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After months of speculation and anticipation, the Boston Red Sox promoted outfielder Roman Anthony to the majors earlier this week. Anthony’s arrival means, among other things, that the Red Sox are now able to field a lineup each night that includes three of the top 10 prospects on my preseason rankings: Anthony (No. 1 overall), Kristian Campbell (No. 3), and Marcelo Mayer (No. 10). It also means that it’s time for an update.
If you go solely off my preseason list, six of the 10 best prospects in baseball are playing or have played in the majors this season. That includes each of the top three. (Washington Nationals outfielder Dylan Crews, currently out with an injury, checked in at No. 2.) Logic states that if you wanted to figure out who the best prospect was yet to make their big-league debut, you might just look at who hasn’t appeared in The Show.
Unfortunately, it’s not so simple. Prospect development is seldom linear, and that means that prospect evaluation — and yes, the rankings formed therefrom — are as volatile as a kernel in a popcorn machine. Some players bounce up, some players get buried below.
Take the two highest ranked players without MLB service time to their credit: Twins outfielder Walker Jenkins and Rays shortstop Carson Williams. Could you make the argument that either is the best prospect left in the minors? I don’t think so, not at this stage. Jenkins has continued to be plagued by injuries, appearing in just eight games this season on account of a sprained ankle. Williams, for his part, has struck out in more than 35% of his Triple-A plate appearances. I’m not giving up the ghost on either player, mind you, I just wouldn’t have Jenkins or Williams atop my list if I were re-ranking prospects.
So, who would be in consideration for the top spot? Below I’ve highlighted the five players who could earn that No. 1 honor.
5. Chase Burns, RHP, Cincinnati Reds
I thought Burns was clearly the best pitcher in last year’s draft, and so far he’s provided me with no reason to reconsider. He’s struck out more than half the right-handed batters he’s faced thanks to an electric fastball-slider pairing. Burns will make his Triple-A debut on Thursday, but I don’t expect him to stay there for long. He’ll enter having amassed a 1.68 ERA and an 8.33 strikeout-to-walk ratio this season in his first 11 starts.
4. Bubba Chandler, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
I mentioned in the introduction that player development is seldom linear. Chandler is a good example of that. Coming into the season, I would have expected him to make his big-league debut by Flag Day. Instead, he’s mired in a frustrating stretch that most recently saw him walk four batters and strike out none in less than an inning of work. For context, more than 20% of his pitches in May were classified as non-competitive — that would be the highest percentage among qualifiers in the majors. Chander’s long-term outlook remains unchanged for me at this point: the arsenal is still really good, and I believe he’s athletic enough to make the necessary adjustments to get back on track.
3. Jesús Made, SS, Milwaukee Brewers
Made, who celebrated his 18th birthday in May, has spent the season in the Carolina League. His average opponent is nearly 2 ½ years his senior, but that hasn’t stopped him from hitting .284/.391/.432 with 18 extra-base hits and 24 stolen bases. (For reference, his .823 OPS is well above both the league and affiliate averages.) The age-relative performance is impressive enough on its own. Factor in that he’s a switch-hitting infielder with a chance to stick at shortstop and that there are genuine reasons to think he’ll develop at least plus power, and you have the makings of a likely future star.
2. Leo De Vries, SS, San Diego Padres
The broad strokes of Made’s profile apply to De Vries: both are switch-hitting shortstops with projectable power who are flourishing against much older competition. To wit, De Vries finds himself hitting .257/.352/.432 against High-A competition that’s more than four years older on average. He’s shown more strength from the left side of the plate, with four of his five home runs coming from that side. You can flip a coin — or, I suppose, a series of coins — between De Vries, Made, and Walcott, and whatever order you come up with is defensible.
1. Sebastian Walcott, SS, Texas Rangers
Walcott has been on the radar for a couple summers now, dating back to his assault on complex-league pitching in 2023 that made it clear he has middle-of-the-lineup potential (he homered seven times and notched 12 additional extra-base hits in 35 games as a 17-year-old). He’s since continued his ascent, spending this season in Double-A, where he’s batted .254/.353/.441 with eight home runs and 12 stolen bases in 55 games — all the while, I’ll note, improving his defense and reducing his strikeout rate by five percentage points on a year to year basis. Again, I don’t think there’s a wrong answer among the three teenage shortstops, but I’m giving Walcott the edge because of his obvious upside, his tangible improvement, and his overall performance to date.