Tracking 2024 In-Season Top 100 Prospect Movement (2024)

June

Big Moves Up In The June Update

Paul Skenes, RHP, Pirates (Up 4 Spots In The Top 10): Skenes’ MLB debut has been about as impressive as could have been imagined. He’ll graduate in roughly five starts, but he’s a comfortable No. 1 prospect until then.

Noah Schultz, LHP, White Sox (Up 17 Spots): Schultz has struck out 40% of all batters he has faced this year. Few lefty starters can match his combination of fastball velocity (mid 90s and touching 97-98) and a devastating slider that he can throw for strikes or out of the zone on command. Chicago has kept him on very tight pitch limits, which is the biggest concern. He hasn’t demonstrated an ability to shoulder MLB-style starter workloads yet.

Marcelo Mayer, SS, Red Sox (Up 8 Spots): Mayer has shown that his second-half struggles in 2023 were largely because of an injured wrist. He remains one of the best shortstop prospects in the game.

Carson Williams, SS, Rays (Up 15 Spots): Williams is a sure-fire shortstop defensively, and he has long shown power potential. The biggest question has been his bat-to-ball skills and pure hitting ability. His .297 average is third best in the Southern League, and he’s first in the league in slugging percentage, extra-base hits, doubles and total bases and is second in triples and home runs. There are still some concerns about whether he’s a fringe-average or average hitter, but he’s alleviating concerns that his bat could hold him back.

Colt Emerson, SS, Mariners (Up 21 Spots): In our reporting to build the June update, no prospect (other than Aidan Miller) got more positive feedback than Emerson. He’s not a slam dunk to stay at shortstop, but he’s sure to stay at a premium position defensively, and he projects as an above-average hitter wherever he plays. He’s dealing with a fracture because he fouled a ball off his foot, but that shouldn’t derail his season.

Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Twins (Up 23 Spots): Rodriguez is a divisive prospect because he’s so extreme in his approach. No prospect swings less than Rodriguez. That leads to strikeouts and walks, but when he does swing Rodriguez hits plenty of stung line drives and home runs.

Aidan Miller, SS, Phillies (Up 52 Spots): Miller is the breakout prospect of the first half of the 2024 MiLB season. He missed time in his senior season of high school with a hamate injury. Now that he’s fully healthy, he is showing why he was considered one of the best hitters in the 2023 prep class.

Tink Hence, RHP, Cardinals (Up 36 Spots): The ranking was updated before Hence left his June 5 start early and walked to the clubhouse with a trainer. Few MiLB pitchers can match Hence’s pure stuff, and he’s showing the feel to set up hitters to go with that stuff.

Chase Dollander, RHP, Rockies (Up 22 Spots): Dollander so far looks more like the dominating 2022 starter than the 2023 less consistent starter. It’s an encouraging start.

Christian Scott, RHP, Mets (Up 29 Spots): Scott’s MLB debut has been everything that could have been expected or hoped, even if the Mets have briefly sent him back to Triple-A. Scott projects more as a durable mid-to-back of the rotation starter than an ace, but there’s plenty of value to that, especially for a pitcher who is ready to handle that role.

Xavier Isaac, 1B, Rays (Up 13 Spots): Isaac is a first base-only prospect. That’s a demographic rarely cracks the Top 50, but Isaac is an advanced hitter with big-time power. He’s convincing a lot of skeptical scouts.

Lazaro Montes, OF, Mariners (Up 30 Spots): Montes is never going to provide a ton of defensive value, but if a corner outfielder/DH/first base type can mash, that becomes less of an issue–see Yordan Alvarez for an example. Montes has the rare ability to hit for average and power as a long-levered, impressive physical specimen.

Starlyn Caba, SS, Phillies (Up 39 Spots): Even with Andrew Painter on the injured list and Mick Abel struggling, it’s been an excellent start to the season for Phillies prospects.

