Team Position Player | Age on 4/1/2026 | Level | ETA
1. Brewers SS Jesus Made | 18 | AA | 2027
2. Mariners LHP Kade Anderson | 21 | AA | 2026
3. Athletics SS Leo De Vries | 19 | AA | 2027
4. Dodgers OF Josue De Paula | 20 | AA | 2027
5. Red Sox SS Franklin Arias | 20 | AA | 2027
De Paula is the big riser here. Holy goodness what a season he’s having, slashing .322/.417/.547 with 15 home runs, 25 stolen bases and a 13.8-to-13.3 percent walk-to-strikeout ratio. He’s got a solid case for the top spot.
6. White Sox SS Roch Cholowsky | 21 | NCAA | 2027
7. Pirates RHP Seth Hernandez | 19 | A+ | 2027
8. Twins C Vahn Lackey | 21 | NCAA | 2027
9. Reds C Alfredo Duno | 20 | AA | 2027
Wherever I dropped Lackey into the list, I had to toggle Duno and Rodriguez along with him.
10. Rangers SS Sebastian Walcott | 19 | AA | 2026
11. Tigers OF Max Clark | 21 | AAA | 2026
12. Rockies SS Cole Carrigg | 24 | MLB | 2026
13. Nationals SS Eli Willits | 18 | A+ | 2020
14. Giants SS Luis Hernandez | 17 | CPX | 2029
15. Giants SS Josuar Gonzalez | 18 | CPX | 2030
16. Twins OF Walker Jenkins | 21 | AAA | 2026
17. Cardinals C Rainiel Rodriguez | 19 | AA | 2027
18. Rays SS Grady Emerson | 18 | HS | 2031
Tampa reportedly ranked Emerson atop their draft board with a sizable gap between him and the Cholowsky-Lackey duo. That’s carrying some water in this ranking, as is the idea that any one of those three would’ve been 1.1 in last year’s class. I’ve got him lightly tethered to Eli Willits until further notice.
19. White Sox OF Braden Montgomery | 22 | MLB | 2026
20. Red Sox RHP Anthony Eyanson | 21 | AA | 2026
21. Mariners RHP Ryan Sloan | 20 | AA | 2027
22. Braves OF Eric Hartman | 20 | A+ | 2028
23. Giants RHP Jackson Flora | 21 | NCAA | 2027
24. Cubs OF Josiah Hartshorn | 19 | A+ | 2028
25. Brewers OF Luis Lara | 21 | MLB | 2026
26. White Sox SS Caleb Bonemer | 20 | AA | 2027
27. Rays OF Theo Gillen | 20 | AA | 2027
28. Guardians 1B Ralphy Velazquez | 20 | AAA | 2027
Theo Gillen has gone 0-for-his first two weeks in Double-A. It means little, of course, but I’ve been wary of Gillen’s hit tool while he was rushing up a lot of other lists, so I’m having to battle back the confirmation bias a bit. Caleb Bonemer, by contrast, is making even more contact at Double-A than he was in High-A.
29. Cardinals OF Joshua Baez | 21 | AAA | 2026
30. Padres C Ethan Salas | 18 | AA | 2026
31. Mariners OF Lazaro Montes | 21 | AAA | 2027
32. Athletics LHP Gage Jump | 22 | AA | 2026
33. Dodgers OF Zyhir Hope | 21 | AA | 2027
34. Diamondbacks OF Ryan Waldschmidt | 23 | MLB | 2026
35. Twins SS Kaelen Culpepper | 23 | AAA | 2026
36. Dodgers OF Mike Sirota | 22 | AA | 2027
37. Yankees SS George Lombard Jr. | 20 | AAA | 2026
You could put Baez, Montes and Hope higher if you want to chase that high-risk power upside.
Salas has cooled off after a hot start, slashing .225/.341/.239 with 12 walks and just six strikeouts since the beginning of June, but he’s still an elite defender who has shown power against much older guys.
38. Blue Jays SS Arjun Nimmala | 20 | AA | 2028
39. Reds SS Steele Hall | 18 | CPX | 2029
40. Royals RHP Kendry Chourio | 18 | A+ | 2029
41. Brewers OF Alexander Frias | 18 | A | 2030
42. Giants SS Jhonny Level | 19 | A+ | 2029
Teeny-bopper topside. Fun.
43. Rockies 1B Charlie Condon | 22 | AAA | 2026
44. Blue Jays 3B Sean Keys | 23 | MLB | 2026
45. Mariners SS Michael Arroyo | 21 | AA | 2026
46. Mariners OF Jonny Farmelo | 21 | A+ | 2028
47. Phillies SS Aidan Miller | 21 | AAA | 2026
48. Rockies SS Tyler Bell | 21 | NCAA | 2027
49. Pirates OF Edward Florentino | 19 | A+ | 2029
50. Brewers SS Jett Williams | 21 | AAA | 2026
I struggled to rank Sean Keys and Aidan Miller for opposite reasons. Keys has been awesome all season and looks legit right now but has no defensive home in Toronto and little chance to help in stolen bases. Miller has been hurt all season and looks like a huge question mark right now but has the speed, power and defense to quickly become a fantasy mainstay if he can get healthy.
Thanks for reading!
Thoughts on Ethan Holliday? I know he’s out for the year but I’m in a dynasty league with spots for prospects and wondering if I should hang on to him
Which one of those SS will you pick for this season in an OBP, non dinasty league? Thanks
Hey Itch – thanks, super useful! I just traded away Condon in a keeper, for a piece for this year – but still curious, why is he not a little higher?
Curious to get your thoughts on this Esmerlyn Valdez kid on the pirates. I couldn’t find where you had written him up. He strikes out a lot, but he’s 22 and hitting homers at the big leagues. His MiLB numbers suggest he figured something out last year, but maybe he’s just a hot bat enjoying a nice streak. What are your thoughts?