Over the past week-plus, we have ranked the best prospects and farm systems in baseball going into the 2025 MLB season. Now it’s time to have some fun with our lists by making bold prospect predictions for the year ahead.

Which players will put up eye-popping numbers this season? Which names make our way-too-early 2026 top-10 list — including a new No. 1 prospect? Here are some hot takes about the young stars who will be the talk of the sport this season and beyond.

Top 100 | 101-200 | Farm system rankings | Team top 10 lists

Enrique Bradfield Jr. (No. 82) will steal 100 bases in the minor leagues, then make his MLB debut in the playoffs

The Baltimore Orioles outfield prospect stole 74 bases last season across High-A and Double-A and is perhaps the best base stealer (think instincts) in the minor leagues and probably the second-fastest runner (more on that soon). It’s really just a matter of health, getting the green light and wanting to do it.

Baltimore has a ton of young hitters and doesn’t really promote prospects quickly, so while Bradfield could contribute in the second half as a starter/pinch runner/defensive replacement, he definitely will be needed either in September or the playoffs.

Chandler Simpson (No. 91) will steal 60 bases in the big leagues

The Tampa Bay Rays outfield prospect is the fastest runner in the minor leagues and stole 104 bases across High-A and Double-A last season. He is one of the most intriguing prospects in the sport.

The Rays are slated to start Jonny DeLuca in center field, Christopher Morel in left field and a Jonathan Aranda/Eloy Jimenez platoon at designated hitter. That’s not inspiring, and Tampa Bay loves to have a standout defender in center, which that group lacks. Simpson is the kind of player who does a simple thing (spray grounders and line drives) that doesn’t call for the same amount of Triple-A seasoning that a power-and-patience slugger needs, so he could be in the majors sooner than a more traditional prospect.

I bet Simpson will spend at least 70 games in the big leagues this year, and even as a sub average close to a stolen base attempt per game. Those 104 stolen bases he piled up in the minors last season were swiped at an 86% clip.

These five top-50 prospects with spend about half the season in MLB, performing better than league average and racking up at least 1.5 WAR

Boston Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony (No. 2) and Orioles third baseman Coby Mayo (No. 8) rank among the top 10 prospects in the entire sport, so this wouldn’t be shocking for them, but neither is expected to break camp with their big league club, so it’s unclear how much MLB time they’ll get. I think both will force their way into roster spots after dominating in Triple-A, and hit the ground running.

Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin (No. 44) and Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Alex Freeland (No. 37) are also in my top 100, but were later-round collegiate draftees who reached that status last summer, so some fans aren’t tracking them closely yet. Before the All-Star break arrives, I think Baldwin will emerge as both the Braves’ backup catcher and a regular presence in the lineup if a corner/DH injury or ineffectiveness creates an opportunity. Freeland provides L.A. with insurance for Mookie Betts‘ shortstop defense, Hyeseong Kim‘s offensive impact and Max Muncy beginning to age, not to mention the health of all three players.

On the heels of his breakthrough 2024, Texas Rangers pitcher Kumar Rocker (No. 35) will probably be the first call-up for Texas’ pitching staff, and might work more in shorter stints while providing 75-100 impactful big league innings.

These four under-the-radar prospects will be solid MLB role players, racking up at least 1.0 WAR

Chicago White Sox second baseman Chase Meidroth (No. 199), Atlanta Braves pitcher Drue Hackenberg (No. 8 in ATL top 10), Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Alan Roden (No. 7 in TOR top 10) and Milwaukee Brewers infielder Caleb Durbin have all played in Triple-A without reaching the big leagues. Though only Meidroth made my top 200, each could find regular time in the majors this season.

Durbin (acquired in the Devin Williams trade) is the only one in the group projected to break camp with the big league team, but as the short side of a platoon at third base. Hackenberg probably isn’t even one of the top three Triple-A call-up arms for the Braves right now (likely AJ Smith-Shawver, Hurston Waldrep and Bryce Elder), as he isn’t on the 40-man, but he has the vibes of an innings-compiling midrotation arm, a John Lackey type if it all clicks; every team is looking for this kind of player, so I think he’ll get the call around midseason.

Meidroth (acquired in the Garrett Crochet trade) and Roden are on-base machines who lack big tools but play positions of need for their parent clubs, while Durbin is the ultimate hit-over-power grinder the Brewers seem to collect.

These players don’t have huge upsides, but they provide the kind of quality depth teams need. Their clubs might find reasons to give them big roles by the summer.

These 12 players will break out, potentially jumping from outside the top 150 to the 2026 top 100

(Ranked in order of likelihood)

Parker Messick, LHP, Cleveland Guardians (NR)
JR Ritchie, RHP, Atlanta Braves (NR)
Aroon Escobar, SS, Philadelphia Phillies (NR)
Cam Caminiti, LHP, Atlanta Braves (164)
David Shields, LHP, Kansas City Royals (170)
Chen-Wei Lin, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals (NR)
Kash Mayfield, LHP, San Diego Padres (196)
Alex Clemmey, LHP, Washington Nationals (152)
Teddy McGraw, RHP, Seattle Mariners (NR)
Trey Gibson, RHP, Baltimore Orioles (NR)
Anderson Brito, RHP, Houston Astros (NR)
Humberto Cruz, RHP, San Diego Padres (NR)

This group is a mix of players who made the back end of my top 200 or fell shy of that bar — many of these players are featured as my prospect to watch in their system in the team’s top 10 prospect rankings.

Finally, here’s my early prediction for how next winter’s list of the top 10 prospects will look

1. Walker Jenkins, RF, Minnesota Twins (3)
2. Marcelo Mayer, SS, Boston Red Sox (4)
3. Leodalis De Vries, SS, San Diego Padres (15)
4. Samuel Basallo, C, Baltimore Orioles (17)
5. Aidan Miller, SS, Philadelphia Phillies (13)
6. Noah Schultz, LHP, Chicago White Sox (18)
7. Travis Bazzana, 2B, Cleveland Guardians (25)
8. Max Clark, CF, Detroit Tigers (9)
9. Ethan Salas, C, San Diego Padres (22)
10. Sebastian Walcott, SS, Texas Rangers (19)

Many of these players are simply next in line to move up the list as others around them graduate to the majors this season. Bazzana, playing his full first pro season after going No. 1 overall last summer, and Salas, who continues to advance as a hyped teenager, are two who have a chance to go from outside the top 20 to next winter’s top 10.

And here are two bonus helium guys to watch who could find their way into this area:

Zyhir Hope, CF, Los Angeles Dodgers (70)
Jonny Farmelo, CF, Seattle Mariners (45)

Hope has plus raw power, game power, patience and speed, but there are some questions about the rest of his profile and how it will play against more advanced pitching. The potential is here to explode up the list. Farmelo tore an ACL in 2024 after strong spring training and early-season performance, but expectations are that he’ll get back to what he was doing a year ago in 2025. If he does, the tool grades are basically the same as Clark’s, so the potential is there to be ranked where Clark is.