick.
There’s depth to the system and lots of solid contributors, but keep an eye on outfielders Chase DeLauter (can he stay healthy?) and Jace LaViolette (can he make enough contact?), who both have star potential if it all clicks.
Preseason rank: 3
The Tigers might have the best top of the system in baseball, with two of the top six prospects and five of the top 60, but their depth has been reduced because of several graduations and some deadline deals.
Shortstop Kevin McGonigle and center fielder Max Clark have star potential and will be on the verge of the big leagues next season, but I could see them either not getting a chance to debut or getting a taste late in the season to preserve their 2027 Rookie of the Year/Prospect Promotion Incentive possibilities.
I’m also intrigued by the Tigers’ high-variance draft approach this summer as they took the two top high school position players with the shortest track record of facing high-end pitching: Jordan Yost and Michael Oliveto.
Preseason rank: 19
As Chaim Bloom takes the reins from John Mozeliak as president of baseball operations after this season, the Cards’ system is in the best shape it has been in years (they ranked 10th after the 2022 season).
JJ Wetherholt and Liam Doyle are the most recent first-round picks and are also potentially impactful rookies for the 2026 club. There are more questions regarding the other top prospects. Quinn Mathews and Tink Hence had up-and-down seasons, Cooper Hjerpe and Tekoah Roby had/have serious arm injuries, and Rainiel Rodriguez and Joshua Baez came out of nowhere.
Overall, there is solid depth in the system and with the young talent in the big leagues, so I’m intrigued to see how Bloom handles the team-building challenge.
Preseason rank: 15
The Marlins continue to trend up as they add young players. Miami’s farm system was ranked 29th before the 2024 season, No. 19 at this time last year, and No. 15 entering this season.
LHP Thomas White has emerged as a potential ace, and LHP Robby Snelling and CF Jakob Marsee led the charge of arrow-up prospects. SS Aiva Arquette and CF Cam Cannarella were the top players added in the draft.
I think the peak ranking for this wave of talent probably comes at some point next year (maybe postdraft, White is still considered a prospect), meaning many of Miami’s top prospects will be on the big league team at some point next season.
Preseason rank: 14
The O’s had the top farm system in the game through the 2024 trade deadline and then dropped to 14th before this season as their best young players continued to graduate to the majors.
They seem to have stabilized with this next wave of talent, and it looks like C Samuel Basallo and OF Dylan Beavers will narrowly keep their prospect status for this winter. The group behind those two emerged this season, with RHP Trey Gibson, CF Nate George and RHP Esteban Mejia all taking a big step forward. Meanwhile, having the largest 2025 draft pool led to a big incoming group of prospects led by C/RF Ike Irish, SS Wehiwa Aloy, CF Slater de Brun, and C Caden Bodine.
Preseason rank: 24
The Jays hit a home run with their top three picks in the 2024 draft: First-rounder RHP Trey Yesavage is the 35th-ranked prospect in the sport, second-rounder RHP Khal Stephen (now with the Guardians after a deadline deal) is the 59th-ranked prospect, and third-rounder LHP Johnny King is inside the top 150 prospects.
The Jays proved they can replicate that success with position players by drafting shortstop Arjun Nimmala in 2023, and they’ll look to do it again with 2025 first-rounder JoJo Parker.
Preseason rank: 25
The D-backs added young talent at the trade deadline, with 1B Tyler Locklear, LHP Kohl Drake, LHP Brandyn Garcia, LHP Mitch Bratt, RHP Juan Burgos, RHP Ashton Izzi, RHP David Hagaman, and RHP Andrew Hoffmann all ranking as 40 FV or better. Their returns on their top three picks in the 2024 draft (CF Slade Caldwell, LF Ryan Waldschmidt and 2B JD Dix) all look strong early as well.
There’s some real depth here (Arizona is tied for third in quality depth), and there’s a lot of talent that should be showing up in the big leagues and/or graduating next season.
Preseason rank: 4
It has been a busy year for the Red Sox system. The club graduated three top-tier position player prospects in Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell. Those three leave a giant hole in terms of prospect value, but SS Franklin Arias and LHP Payton Tolle led the charge of arrow-up prospects trying to fill it. Righties Kyson Witherspoon, Marcus Phillips and Anthony Eyanson headlined a pitcher-heavy 2025 draft haul.
