Here's the freshly updated Top 100 Prospects list
The All-Star Futures Game is less than two weeks away on July 13 and the First-Year Player Draft will follow shortly behind. One day behind, in fact.
It’s about to get very busy in the world of prospects. So as the Major and Minor League seasons pivot toward their second halves, let’s sneak in an MLB Pipeline Top 100 prospects rankings update.
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As was the case with our last edition of market corrections in May, we’ve revoted on the Top 15 spots, moved prospects in need of big jumps or falls (10 or more spots), dropped a few off the Top 100 completely and added a few worthy names to fill out the remainder of the list.
Top 15
1. Jackson Holliday, 2B/SS, Orioles
2. James Wood, OF, Nationals
3. Junior Caminero, 3B/SS, Rays
4. Dylan Crews, OF, Nationals
5. Walker Jenkins, OF, Twins
6. Ethan Salas, C, Padres
7. Marcelo Mayer, SS, Red Sox
8. Jordan Lawlar, SS, D-backs
9. Carson Williams, SS, Rays
10. Max Clark, OF, Tigers
11. Jackson Jobe, RHP, Tigers
12. Samuel Basallo, C/1B, Orioles
13. Brooks Lee, SS, Twins
14. Roman Anthony, OF, Red Sox
15. Coby Mayo, 3B/1B, Orioles
If Paul Skenes hadn’t graduated last Tuesday, the budding Pirates ace would likely have taken over as the No. 1 overall prospect in baseball. Instead, Holliday, the youngest qualified hitter at Triple-A, remains in that spot. Right elbow inflammation slowed down the Baltimore infielder’s push to reach the Majors for a second time -- and might explain some of his downturn in performance -- but he still shows a keen eye at the plate with good swing decisions. The potential to be an All-Star bat up the middle remains high.
On the day Wood reaches The Show for the first time, he jumps into the No. 2 spot on the strength of his power-speed combination. The 6-foot-7 left-handed slugger’s 95.1 mph average exit velocity and 59.1 percent hard-hit rate were tops among Triple-A players with at least 200 plate appearances this season. He and 2023 No. 2 overall pick Dylan Crews give Washington two of the top four prospects on the updated Top 100.
Rays shortstop Williams moves into the Top 10 for the first time, joining his fellow Tampa Bay infielder Junior Caminero in the upper echelon. The 21-year-old is well known for his plus-plus glove at shortstop and impressive power, but he’s shown a better contact rate at Double-A in 2024, giving him a more well-rounded profile at a premium position.
The Orioles (Holliday, Basallo, Mayo) lead the way with three Top 15 prospects, followed by the Nationals (Wood, Crews), Rays (Caminero, Williams), Red Sox (Mayer, Anthony), Tigers (Clark, Jobe) and Twins (Jenkins, Lee) – each with two.
Highest risers
+31 Kevin McGonigle, SS/2B, Tigers (96 to 65)
+28 Moises Ballesteros, C/1B, Cubs (89 to 61)
+27 Lazaro Montes, OF, Mariners (80 to 53)
+27 Thomas White, LHP, Marlins (85 to 58)
+22 Brayden Taylor, 3B/SS, Rays (82 to 60)
+19 Noah Schultz, LHP, White Sox (37 to 18)
+18 Edgar Quero, C, White Sox (92 to 74)
+17 Aidan Miller, SS/3B, Phillies (45 to 28)
+14 Drew Thorpe, RHP, White Sox (52 to 38)
+14 Christian Scott, RHP, Mets (53 to 39)
+14 Josue De Paula, OF, Dodgers (78 to 64)
+11 Xavier Isaac, 1B, Rays (43 to 32)
+10 Matt Shaw, 3B, Cubs (40 to 30)
+10 Bubba Chandler, RHP, Pirates (62 to 52)
Last year’s 37th overall pick McGonigle very rarely misses on swings in the zone, backing up the belief that he’ll be a plus hitter at every stop. His power has played better than expected as a 19-year-old at Single-A, prompting this jump up. Montes’ raw pop has taken him to High-A at age 19, and while some questions about his defensive home remain, the Mariners prospect is bolstering the belief that he’ll be valuable anywhere with his bat. Along with fellow top Marlins pick from 2023 Noble Meyer, White has already climbed to High-A Beloit, and his fastball-curveball-changeup mix has helped him fan 78 batters in 56 innings entering Monday. The final 20-plus jumper is another prominent 2023 pick in Taylor, who has been a solid all-around performer out of TCU with a .285/.405/.516 line, 10 homers and 20 steals in 65 games at High-A Bowling Green.
This update should bring some excitement to Chicago’s South Side with three White Sox prospects climbing 10 spots or more -- Schultz, Quero and Thorpe. Schultz, who stands in at 6-foot-9, has developed into one of the Minors’ best arms with a mid-90s fastball and nasty plus-plus slider, and his 72/10 K/BB ratio over 50 2/3 innings at High-A and Double-A certainly pops off the page. At No. 18, he sits only two spots behind Colson Montgomery among the four White Sox on the Top 100.
