Below is an analysis of the prospects in the farm system of the Milwaukee Brewers. Scouting reports were compiled with information provided by industry sources as well as our own observations. This is the sixth year we’re delineating between two anticipated relief roles, the abbreviations for which you’ll see in the “position” column below: MIRP for multi-inning relief pitchers, and SIRP for single-inning relief pitchers. The ETAs listed generally correspond to the year a player has to be added to the 40-man roster to avoid being made eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Manual adjustments are made where they seem appropriate, but we use that as a rule of thumb.
A quick overview of what FV (Future Value) means can be found here. A much deeper overview can be found here.
All of the ranked prospects below also appear on The Board, a resource the site offers featuring sortable scouting information for every organization. It has more details (and updated TrackMan data from various sources) than this article and integrates every team’s list so readers can compare prospects across farm systems. It can be found here. Read the rest of this entry »
It’s time for another cycle of prospect lists and, as has become customary, we’re starting with scouting reports on pro players in foreign leagues, with a focus on players available for MLB free agency this offseason. On The Board, you can access a fresh batch of scouting reports and evaluations for relevant players from Nippon Professional Baseball, the Korea Baseball Organization, and the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan, as well as reports on some young players we’ve identified as potentially impactful long-term prospects. For those who need a crash course on the age- and pro experience-driven lines of demarcation that dictate how MLB teams sign international players, we’d point you to a number of MLB.com glossary entries, including those on international free agency for those in Asian pro leagues, international amateur free agency and bonus pool restrictions, the Japanese posting system, and the Korean posting system.
It can be a bit overwhelming to sift through so many different types of players on that section of The Board — it’s a real apples and oranges situation when we’re talking about some guys who are in their 30s and others who are fairly young — so we’ve broken many of them into digestible subgroups below, with focus on the crop that is purported to be coming over this offseason. You’ll notice that some players appear across multiple categories. The Board has each player’s full scouting report and tool grades — think of this as more of a table of contents. Read the rest of this entry »
Megan Mendoza/The Republic/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The 33rd Arizona Fall League season opened last night with a single game in Scottsdale. There are future stars in the Fall League every year, as well as many more workmanlike players who are competing for a 40-man roster spot on next year’s club. It’s a wonderful league for teams to develop and scout prospects because of the cross section of talent it tends to include (there are usually lots of good position player prospects), its timing (which allows players who were injured during the regular season to catch up on reps), and its structure (which allows for six weeks of steady looks). Teams almost always take the AFL seriously and send players here who they want to see more of, or who they want to test. Being on the roster is, on its own, a flare. It’s an indication that a player is worth paying attention to from a scouting standpoint even if I didn’t know the guy’s name until I saw a roster.
Previewing this league with prospects’ scouting reports risks putting the cart before the horse because the scouting part has yet to happen. I want to give you the reports I already have, to play the hits and make sure you have Kevin McGonigle and Josue De Paula reports and tool grades in front of you (don’t worry, you will), but a huge part of the pro scouting exercise that is the Arizona Fall League is mining for the deeper cut prospects, and I can’t tell you who those guys are going to be just yet. But I can show you the initial steps I take to prepare to go to the field and try to systematically unearth these guys, give you the tools to do so on your own, and, in the process, let know you who it is I’m most curious and excited to learn more about for the next six weeks. Read the rest of this entry »
Ranked and briefly analyzed below are the prospects who have been traded during the loosely defined “2025 deadline season,” which for simplicity’s sake I consider all of July. Most of the deals these prospects were a part of have been analyzed at length on this site. An index of those pieces can be found here; you can also click the hyperlink in the “Trade” column below, which will take you to the relevant article. I’ve moved all of the 35+ FV and above players listed here to their new orgs over on The Board, so you can click through to see where they rank among their new teammates and read their full scouting reports, which have been updated where applicable. The Farm System Rankings, which update live, also reflect these changes, so you can see where teams’ systems stack up following the draft and the deadline. Read the rest of this entry »
Kevin McGonigle Photo: Junfu Han/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
With the draft behind us and the trade deadline looming, I’ve made a number of updates to The Board. The signing deadline for drafted players has passed, and the 2025 class has now been ported over to the pro side of The Board. You can now see where your favorite team’s new draftees line up in their farm system, and I may yet add a few more of the very late round and/or undrafted players who signed for way over slot (looking at you, Brewers). I’ve also peeled away from the lists those players who have exceeded the rookie eligibility threshold; they’ve been moved onto the Graduates tab on The Board. This means that the farm system values have shifted, and will continue to in real time as trades are made this week.