15. Athletics ($182 million)
Preseason rank: 23
The headline here is in giant letters: They added No. 5 prospect SS Leo De Vries at the trade deadline to this current wave of talent moving through the minors that includes Gage Jump and Jamie Arnold. They are all potentially joining an incredibly deep group already in the big leagues as soon as next season: Nick Kurtz, Tyler Soderstrom, Jacob Wilson, Lawrence Butler, Denzel Clarke, Luis Morales, J.T. Ginn, and Jack Perkins.
Preseason rank: 5
This is the first time the Rays have been out of the top seven in at least three years, and it’s for numerous reasons. First, they graduated some talent this year in CF Chandler Simpson, LHP Mason Montgomery, Jake Mangum, along with star 3B Junior Caminero last year. Secondly, it wasn’t a great year for development as Carson Williams and Xavier Isaac continued to plateau due to contact issues, leaving Theo Gillen as the one clear arrow-up player at the top of the system.
The players they got at the deadline were also mostly second-tier types, but the draft haul was deep with upside high school players who give hope for upward mobility next season.
Preseason rank: 16
The Rangers have held their position, graduating Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter this season but also having those holes filled by rising prospects like Devin Fitz-Gerald and Caden Scarborough, along with the recent draft class led by Gavin Fien, Josh Owens, and AJ Russell.
They have injured players (Alejandro Rosario and Winston Santos) who should return to the field and an intriguing international-signee position-player group (Yolfran Castillo, Yeremy Cabrera, and Elorky Rodriguez), giving this system some upward mobility next season, though it’s unclear when Rosario will return to the mound.
Preseason rank: 13
The Reds are in a bit of a farm system down cycle (they’ve ranged from fifth to 19th over the past four years), with Chase Burns graduating after the electric class of Elly De La Cruz, Andrew Abbott, and Matt McLain lost eligibility.
Some of their current top prospects — 3B Sal Stewart, RHP Rhett Lowder, and RHP Chase Petty — should graduate early next season, which would then clear the way for the system to be defined by some potential impact players in the lower levels: C Alfredo Duno, 1B Cam Collier, SS Steele Hall, SS Tyson Lewis, and RHP Aaron Watson.
Preseason rank: 10
The Cubs graduated Matt Shaw and Cade Horton this year after Pete Crow-Armstrong, Michael Busch, Jordan Wicks, Ben Brown, and Daniel Palencia last season.
This current prospect crop is headlined by players who have already debuted (Moises Ballesteros, Owen Caissie, Kevin Alcantara) or are in the upper levels of the minors (Jefferson Rojas, Jaxon Wiggins, Jonathon Long, Brandon Birdsell). I liked their recent draft crop, led by RF Ethan Conrad, LF Josiah Hartshorn, CF Kane Kepley, and RHP Kaleb Wing, and think there’s enough talent at the lower levels to make a next wave of talent.
Preseason rank: 2
The White Sox had some tough timing: SS Colson Montgomery lost his prospect eligibility after the top 100 was posted but before the farm rankings went up, moving them down from 13th to here.
They originally fell from second on the preseason list to 13th because of the graduations of Kyle Teel, Edgar Quero, Grant Taylor, Chase Meidroth, Shane Smith and Mike Vasil in addition to control issues on the mound for top pitching prospects Noah Schultz and Hagen Smith. The top two picks in the 2025 draft crop (Billy Carlson and Jaden Fauske) have upward mobility in 2026.
Preseason rank: 17
SS Aidan Miller, RHP Andrew Painter, and CF Justin Crawford are all in the upper minors and seem like they were off-limits for trades the past couple of trade deadlines. They could be the homegrown infusion of potential impact talent as the major league roster ages.
I liked the 2025 draft crop, with RHP Gage Wood and LHP Cade Obermueller as potential quick movers and RHP Matthew Fisher as a great value. CF Dante Nori and 2B Aroon Escobar are also notable arrow-up prospects this season.
Preseason rank: 12
The Nats are in a short downcycle in prospect value as James Wood, Dylan Crews, Daylen Lile, Brady House, Robert Hassell III, Brad Lord, and Cole Henry all graduated this year. They supplemented them with a big draft class, which was helped by going underslot at the No. 1 pick: SS Eli Willits, 1B Ethan Petry, SS Coy James, RHP Landon Harmon, and RHP Miguel Sime Jr. RHP Jarlin Susana needs to lower his walks to shoot up in the Top 100, and RHP Travis Sykora could do it if he stays healthy. I see the Nats rising up this list again next season.