Kyle Manzardo, 1B, Guardians (Up 19 Spots): Manzardo is a split-camp prospect, but he’s playing regularly in Cleveland and could graduate before next month’s update.

Moises Ballesteros, C, Cubs (Up 24 Spots): Some evaluators question whether Ballesteros is too big to catch. There are fewer questions about his bat, as he’s marrying solid swing decisions with big power.

Jonny Farmelo, OF, Mariners (Up 34 Spots): Picking your favorite Low-A Modesto prospect is a challenging task. Three of them cracked this list of prospects who have taken big steps up. Farmelo is a very promising hitter with solid athleticism.

Kevin Alcantara, OF, Cubs (Up 20 Spots): His stats so far this year are solid but unspectacular, but in our reporting we got feedback that Alcantara’s steadily improving approach and big tools were worth a bump.

Logan Evans, RHP, Mariners (Up 14 Spots): If you’re finding flaws, Evans may lack a true strikeout pitch, but his slider is plus and he mixes pitches, works down in the zone and has plus control. Add it all up and he should be a durable, reliable starting pitcher.

Big Moves Down In The June Update

Max Clark, OF, Tigers (Down -13 Spots): Clark is one of the most decorated prep hitters of the last few draft cycles. A twitchy center fielder with strong contact skills and projectable power, there’s still a lot to like about Clark’s future. He’s still showing those strong plate skills as a professional, but the lack of impact in his bat has some scouts worried it’s just fringe-average power.

Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF, Cubs (Down -13 Spots): Few evaluators question Crow-Armstrong’s elite defensive chops in center field but his bat has many concerned. While Crow-Armstrong has the ability to flash a dynamic power and speed combination, his habit of expanding the zone far too often likely limits his offensive impact. While Crow-Armstrong dropped, it was more of a recalibration of prospect stock on an easy future everyday regular.

Jacob Misiorowski, RHP, Brewers (Down -27 Spots): Misiorowski’s prospect stock soared like a rocket in 2023 as he climbed into the top 25 of the Top 100. Unfortunately, Misiorowski’s command has gone from a concern to a major worry for evaluators. Misiorowski has made 15 starts dating back to 2023 and he has continually struggled to throw strikes. Over 10 starts this season, Misiorowski has walked 18% of the batters he’s faced.

Spencer Jones, OF, Yankees (Down -26 Spots): Jones’ combination of size and tools is nearly unmatched, but his swing-and-miss issues have led to questions about whether he’ll hit major league pitching. Jones started the season on the injury list and has been a slow starter with the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate in Somerset. Jones still possesses exciting upside with easy plus-plus power and athleticism. He needs to refine his contact skills to get the most out of his tools.

Robby Snelling, LHP, Padres (Down -47 Spots): Snelling enjoyed a meteoric rise, going from Nevada prep pick to Baseball America’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year in a little over a year. His start to 2024 hasn’t been so stupendous. Over nine starts with Double-A San Antonio, Snelling has struck out just 19.5% of batters he’s faced while walking 10.8% of hitters. Evaluators have questions around the quality of Snelling’s stuff, with a fastball that sits just 92-93 mph with dead-zone shape. Snelling’s two primary secondaries have also missed a below-average amount of bats this season.

Ricky Tiedemann, LHP, Blue Jays (Down -19 Spots): Few players received as much move up feedback from industry sources as Tiedemann prior to his May injury last year. Since then, he’s shown flashes of dominance while rising to the top 25 of the list, but far too often he’s on the injury list. The concern around Tiedemann’s health has many high-level decision makers throughout the game concerned about his long-term viability as a starter.

Bubba Chandler, RHP, Pirates (Down -16 Spots): Drafted as a two-way prep standout from the Georgia prep ranks, the Pirates have developed Chandler as a pitcher. There’s good reason behind this logic, as Chandler possesses an easy plus fastball sitting 95-97 mph with well above-average vertical break and a low release height. Despite jaw-dropping stuff, Chandler’s command has limited him from consistent success as a starter. In 2024, Chandler is walking 13.3% of batters he’s faced this season. Chandler’s command woes have led many evaluators throughout the game to place a future relief role on Chandler.