Most importantly, however, I’ve made a sweeping update to the Top 100 Prospects list. As I noted in the spring with our last Top 100 update, there are a couple of things to keep in mind as you read, especially if you’re new to FanGraphs prospect stuff. First, the “Top 100” title is arbitrary SEO nonsense; I rank players as deep as I have them graded as 50 FV prospects or better, and as of this update, that’s 99 guys. Second, remember that Future Value is a value grade. The tools and ultimate potential upside of a player matter a lot, as does the length and consistency of a player’s performance track record and their proximity to the majors. There are players who have talent upside better than their FV grade, but if they’re risky for whatever reason, or if they’re in the low minors, I want to reflect that risk/time element in their grade. Read the rest of this entry »
Below is a team-by-team analysis of last night’s draft activity. Remember that you can find more detailed scouting reports and tool grades for the players drafted yesterday over on The Board. The positions below are what I have them projected as on The Board, not necessarily what the player was announced as. For pitchers, I have a role designated below: starter (SP), or single-inning or multi-inning reliever (SIRP and MIRP). Read the rest of this entry »
1. Washington Nationals Pick: Eli Willits, SS, Fort Cobb-Broxton HS (OK)
Before Mike Rizzo was let go, folks would have put Ethan Holliday here given the relationship of that regime with Holliday’s agent, Scott Boras, as well as the Rizzo era’s penchant for high-upside high school players. There is some industry conjecture that the key pieces of Washington’s core that might make sense to extend (James Wood, MacKenzie Gore) who are also Boras clients are not receptive to the idea of extensions, and frustration stemming from this might make the new leadership group less apt to want to work with Boras, who represents all the players here not named Eli Willits. About an hour before the draft I started to get wind of rumors that Washington was looking to cut a deal with one of Holliday, Anderson or Willits, whoever takes the least of that group. Willits’ next alternative seems like pick number five, making him the most likely to cut the biggest deal.
2. Los Angeles Angels Pick: Liam Doyle, LHP, Tennessee
In keeping with the Angels’ consistent modus operandi of taking quick-moving college guys, teams have put them with Doyle (most frequently), Kade Anderson, and/or on a deal cut with Ike Irish. I did have one person suggest they were a threat to take Holliday, but just one.
3. Seattle Mariners Pick: Ethan Holliday, 3B, Stillwater HS (OK)
If the draft lottery gods were kind to you and you moved up as much as the Mariners did, wouldn’t you feel like you were playing with house money and feel comfortable taking the potential franchise-altering player?
4. Colorado Rockies Pick: Kade Anderson, LHP, LSU
This is generally seen as Ethan’s floor. Folks think Colorado would take a college arm if he isn’t here, and in this scenario, Anderson is.
5. St. Louis Cardinals Pick: Billy Carlson, SS, Corona HS (CA)
Lots of Eli Willits smoke here, though if Jojo Parker’s and Billy Carlson’s camps think they’re falling pretty deep, they might be under-slot targets here. Teams like Ike Irish enough that he could go anywhere from here through pick 10.
6. Pittsburgh Pirates Pick: Ike Irish, C/OF, Auburn
Mentioned here have been Jamie Arnold (in the Anthony Solometo mechanical mold, so it makes sense), Aiva Arquette, and Billy Carlson, but dope around Pittsburgh the last couple of years has almost never been correct. Irish might be the quickest-moving hitter from this draft class; he’s as stable a position player prospect as there is in the draft as the clock ticks on this front office to put together a competitive team.
7. Miami Marlins Pick: Seth Hernandez, RHP, Corona HS (CA)
Teams have put all the high school shortstops here, and also Ike Irish and Seth Hernandez. Carlson performed from a contact standpoint but has some visual hit tool risk, similar to Carter Johnson and PJ Morlando last year.
8. Toronto Blue Jays Pick: Aiva Arquette, SS, Oregon State
I don’t have any specific dope here, this is just good value if Arquette falls this far. College pitchers with fastball playability tend to be Toronto’s style, which could put Jamie Arnold and Kyson Witherspoon in their mix. I’m not sure any of the high school shortstops scratch their itch because they’re all older.
9. Cincinnati Reds Pick: Steele Hall, SS, Hewitt-Trussville HS (AL)
Seth Hernandez if he’s here. Teams think the Reds are keeping their options open and that they’re in play for any of the high school shortstops. In this scenario, Parker and Hall are here. Hall’s speed and athleticism are more a fit for what they’ve tended to do.