Preseason rank: 18
Adding a potential star in SS Ethan Holliday, the fourth pick in the draft, is the headline for the Rockies’ farm system this year. I also liked the next few picks, landing RHP JB Middleton and RF Max Belyeu.
Another infielder with big league bloodlines, 3B Kyle Karros, has been the main arrow-up player in the system this year, and I liked the two headliner returns from both deadline-trade deals with the Yankees, getting 2B Roc Riggio and LHP Griffin Herring. LF Sterlin Thompson got hot after a slow start, but the top roughly dozen returning prospects have been mostly moving sideways this season.
Preseason rank: 29
1B Bryce Eldridge is the Giants’ top prospect and will likely play a big part for the big league team next season, while LHP Carson Whisenhunt and CF Drew Gilbert are in the big leagues. These are the next hopes for a homegrown star, following Logan Webb and Patrick Bailey (despite his down season). SS Josuar De Jesus Gonzalez, 17, is more likely than Whisenhunt or Gilbert, but will take a while to get to the big leagues. SS Jhonny Level, RHP Keyner Martinez, and RHP Argenis Cayama are all rising from the international department along with Gonzalez.
Preseason rank: 21
The Yankees traded 16 prospects at this year’s trade deadline after dealing away six at last year’s deadline — along with four more in non-deadline deals the past two seasons. Oh, and one more notable prospect loss from yet another scenario.
To Brian Cashman’s credit, this exodus didn’t include any of the best handful of prospects in the organization: SS George Lombard Jr., RHP Cam Schlittler, CF Spencer Jones and RHP Carlos Lagrange. But these moves have cleared out much of the system’s depth and some potentially impactful young players, such as C Agustin Ramirez and 2B Caleb Durbin, and even a few solid veterans like RHP Michael King.
The past two draft and international signing classes have helped backfill the organization with young talent that could have the Yankees soon climbing this list again and reversing a trend that has seen New York go from the sixth-best farm system before the 2024 season to No. 15 after last year’s deadline, No. 21 entering this season and No. 25 in this edition.
Preseason rank: 27
The Braves have a fresh group of pitchers to supplement the current shortage at the major league level, led by LHP Cam Caminiti, RHP Didier Fuentes, and RHP JR Ritchie. As fans might be thinking, these pitchers are not solutions this year, but Fuentes could be next year and soon-to-graduate RHP Hurston Waldrep might have turned the corner with his strong major league debut.
This year’s draft haul, led by SS Tate Southisene and LHP Briggs McKenzie, has some of that high-upside prep formula that has worked for the Braves in the past, so I’d expect this ranking to continue to rise.
Preseason rank: 22
The Royals graduated Jac Caglianone and Noah Cameron as potential core players, with John Rave, Ryan Bergert, Jonathan Bowlan and Steven Cruz joining them as role players who have or soon will graduate.
Of the remaining prospects, C Carter Jensen is in Triple-A and could be a core player, and I like the draft haul (3B Josh Hammond, CF Sean Gamble and RHP Michael Lombardi were the first three picks).
Meanwhile, RHP Kendry Chourio has emerged as arguably the top pitcher in the system. Hammond and Gamble could be the high-end prospects needed to pull this system out of the bottom third of the league, like they were before the 2022 season.
Preseason rank: 28
The Angels have been between 25th and 30th in these rankings since the end of the 2021 season, as they’ve been focused on moving prospects quickly to the majors while trying to make the most of having Mike Trout in the organization.
A solid group of players is getting close to the big leagues from the past two draft classes, last year’s trade deadline return and the international department’s signings.
Righties Tyler Bremner, George Klassen, and Trey Gregory-Alford have the potential to be impact-type arms with some further development, but I don’t see star potential in the position player group.
Preseason rank: 30
The Astros have been between 27th and 30th in every list since the end of the 2021 season, as they’ve focused on keeping the big league team competitive.
2B Brice Matthews and OF Jacob Melton are the top two prospects in the system, but are both in the big leagues with everyday-player upside. After those two graduate, the Astros will need the past two draft classes, headlined by 3B Xavier Neyens and C Walker Janek, to pick up the slack.
