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Detroit Tigers' Kevin McGonigle (7) hits a single during the ninth inning of an opening-day baseball game against the San Diego Padres Thursday, March 26, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
It’s been a whirlwind first week of the 2026 regular season, with the debut of the ABS system getting at least a share of top billing. First and foremost, however, the game has been galvanized by a bevy of exciting young rookie talents, particularly on the position player side.
More and more rookie standouts have gotten the opportunity to break camp with their respective clubs in recent seasons, due in part to draft pick rule amendments designed to keep teams from service time manipulation. Pirates’ phenom Konnor Griffin hasn’t reached the game’s top level just yet, but will soon. When he does, he’ll join the likes of the Tigers’ Kevin McGonigle, Cardinals’ JJ Wetherholt, Royals’ Carter Jensen, Orioles’ C/DH Samuel Basallo, Reds’ 1B Sal Stewart, Mets’ RF Carson Benge, Phillies’ CF Justin Crawford, Guardians’ RF Chase DeLauter, Orioles’ RF Dylan Beavers and Marlins’ RF Owen Caissie. On top of that deep group, add in a couple of Far Eastern imports in Blue Jays’ 3B Kazuma Okamoto and White Sox’ 1B Munetaka Murakami to complete the everyday player contingent.
Each season I compile a list of top minor league position player prospects, based on performance and age relative to level and league. It’s purely statistically based, with no adjustments for speed, defense, park, or other contextual factors. I generally take the rankings with a grain of salt, and simply use the list as a starting point from which to do more conventional analysis. The high rankings of this group deserve to be highlighted, however.
As deep as the group is overall, McGonigle deserves top billing. McGonigle isn’t physically imposing at 5’9", 187, but he’s the purest young hitter to come along in quite a while. The lefty bat will hit lefties and righties, hit to all fields, and eventually develop more than passable power. He could stick at SS, but could be an above average defensive 2B. He finished at the very top of my 2025 prospect list, and was #21 in 2024. Could he be Pete Rose meets Wade Boggs? Perhaps. He’s going to be a star level player for a long time.
Wetherholt is basically McGonigle Lite, grading out a little below him in all respects. The Cardinals dealt away Brendan Donovan - a really good player across the board - to clear room for him, and Wetherholt just might be a slight immediate upgrade. He too could stick as a SS defensively, but the presence of Masyn Winn closes that door. He should rack up .280, 15-20 HR seasons as a strong average regular for a decade-plus. He ranked #32 and #171 on my 2025 and 2024 minor league lists.
Jensen has a perfect glide path in his first full MLB season, as the presence of Salvador Perez limits the catching load that he will have to carry, and offers a veteran presence with tons of experience to draw upon. He’s a bat-before-glove receiver but still projects around average defensively. A lefty bat with a .280, 15-20 HR upside and decent catching skills is a very desirable skill set. Jensen steadily moved up my minor league list from #108 in 2023 to #68 in 2024 to #8 in 2025.
Basallo just might be the biggest boom-bust prospect among this group. He has big time power potential and projects as an average range receiver, but the presence of better defender Adley Rutschman will limit his reps behind the plate in the short term. That combination of circumstances creates some uncertainty re: his ongoing development. I was in Seattle during the Jesus Montero years, so that’s of some concern. Still, the bat is real, and I’m one power outburst away from fully jumping on board. He ranked #9, #18 and #13 on my 2025, 2024 and 2023 lists.
Stewart has hit the ground running in the early going as the Reds’ full-time 1B. His bat is his best tool, and he should eventually develop 20 HR range power. He’s got plenty of 2B and 3B experience in his background, and could become an above average 1B defender. That said, I’d love the bat more if he were playing one of those other positions. He projects as just an average range offensive 1B. Stewart ranked #11, #51 and #34 on my 2025, 2024 and 2023 lists.
Benge unexpectedly moved into the Mets’ everyday lineup when Mike Tauchman was injured at the end of spring training. He’s shown some flashes in the early going, but might not be quite ready. His tools projects as average to strong average across the board, but there might be a bit too much swing and miss at present. He’s only had one full season of minor league seasoning, and ranked #31 on my 2025 list.
Crawford hasn’t been ranked as highly as many of the others, at least by the mainstream prognosticators, but has fared well according to my method, ranking #45, #26 and #37 in 2025, 2024 and 2023. It’s an old-school speed, contact and defense package here, with relatively little power projection. Think a slightly less explosive version of his father, Carl. He’s looked good in the early going for Philly, and it’s been needed as their vets are off to a slow start collectively.
DeLauter has been on fire in the early going, rebuilding his prospect pedigree after a couple of injury-plagued seasons. His swing is a bit unorthodox, his other tools are in the average range, but he has a knack for squaring up the baseball. He ranked #20 on my 2023 minor league list before falling to #236 in 2024 and #175 in 2025. He’s not the monster he appears to be at present, but should be at least an average offensive corner outfielder.
Beavers is likely the least exciting prospect of this group, but he showed his mettle at the MLB level in 2025 after a spate of injuries led to a premature promotion. His patience and power potential kept him afloat, and his ability to play all three outfield spots should enable him to carve out a niche. He ranked #78, #243 and #27 on my 2025, 2024 and 2023 minor league lists.
Caissie has been a revelation in the early going for the Marlins. A high school draftee from Canada, he had average range tools except for an intriguing power upside. He’s getting a real opportunity after being acquired from the Cubs in the Edward Cabrera deal, and is making the most of it. I’ve heard Shawn Green comparisons. He was ranked #55, #71 and #11 on my 2025, 2024 and 2023 minor league lists.
Okamoto and Murakami never played in the minor leagues and thus never qualified for my minor league lists. They have starkly different profiles, Okamoto is a hit-before-power guy and Murakami a power-before-hit guy. I’ll take Okamoto’s profile every day of the week, but when a Murakami type clicks, watch out. He’s clicking so far.
As for Griffin (who ranked #7 on my 2025 minor league list), he’ll join these guys soon, and is likely an even better prospect than McGonigle. He’s not quite the same level of hitter, but his speed, defense and power potential elevate him. He’ll be an all-around star at either SS or 3B.
I also compile a list of top minor league starting pitching prospects, who I’m not going to go into with any degree of depth here. Among rookie pitchers presently holding rotation spots, the Blue Jays’ Trey Yesavage (#7 on my 2025 list), Pirates’ Bubba Chandler (#59, #6 and #120 in 2025, 2024 and 2023), Red Sox’ Connelly Early (#54 and #66 in 2025 and 2024) and Phillies’ Andrew Painter (#1 in 2022, then injured until ranking #104 in 2025) all fared quite well on my list. On the other hand, the Mets’ Nolan McLean (#135 and #184 in 2025 and 2024) didn’t fare as well as the industry consensus. The Far Eastern import rookie pitcher to watch is the Astros’ Tatsuya Imai.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
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