Brady House, 3B, Nationals (Down -36 Spots): House’s resurgent 2023 campaign put House’s injury issues in the rear view mirror, but 2024 hasn’t been quite so friendly. House is hitting .236/.322/.421 over 49 Double-A games with a 29.2% strikeout rate. House’s average plate skills have bottomed out this season as he’s running a high whiff rate and a fringy chase rate. Evaluators across the game have been less than impressed with House’s hitting ability and question how much impact he’ll have long term.

Luis Morales, RHP, Athletics (Down -24 Spots): Morales is among the most exciting prospects in the Athletics farm system. Signed out of Cuba for $3 million in January of 2023. After an exciting professional debut in 2023, Morales has had an inconsistent season. Morales began the year on the injury list with shoulder fatigue and his swing and miss stuff has been noticeably absent since he returned. Morales still has tantalizing upside but the 2024 season has provided a reason for recalibration.

Victor Scott II, OF, Cardinals (Down -20 Spots): Scott was rushed to the big leagues to begin the 2024 season due to a rash of injuries to the Cardinals starting outfield corps. Scott looked overmatched against big league pitching and was jettisoned to Triple-A Memphis. Since his demotion Scott has struggled to hit the ball with impact and is hitting .216/.307/.321 over 36 games with Memphis. Many believe that Scott will settle in, as his contact skills show strong underlying traits, but there’s a need to adjust expectations around the speedy outfielder.

Moving On

Luis Perales, RHP, Red Sox (No. 57)

Angel Genao, SS, Guardians (No. 65)

Luke Keaschall, 2B, Twins (No. 66)

Kevin McGonigle, SS, Tigers (No. 67)

Thomas White, LHP, Marlins (No. 73)

Ralphy Velazquez, 1B, Guardians (No. 84)

Spencer Schwellenbach, RHP, Braves (No. 92)

Blade Tidwell, RHP, Mets (No. 94)

Brandon Sproat, RHP, Mets (No. 97)

Quinn Mathews, LHP, Cardinals (No. 98)

Cade Povich, LHP, Orioles (No. 99)

Zebby Matthews, RHP, Twins (No. 100)

You can read about all 12 additions here.

Graduated

Jackson Chourio, OF, Brewers

Evan Carter, OF, Rangers

Wyatt Langford, OF, Rangers

Jackson Merrill, OF, Padres

Colt Keith, 3B, Tigers

Austin Wells, C, Yankees

Tyler Soderstrom, C, Athletics

Jared Jones, RHP, Pirates

Andy Pages, OF, Dodgers

Dropped Out

Dylan Lesko, RHP, Padres: The expectation was that Lesko would show the command and control he’d had before his Tommy John surgery to go with the stuff that returned in his late-2023 return. Unfortunately for Lesko, that hasn’t happened. He’s throwing strikes on just 55% of his pitches, far below the typical 61-63% seen from starting pitchers and a drop from the 60% he threw in 2023. His plus changeup is still effective, but he has to regain the feel for his fastball. He’s not getting hit hard, but his control is currently well below-average and has to improve.

Mick Abel, RHP, Phillies: Abel’s command is going to have to improve for him to be a big league starter, but this spring he’s added another issue–his stuff is just not what it once was. He’s now sitting 93-94 and topping out at 95-96, where he once sat 95 and touched 99. With less arm speed and below-average control, there’s a lot remaining on his to-do list.

Shane Baz, RHP, Rays: We kept Baz on the Top 100 for a year and a half as he rehabbed for Tommy John surgery. He finally returned to the field in early May, but so far he hasn’t looked like the dominating pitcher he was pre-injury. His stuff is a tick down in velocity and sharpness so far. Post-surgery rust for a pitcher is not uncommon, but the feedback we received was to drop him off for now and circle back if and when his stuff returns to his pre-injury form.