Preseason rank: 26
You could probably see this coming after the Padres dealt away 20 prospects over the past two trade deadlines, and seven more in spring 2024 to acquire Luis Arraez and Dylan Cease.
The Padres had the fourth-best farm system before the 2024 season, and since then, essentially, a pretty good top 30 of prospects has been shipped out of San Diego’s system. It’s impressive that there’s still some talent here, and the Padres are still among the best teams in baseball at finding prospects anywhere they can.
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Kiley McDaniel
A lot has changed since the last time we ranked the top MLB prospects.
The MLB draft and breakout seasons have added new names to our list, replacing players who have graduated or regressed in 2025 — and some of the prospects in our ranking are in different places after a busy trade deadline in the majors.
All of that movement makes this the perfect time for an updated ranking of the top players in the sport — along with some of the biggest risers of the season — heading into the final weeks of the minor league season.
This is my ranking of these players for the long term, considering their upside, risk and proximity to the big leagues, in consultation with scouts and execs around the league. Here’s more on the grading tiers and lingo I use. Players in the big leagues are eligible for this update (MLB rookie eligibility rules apply here — 130 at-bats, 50 innings pitched or 45 days on the active roster) so you will see some recently called up major leaguers.
Now let’s get to my final 2025 ranking of the best young prospects in baseball.
60 FV tier
1. Konnor Griffin, SS, Pittsburgh Pirates
It has been an improbable rise for the No. 9 pick in the 2024 MLB draft, going from being a high school hitter with big questions about his swing to ranking as the top prospect in the game in roughly 12 months.
I compared Griffin’s upside to Fernando Tatis Jr. at draft time and he’s following that plan, but with even better early reports on his shortstop defense and patience. Griffin is a plus-plus runner and thrower who can be average to above defensively almost anywhere on the field and has 30-homer upside, especially if he can lift the ball a bit more.
With some performance in Double-A (he was just promoted to the level), he will move into the hallowed 65 FV prospect tier, which doesn’t always have a player in it.
2. Kevin McGonigle, SS, Detroit Tigers
I was the guy in the media high on McGonigle when he was part of a very deep prep position-player crop in the 2023 draft — and my belief in him has paid off better than I could’ve expected so far.
The concerns at draft time were that his power/speed combo and odds to stick at shortstop weren’t strong enough to warrant going higher than 37th overall (where Detroit took him). He has been at least a passable shortstop as a pro and has a real shot to stick long-term. His power (by literally any measure) is now above average, if not plus.
McGonigle’s feel and on-base skills were never in question, so now he looks like he could be above average at everything in the batter’s box and closer to average on the bases and in the field.
3. Jesus Made, SS, Milwaukee Brewers
Made leapt onto the prospect scene last summer into the middle of the top 100 amid one of the best DSL performances we’ve ever seen. He has continued to deliver with an .801 OPS across both Single-A levels as a 17- and 18-year-old this season.
Made is an above-average contact/patience threat with at least plus power, though his flatter swing plane is keeping his homer totals down at the moment.
4. Samuel Basallo, C, Baltimore Orioles
Basallo has legit 40-homer potential and might be an every-day catcher. He is a good enough framer and blocker, and he has a plus arm, though his exchange and accuracy are lacking a bit.
The reasons I have him just behind Made are because of the rocky development path catchers typically take and the fact that Basallo still tends to chase pitches out of the strike zone, which could undermine both his on-base and power potential against big league pitching.
That said, Basallo has to be ranked high because he’s a 21-year-old catcher who just got called up to the majors and could lead the league in homers in a few years.
5. Leo De Vries, SS, Athletics
In the most A.J. Preller trade to date, the Padres sent De Vries to the A’s at the deadline in a package for reliever Mason Miller.
Though he is playing shortstop now, De Vries is a below-average runner and it’s looking more likely that he’ll need to slide over to third base.
The negatives end there as De Vries has a plus arm, above-average-to-plus power, great feel to pull and lift to get to that power in games, average-to-above contact/patience and all of that from an 18-year-old switch-hitter who is already playing in High-A.
There is some thought that he looks a little more like a very good player than a potential star, but either way De Vries is a very high probability, strong, every-day infielder with a shot to be an impact player.
6. Max Clark, CF, Detroit Tigers
Clark was the No. 3 pick in the 2023 draft, and everything has basically gone to plan since Detroit selected him.