New faces
95. Luke Keaschall, 2B/OF, Twins
96. Cooper Pratt, SS, Brewers
97. Spencer Schwellenbach, RHP, Braves
98. Brandon Sproat, RHP, Mets
99. Hayden Birdsong, RHP, Giants
100. Quinn Mathews, LHP, Cardinals
Keaschall is a man without a solidified position, but the 2023 second-rounder has proven his bat will carry him just fine. He walked more than he struck out while running a 182 wRC+ over 44 games at High-A and the 21-year-old continues to sting line drives at Double-A. Pratt looked like a Draft sleeper last year as a sixth-round pick and has drawn raves for his defensive consistency at shortstop from evaluators following his full-season debut. He’s posted a .311 average and .407 OBP for Carolina and should only add power from here.
Schwellenbach has made six Major League starts on the back of his mid-90s fastball, upper-80s slider, low-80s curveball and mid-80s splitter, and that diverse mix and solid control give him a quality opportunity to stick in an MLB rotation. Birdsong made his big league debut on June 26, and his fastball, curveball and slider all earn at least above-average grades, giving the 22-year-old the arsenal to impact San Francisco’s rotation in 2024 and beyond.
Sproat (second round) and Mathews (fourth) were 2023 senior signs whose stuff has taken significant jumps in pro ball. Sproat regularly flirts with triple digits, and his slider and changeup have regularly gotten whiffs at Double-A as he tries to follow a Christian Scott-like path. Mathews' velo has moved into the mid-90s from the left side and is holding there at his third level of the season.
Biggest droppers
-36 Mick Abel, RHP, Phillies (58 to 94)
-35 Marco Luciano, SS, Giants (41 to 76)
-23 Robby Snelling, LHP, Padres (24 to 47)
-20 Termarr Johnson, 2B/SS, Pirates (57 to 77)
-18 Luisangel Acuña, 2B/SS/OF, Mets (75 to 93)
-18 Adael Amador, 2B/SS, Rockies (30 to 48)
-17 Kevin Alcántara, OF, Cubs (49 to 66)
-15 Anthony Solometo, LHP, Pirates (63 to 78)
-14 AJ Smith-Shawver, RHP, Braves (54 to 68)
-12 Jacob Misiorowski, RHP, Brewers (21 to 33)
-12 Dylan Lesko, RHP, Padres (67 to 79)
-12 Yanquiel Fernandez, OF, Rockies (55 to 67)
-12 Chase Hampton, RHP, Yankees (71 to 83)
-11 Brady House, 3B, Nationals (34 to 45)
-10 Chase DeLauter, OF, Guardians (19 to 29)
-10 Spencer Jones, OF, Yankees (65 to 75)
-10 Ricky Tiedemann, LHP, Blue Jays (36 to 46)
Abel – the 15th overall pick from the 2020 Draft – has long shown potential, but results (6.79 ERA, 1.83 WHIP, 43 walks in 59 2/3 innings) are backing up at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The 6-foot-5 right-hander has lost a little zip on his fastballs, averaging 93-95 mph with his four-seamer and sinker, and his mid-80s slider is his only pitch with a called-strike whiff rate above 30 percent in 2024.
Luciano has really struggled with in-zone contact at Triple-A, striking out 30.3 percent of the time in 49 games, and while his exit-velocity data has been solid, he’s only managed two homers and a .314 slugging percentage in that span -- rough numbers for a prospect whose power is his loudest tool.
Snelling was a breakout name as a 19-year-old climbing three levels in 2019, but the 6-foot-3 southpaw is hitting a bit of a wall back in Double-A this summer with a 6.49 ERA in 13 starts. None of his fastballs, breaking balls or changeups are missing bats at solid rates, but he’s still young for the Texas League with time to figure it out.
Johnson and Acuña both fell in our last update and continue to tumble a bit more. The former might be too passive for a player once believed to have a 70-grade hit tool while the latter expands the zone too much, suppressing his power output. Amador got off to a really rough start at Double-A, heated up and then was summoned to the Majors quickly, where he struggled again. That complicates his evaluation process, though his high contact rate at all stops makes him noteworthy. He is currently out with a right oblique strain.
Moving out
Gabriel Gonzalez, OF, Twins (from 81)
Thomas Saggese, INF, Cardinals (from 83)
Roderick Arias, SS, Yankees (from 84)
Yohandy Morales, 1B/3B, Nationals (from 86)
Sterlin Thompson, 1B/OF, Rockies (from 87)
Victor Scott II, OF, Cardinals (from 94)
Strikeouts won’t be much of an issue for Gonzalez, but with his corner-outfield profile, he needs to dominate at the plate more than he has at High-A the past two years. A low back strain that knocked him out for much of May and June means he needs to hit his way back onto the Top 100 when compared to more consistent performers. Saggese has a similar bat-first profile but hasn’t built on last year’s gains at Triple-A, where he has a 66 wRC+ this season. Arias can contribute with multiple tools but is running a 35.9 percent K rate at Single-A and might be a longer offensive project than expected in the spring.
Morales was off to a rough start with an aggressive Double-A assignment and is currently out with a left thumb injury, denying him of important at-bats in his first full season. Thompson has a pretty left-handed swing but hasn’t gotten to use it for much power as he’s slugged .368 in a return to Double-A. Scott hasn’t found his offensive footing after a rough Triple-A debut, and while his speed and defense are top-of-the-scale, he needs to show a better overall bat -- particularly in the impact department -- to regain Top 100 status.