Roderick Arias, SS, Yankees: Arias was a pick-to-click among scouts, coaches and front office officials who saw him dominate the Florida Complex League last season. That ardor has cooled as he’s found the Florida State League to be much tougher to handle. He was one of the players who received the most consistent feedback from evaluators to drop off the Top 100. He’s still very young and could bounce back, but he’s not a Top 100 Prospect at this time.

Tekoah Roby, RHP, Cardinals: In a return to the Texas League, Roby has regressed. He’s giving up more hard contact, walking more hitters and struggling with consistency. His stuff isn’t all that much different from 2023, so the hope is he’ll bounce back, but it’s been a rough first half of the season.

Termarr Johnson, 2B, Pirates: Johnson drew rave reviews as a hitter in high school. He was viewed by many scouts as one of the best pure hitters they’d seen in years. No one is saying that in 2024. Johnson still draws walks, but he’s neither hitting the ball with authority nor spraying contact all around the field. For a bat-first infielder, that’s a worrisome trend. The hope is that he’ll regain his timing and confidence at the plate, but a .205/.381/.343 slash line in High-A is less than was expected.

Connor Phillips, RHP, Reds: It’s been a rough year for a number of Reds’ prospects, but few have had it rougher than Phillips. His 8.49 walks per nine innings are the worst in the full season minors. In most of his outings, he doesn’t have any pitch that he commands well enough to turn to when he falls behind in counts. Until he throws more strikes, he’s further from the majors than he was in 2023.

Thomas Saggese, 2B, Cardinals: Saggese is a bat-first infielder with versatility. His spot on the Top 100 was based on him being one of the better hitting close-to-the-majors infielders. Saggese’s underlying metrics are better than his .228/.298/.394 stats for Triple-A Memphis may indicate, but the margins at the back of the Top 100 are thin, and we had a number of players we wanted to add to the 100.

Yanquiel Fernandez, OF, Rockies: As Fernandez has gotten more upper-level exposure, he’s yet to show that he can adjust to pitchers who feed him a steady diet of breaking balls and changeups. He’ll kill a fastball in the zone, but he has to show he can also handle soft stuff away to be enough of a hitter to get to his power.

Cam Collier, 3B, Reds: We slid Collier back on when he showed signs of an improved approach and better ability to do damage by pulling the ball in the air. Given another month, some of the same issues from 2023 are still apparent. He struggles to put together competitive at-bats against lefties (.127/.143/.255 with a 34% strikeout rate) and he’s reverted to hitting way too many grounders that are pounded into the dirt just ahead of home plate. As one pro scouting director put it, his still-young age for the level is doing a lot of the heavy lifting for his prospect status.

George Lombard Jr., SS, Yankees: We were probably a little hasty with adding Lombard. The reports out of spring training were excellent and Lombard has a chance to be a very well-rounded prospect. But he’s yet to make a lot of impact at the plate. He slides back into the “keep an eye on” category for now.

May

Big Moves Up In The May Update

James Wood, OF, Nationals (Up 2 Spots In The Top 10): Wood continues to show solid improvement in the plate discipline skills that were his to-do list to be big league ready. The competition between him and Dylan Crews for No. 1 prospect status in the Nationals system remains a tight one, but Wood is younger, has louder tools and is performing better at a level higher than Crews.

Jared Jones, RHP, Pirates (Up 16 Spots): Pretty much every pitcher in the Top 100 aspires to do what Jones is doing currently in the major leagues. We didn’t put him above Skenes, and so he’ll likely graduate without ascending to “top pitching prospect in baseball” status, but it’s hard to argue any other pitcher in the minors should rank ahead of him considering Jones’ combination of exceptional stuff, solid control and big league success.

Mason Miller, RHP, Athletics (Up 8 Spots): Miller is showing he can be one of the best relievers n baseball. There are still durability concerns, but if Miller can stay healthy, he should dominate ninth innings for years to come.