He is a plus runner who fits in center field defensively, and he has plus contact skills and plus pitch selection at the plate. He’ll probably hit 20 homers in his best seasons but should hover around 15 on an annual basis with lots of doubles and triples.
7. Colt Emerson, SS, Seattle Mariners
Emerson was the 22nd pick in that same 2023 draft as Clark, and it quickly became apparent that he was underrated.
He is now in Double-A and looks like he can be an every-day lefty-hitting MLB shortstop with above-average on-base percentages and 20ish homers.
8. Sebastian Walcott, SS, Texas Rangers
The sales pitch is easy here: Walcott is a 6-foot-4 potential long-term shortstop with big power.
That length to his frame creates plus-plus power potential — but also some swing-and-miss in the zone. His pitch selection is solid, but the main issue right now is that his flat swing plane is keeping him from posting homer totals that match his raw power.
9. Travis Bazzana, 2B, Cleveland Guardians
Bazzana was the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft but doesn’t have the conventional superstar upside you might associate with that.
He is a plus runner and fine second-base defender whose best offensive traits are his patience and pull/lift ability. His bat-to-ball and raw power are close to average, but he should post plus on-base percentages and hit 20ish homers annually.
10. Aidan Miller, SS, Philadelphia Phillies
Miller was another 2023 draft prep position player from the deep group that produced McGonigle, Clark and Emerson ranked above on this list.
He is on the shortstop/third base defensive spectrum but has improved defensively (and seems quicker on the basepaths, too) to the point that I think he can be an average defensive option at shortstop — though some teams would likely move him if they have a superior option.
Miller has above-average-to-plus raw power right now but still has some work to do to fully tap into it in games, though he has been productive with 21 homers and 70 stolen bases in 196 games the past two seasons.
11. Walker Jenkins, CF, Minnesota Twins
Jenkins has played only 163 regular-season professional games since going No. 5 in the 2023 draft because of various injuries. His .301/.405/.471 line with 16 homers and 34 stolen bases in those games while playing almost exclusively center field shows his power/speed combo and advanced feel to hit.
He is above average at basically everything on a baseball field, but durability has been an issue and that cost him a few spots on this list.
12. Josue De Paula, LF, Los Angeles Dodgers
I can’t shake the comp a scout gave me on De Paula a few years ago: Yordan Alvarez.
De Paula is a better runner and defender — he’s fine in left field — than the Astros slugger, but I don’t think he’ll be quite as elite at the plate. That said, De Paula should post plus on-base percentages buoyed by big walk rates and should grow into 25-30 homer seasons as he taps into his power.
13. Bubba Chandler, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
The first pitcher on this list didn’t crack the top dozen spots because of both the risks of pitching prospects in general and also a bit of a dip in who is still eligible as Chase Burns and Jacob Misiorowski recently graduated.
Chandler’s past nine starts in Triple-A have been just OK — 42 innings, 50 hits, 5 home runs, 24 walks, 47 strikeouts, 4.93 ERA. So, while he seemed ready for a big league look before this stretch, it’s now harder for the Pirates to make the move — but Pittsburgh did decide to call up Chandler for his debut coming later this week.
He still has front-line potential though, with a repertoire headlined by a plus fastball that sits 96-100 and hits 102 mph.
55 FV tier
14. JJ Wetherholt, SS, St. Louis Cardinals
15. Thomas White, LHP, Miami Marlins
16. Kade Anderson, LHP, Seattle Mariners
17. Ethan Holliday, SS, Colorado Rockies
18. Jett Williams, SS, New York Mets
19. Nolan McLean, RHP, New York Mets
20. Eli Willits, SS, Washington Nationals
21. Jonah Tong, RHP, New York Mets
22. Andrew Painter, RHP, Philadelphia Phillies
23. Jordan Lawlar, SS, Arizona Diamondbacks
Lawlar is a sure shortstop in Triple-A and has grown into plus raw power, but has had some health, contact and consistency issues over the past few years. Wetherholt and Williams are also Triple-A shortstops but might move off the position depending on what their big league teams need.
The top three players on my 2025 MLB draft board went in the top four picks and fall into this tier: Anderson, Holliday and Willits.