10. Chicago White Sox Pick: Jojo Parker, SS, Purvis HS (MS)
11. Athletics Pick: Jamie Arnold, LHP, Florida State
12. Texas Rangers Pick: Gavin Fien, 3B/OF, Great Oak HS (CA)
13. San Francisco Giants Pick: Tyler Bremner, RHP, UCSB
14. Tampa Bay Rays Pick: Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Oklahoma
15. Boston Red Sox Pick: Gavin Kilen, SS, Tennessee
The last couple of days, folks have mentioned that Arnold is falling. He’d be a great buy-low for the A’s. Fien and Jace LaViolette have been mentioned with Texas. Industry sources put the Giants more on college players now that Buster Posey is running things. I’ve been told the Rays are Kyson Witherspoon’s floor. Boston is expected to make a model-driven pick and Kilen’s bat-to-ball skills fit there. He could also go a pick earlier to San Francisco. This is the area where people think Daniel Pierce will cut a deal.
Arizona has a bunch of picks and therefore perhaps more motivation to cut a deal, and Pierce is rumored to have one somewhere in this range. Baltimore has taken toolsy college hitters with plate discipline issues the last few years, and this year that’s Aloy. Milwaukee has tended to target high schoolers of late, but the contact-oriented up-the-middle guys left here (Bodine, Marek Houston) could tempt them, too.
Houston targets toolsy college guys, even when they have strikeout risk. At this stage, that’s Jace, and Aloy if he’s there. There are several surface-scratching arms with good fastballs here for Atlanta to consider (Patrick Forbes, Matthew Fisher); that’s their type, riding heaters with good breakers.
26. Philadelphia Phillies Pick: Dax Kilby, INF, Newnan HS (GA)
27. Cleveland Guardians Pick: Devin Taylor, OF Indiana
Prospect Promotion Incentive Picks
28. Kansas City Royals (Received for Bobby Witt Jr. finishing in top 3 of MVP voting) Pick: Kruz Schoolcraft, LHP, Sunset HS (OR)
Compensation Picks
29. Arizona Diamondbacks (Compensation for Christian Walker) Pick: Slater de Brun, CF, Summit HS (OR)
30. Baltimore Orioles (Compensation for Corbin Burnes) Pick: Matthew Fisher, RHP, Evansville Memorial HS (IN)
31. Baltimore Orioles (Compensation for Anthony Santander) Pick: Marek Houston, SS, Wake Forest
32. Milwaukee Brewers (Compensation for Willy Adames) Pick: Jaden Fauske, C/OF, Nazareth Academy HS (IL)
Day One of the amateur draft kicks off this evening, and I’ve done a top-to-bottom refresh and expansion of my draft prospect rankings, which you can see on The Board. Please go read those blurbs and explore the tool grade section to get a better idea of my thoughts on the players. The goal of the draft rankings is to evaluate and rank as many of the players who are talented enough to hop onto the main section of the pro prospect lists as possible, so they can be ported over to the pro side of The Board as soon as they’re drafted. Players for whom that is true tend to start to peter out in rounds four and five of the draft as bonus slot amounts dip below $500,000. Over-slot guys are obvious exceptions. By the seventh round, we’re mostly talking about org guys who are drafted to make a team’s bonus pool puzzle fit together, or players who need significant development to truly be considered prospects. That usually means ranking about 150 players, and this year’s class is right in that range; right now, I have 152 guys on there. Read the rest of this entry »
Below is an analysis of the prospects in the farm system of the Houston Astros. Scouting reports were compiled with information provided by industry sources as well as my own observations. This is the fifth year we’re delineating between two anticipated relief roles, the abbreviations for which you’ll see in the “position” column below: MIRP for multi-inning relief pitchers, and SIRP for single-inning relief pitchers. The ETAs listed generally correspond to the year a player has to be added to the 40-man roster to avoid being made eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Manual adjustments are made where they seem appropriate, but we use that as a rule of thumb.
A quick overview of what FV (Future Value) means can be found here. A much deeper overview can be found here.
All of the ranked prospects below also appear on The Board, a resource the site offers featuring sortable scouting information for every organization. It has more details (and updated TrackMan data from various sources) than this article and integrates every team’s list so readers can compare prospects across farm systems. It can be found here. Read the rest of this entry »