Max Meyer, RHP, Marlins (Up 34 Spots): Coming into the year, there were questions about whether Meyer could show he was as good or even better than he was pre-injury. Meyer answered those questions with several impressive MLB starts before a puzzling demotion to the minors that’s aimed to reduce his workload.

Jefferson Rojas, SS, Cubs (Up 45 Spots): Rojas has drawn rave reviews during spring training and early in the Midwest League season.

Jacob Wilson, SS, Athletics (Up 19 Spots): We were a little skeptical about Wilson’s bat coming out of 2023. He’s shown so far that he can handle the aggressive assignment to Double-A Midland. He has a very aggressive, contact-oriented approach, but it’s working for him, and his defense is solid.

Christian Scott, RHP, Mets (Up 31 Spots): Scott has been one of the fastest risers of the early season, as he’s managed to maintain all of his best attributes (control, feel for pitching) while steadily improving his stuff. He’s knocking on the door of a big league callup.

Orelvis Martinez, 2B/3B, Blue Jays (Up 18 Spots): Martinez’s power potential has long been lauded, but he’s steadily improved at his ability to make consistent contact on hittable pitches.

Tink Hence, RHP, Cardinals (Up 11 Spots): Hence keeps shoving and keeps showing why he’s on of the better pitching prospects in baseball.

Jordan Beck, OF, Rockies (Up 20 Spots): Beck received an April promotion to the big leagues. He has a nice blend of power and athleticism that should fit well in Coors Field’s cavernous outfield.

Aidan Miller, SS, Phillies (Up 16 Spots): Miller has gotten off to a good start at the plate, which was to be expected. His defense has looked better than expected so far.

Kyle Manzardo, 1B, Guardians (Up 12 Spots): Manzardo is doing everything he can to push for a spot in the Guardians’ lineup and

Big Moves Down In The May Update

Brooks Lee, SS, Twins (Down 14 Spots): Lee’s injury risk was the biggest concern surrounding him when he was draft eligible. Now he’s sidelined with a back injury that could be a long-term concenr.

Ricky Tiedemann, LHP, Blue Jays (Down 34 Spots): Tiedemann’s stuff is special when he’s healthy. But he’s on the injured list once again with elbow issues. Durability is the biggest concern with Tiedemann, and those concerns are only heightened now.

A.J. Smith-Shawver, RHP, Braves (Down 25 Spots): Smith-Shawver has gone from the Braves’ rotation to struggling in Triple-A.

Noble Meyer, RHP, Marlins (Down 22 Spots): Meyer’s control has been less than expected in the early going this year.

Hurston Waldrep, RHP, Braves (Down 20 Spots): Waldrep reached Triple-A in 2023. This year, he’s started the season by getting regularly shelled in Double-A. His velocity hasn’t dipped, but his fastball is much too hittable.

Marco Luciano, SS, Giants (Down 10 Spots): Luciano’s surface-level numbers look fine, but his lack of power production, especially for a hitter in the Pacific Coast League who has already spent a week in Reno, is puzzling.

Mick Abel, RHP, Phillies (Down 13 Spots): Young pitchers don’t always develop linearly. Abel seems to have stagnated, as he continues to struggle to put away hitters. He’s only 22, so there’s plenty of time to fix this issue, but ideally we’d see more improvement already.

Termarr Johnson, 2B, Pirates (Down 12 Spots): As a second baseman, Johnson is going to need to hit a lot to justify a Top 100 spot. In a return to High-A Greensboro, he hasn’t taken a step forward yet.

Victor Scott II, OF, Cardinals (Down 10 Spots): Don’t worry too much about Scott’s struggles in a brief big league stint, but it was a sign he needs some more minor league time.

Dylan Lesko, RHP, Padres (Down 50 Spots): We hoped that Lesko’s control and command troubles in 2023 were based around him shaking off rust after Tommy John surgery. Instead, the control problems have gotten even worse this year. Lesko has a 51% strike rate this year, which is about as low as you’ll ever find for a minor league starter.