White, McLean and Tong are all arrow-up prospects this season, joining Painter on the verge of the big leagues as potential front-line starters. I go back and forth on Tong vs. McLean: Tong has more command and a better changeup while McLean has multiple standout breaking pitches.
50 FV tier
24. Carson Williams, SS, Tampa Bay Rays
25. Franklin Arias, SS, Boston Red Sox
26. Eduardo Tait, C, Minnesota Twins
27. Carson Benge, CF, New York Mets
28. Luis Pena, SS, Milwaukee Brewers
29. Bryce Eldridge, 1B, San Francisco Giants
30. Luke Keaschall, 2B, Minnesota Twins
31. Sal Stewart, 3B, Cincinnati Reds
32. Seth Hernandez, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
33. Payton Tolle, LHP, Boston Red Sox
34. Arjun Nimmala, SS, Toronto Blue Jays
35. Trey Yesavage, RHP, Toronto Blue Jays
36. Bryce Rainer, SS, Detroit Tigers
37. Rainiel Rodriguez, C, St. Louis Cardinals
38. Chase DeLauter, RF, Cleveland Guardians
39. Colson Montgomery, SS, Chicago White Sox
40. Liam Doyle, LHP, St. Louis Cardinals
41. Moises Ballesteros, C, Chicago Cubs
42. Angel Genao, SS, Cleveland Guardians
43. Ryan Sloan, RHP, Seattle Mariners
44. Eduardo Quintero, CF, Los Angeles Dodgers
45. George Lombard Jr., SS, New York Yankees
46. Zyhir Hope, RF, Los Angeles Dodgers
47. Gage Jump, LHP, Athletics
48. Rhett Lowder, RHP, Cincinnati Reds
49. Owen Caissie, RF, Chicago Cubs
50. Josuar Gonzalez, SS, San Francisco Giants
The 55 FV tier tends to be shallower at this time of year because there has been so much movement and the top end of the list is hollowed out by graduations; over the winter another dozen or so prospects will slide up a tier.
Keaschall and Montgomery (whose season has been a roller coaster, but he is now red-hot) should graduate soon and the majority of these players will be in the big leagues at some point next season.
Arias is a standout defender and contact hitter who needs to tap into more power but is just 19 years old. Tait was the headliner of the Jhoan Duran trade and could hit 25-30 homers as an every-day catcher.
On the pitching side, Hernandez was the No. 5 pick in July and could move up a tier with a hot start next season, while Tolle and Yesavage are arrow-up college arms from the 2024 draft who should be in the big leagues next season.
Rodriguez and Gonzalez are two of the risers from the previous list; Rodriguez has a real shot to stick behind the plate and hit 25 homers, while Gonzalez was the top signee from the January international class and has had a hot debut in the DSL. He could stick at shortstop, hit 20 homers and post plus on-base percentages but obviously has a long way to go. I won’t project the same rise for Gonzalez as Jesus Made and Luis Pena, but those were the two standout names from the DSL at this time last year.
51. JoJo Parker, SS, Toronto Blue Jays
52. Aiva Arquette, SS, Miami Marlins
53. Slade Caldwell, CF, Arizona Diamondbacks
54. Josue Briceno, C, Detroit Tigers
55. Theo Gillen, CF, Tampa Bay Rays
56. Mike Sirota, CF, Los Angeles Dodgers
57. Emmanuel Rodriguez, CF, Minnesota Twins
58. Jamie Arnold, LHP, Athletics
59. Robby Snelling, LHP, Miami Marlins
60. Khal Stephen, RHP, Cleveland Guardians
61. Troy Melton, RHP, Detroit Tigers
62. Logan Henderson, RHP, Milwaukee Brewers
63. Jonny Farmelo, CF, Seattle Mariners
64. Ethan Salas, C, San Diego Padres
65. Harry Ford, C, Seattle Mariners
66. Noah Schultz, LHP, Chicago White Sox
67. Michael Arroyo, 2B, Seattle Mariners
68. Carter Jensen, C, Kansas City Royals
69. Cam Schlittler, RHP, New York Yankees
70. Luis Morales, RHP, Athletics
71. Travis Sykora, RHP, Washington Nationals
72. Ricky Tiedemann, LHP, Toronto Blue Jays
73. Alex Freeland, SS, Los Angeles Dodgers
74. A.J. Ewing, CF, New York Mets
75. Cooper Pratt, SS, Milwaukee Brewers
Parker and Arquette (and Carlson just below) were the top position players in the 2025 draft outside of that top tier of Holliday and Willits. Caldwell and Gillen are arrow-up prep position players from the 2024 first-round group. Arnold was a borderline shocking drop to the No. 11 pick in the 2025 draft, largely tied to how hard his fastball was hit in college, but I think he still has mid-rotation upside.