Roderick Arias, SS, Yankees (Down 31 Spots): This is Arias’ first exposure to full-season baseball, but a 37% strikeout rate wasn’t expected. The hope is this is a hiccup as he adjusts to a new level.

Tyler Soderstrom, C, Athletics (Down 21 Spots): Soderstrom’s defense behind the plate remains in question.

Connor Phillips, RHP, Reds (Down 27 Spots): Phillips’ control isn’t helped by Triple-A’s ABS system, but he has to throw more strikes more consistently to get back to the majors.

Moving On

Edgar Quero, C, White Sox: Quero has impressed in the early going both at and behind the plate.

Caden Dana, RHP, Angels: Dana has handled a very aggressive assignment to Double-A Rocket City with aplomb.

Jaison Chourio, OF, Guardians: Chourio keeps getting better and better, and now joins his brother Jackson on the Top 100, just before his brother graduates.

Graduated

Evan Carter, OF, Rangers

Kyle Harrison, LHP, Giants

Colton Cowser, OF, Orioles

Michael Busch, 1B, Cubs

Brayan Rocchio, SS, Guardians

Gavin Stone, RHP, Dodgers

Nolan Schanuel, 1B, Angels

Curtis Mead, 2B, Rays

DL Hall, LHP, Brewers

Ceddane Rafaela, OF/SS, Red Sox

Dropped Out

Everson Pereira, OF, Yankees: Pereira’s contact issues remain a concern. He misses way too may hittable pitches.

Chase Hampton, RHP, Yankees: Hampton remains sidelined by injury. When you’re at the back of the Top 100, that’s enough to sometimes drop you off so other players can join the 100.

April

Big Moves Up In The April Update

James Wood, OF, Nationals (Up 3 Spots Into The Top 10): Wood was one of the best hitters in spring training, flashing the tools that have long made him a premium prospect.

Jackson Jobe, RHP, Tigers (Up 8 Spots): Jobe already ranked among the best pitching prospects in the game, but the feedback from his spring outings led us to now bump him up to the second highest ranked pitching prospect in the game behind Paul Skenes.

Jared Jones, RHP, Pirates (Up 48 Spots): The scouting feedback on Jones’ improvements during the 2023 season was quite strong, but even with that, his step forward this spring was eye-opening. Jones’ fastball and slider are both present plus pitches, which makes him a valuable part of the Pirates’ rotation.

Rhett Lowder, RHP, Reds (Up 18 Spots): Lowder didn’t pitch in a pro game after he signed in 2023. His spring appearances have been encouraging and offer hints that he could move quickly.

Josue De Paula, OF, Dodgers (Up 46 Spots): De Paula has advanced bat-to-ball skills for his age, and is now showing he’s getting to more of his excellent raw power.

Brayan Rocchio, SS, Guardians (Up 26 Spots): Rocchio won a competitive battle to be the Guardians’ everyday shortstop. He’ll graduate soon, but he gets a bump up the list before he does.

Gavin Stone, RHP, Dodgers (Up 17 Spot): Stone was excellent this spring and won the Dodgers’ fifth starter job. He is three starts away from graduating.

Big Moves Down In The April Update

Noelvi Marte, 3B, Reds (Down 10 Spots): Since we last ranked Marte, he’s been suspended for testing positive for a performance enhancing drug. It doesn’t derail his long-term potential, but it is a cause for some concern.

Chase Hampton, RHP, Yankees (Down 19 Spots): Hampton is on the injured list with a sore shoulder.

Graduated

Masyn Winn, SS, Cardinals

Dropped Out

Nick Frasso, RHP, Dodgers: Frasso will miss the 2024 season with a torn labrum.

Robert Gasser, RHP, Brewers: Gasser went on the injured list with an elbow injury.

Here’s a full look at how our Top 100 has changed with each monthly update. In-between movement during a month to account for graduations is not reflected.