Snelling, Stephen and Henderson have all been arrow-up this year mostly due to command and execution rather than a jump in raw stuff, though Snelling’s raw stuff has been a bit better. Schlittler and Morales are in the big leagues while Tiedemann is almost back from elbow surgery and Sykora is about to undergo surgery. Schultz and Salas have had tough seasons, but the tools are still there.
76. Caleb Bonemer, SS, Chicago White Sox
77. Billy Carlson, SS, Chicago White Sox
78. Cam Caminiti, LHP, Atlanta Braves
79. Hagen Smith, LHP, Chicago White Sox
80. Didier Fuentes, RHP, Atlanta Braves
81. Spencer Jones, CF, New York Yankees
82. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Minnesota Twins
83. Brandon Sproat, RHP, New York Mets
84. Tink Hence, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals
85. Emil Morales, SS, Los Angeles Dodgers
86. Lazaro Montes, RF, Seattle Mariners
87. Jarlin Susana, RHP, Washington Nationals
88. Jakob Marsee, CF, Miami Marlins
89. Jefferson Rojas, SS, Chicago Cubs
90. Luke Adams, 1B, Milwaukee Brewers
91. Joe Mack, C, Miami Marlins
92. Ryan Waldschmidt, LF, Arizona Diamondbacks
93. Jeferson Quero, C, Milwaukee Brewers
94. Dylan Beavers, RF, Baltimore Orioles
95. Trey Gibson, RHP, Baltimore Orioles
96. Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP/LHP, Seattle Mariners
97. Leonardo Bernal, C, St. Louis Cardinals
98. Charlee Soto, RHP, Minnesota Twins
99. Jackson Ferris, LHP, Los Angeles Dodgers
100. Jaxon Wiggins, RHP, Chicago Cubs
The White Sox and Braves make up the top of this section of the list. Fuentes had a tough big league debut, while Caminiti’s slider/arm speed taking one more step forward could vault him up this list. Smith, like Schultz, has had trouble throwing strikes this year, but the potential is still there. Bonemer had a loud pro debut while Carlson’s early returns will be watched closely as his age and offensive outlook put him just behind Parker and Arquette for some teams.
Jones has been red-hot of late but still has an uncertain outlook due to his long track record of contact issues and not hitting 20 homers in a season until his age-24 season. Speaking of red-hot, Marsee’s improved center-field defense, solid Triple-A showing and shocking MLB look allowed him to sneak onto the list before graduating.
Prielipp was on the shelf with elbow issues for years (30 total innings pitched in 2023-24), but now looks like a potential impact arm, likely in shorter stints. Sproat and Gibson could impact their teams early next season. Montes could hit 30 homers if it all clicks in the big leagues. Morales could be a 6-3 every-day shortstop who hits 25 homers annually.
10 players in contention who weren’t in the preseason top 200
Luke Dickerson, SS, Washington Nationals
Kyle Karros, 3B, Colorado Rockies
Caden Scarborough, RHP, Texas Rangers
Edward Florentino, 1B, Pittsburgh Pirates
Johnny King, LHP, Toronto Blue Jays
Jacob Reimer, 3B, New York Mets
Jhonny Level, SS, San Francisco Giants
C.J. Kayfus, 1B, Cleveland Guardians
Josh Adamczewski, 2B, Milwaukee Brewers
Juneiker Caceres, RF, Cleveland Guardians
Dickerson probably isn’t a shortstop and needs to lift the ball more, but he has impact tools. Karros and Kayfus are in the big leagues, so they probably aren’t secrets. Florentino is a surprisingly polished pull-and-lift left-handed power hitter but needs to prove it at three more levels of the minors, and some scouts are still dubious.
King and Scarborough could be No. 2/No. 3 starters if their command continues to improve. Caceres is showing signs of developing into a strong every-day player with 25-homer upside. Adamczewski, Level and Reimer are not long-term shortstops, but they can all stick in the infield, they can hit and they all have above-average power potential with strong performances this season.
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