This year we celebrate the 30th anniversary of our first Top 100 Prospects ranking in 1990. We hope it will come close to matching the pedigree of that 1990 list, which now includes a pair of Hall of Famers in Frank Thomas (No. 29) and Larry Walker (No. 41). This year’s ranking is led by Rays shortstop Wander Franco, who is the fifth shortstop to rank No. 1. The others include Hall of Famer Chipper Jones (1993) and Alex Rodriguez (1995). The most recent was 2016 National League Rookie of the Year Corey Seager. Jurickson Profar (2013) is the other.
Franco turns 19 on March 1 and is the second-youngest No. 1 overall prospect ever, bested only by Braves center fielder Andruw Jones, who was still 18 on Opening Day 1996.
Franco also becomes the third Rays prospect to rank No. 1 overall. Outfielders Josh Hamilton (2001) and Delmon Young (2006) are the others.
We improved our Top 100 Prospects display this year by including 2019 values for average exit velocity for batters and fastball velocity for pitchers, both in miles per hour.
Scouting grades represent future potential on the 20-80 scale, where 50 is average. For batters, we include grades for the five traditional tools: hitting (HIT), power (POW), speed (RUN), fielding (FLD) and throwing (ARM).
For pitchers we grade their pitches—fastball (FB), curveball (CB), slider (SL), changeup (CHG), cutter (CUT), split-finger fastball (SPLIT)—as well as their control (CTL).
All ages are players’ baseball ages in 2020.
1. WANDER FRANCO RAYS, SS ETA: 2020 | Exit Velo: 90 | Age: 19 HIT: 80 | POW: 60 | RUN: 50 | FLD: 55 | ARM: 50
Denne historien er fra March 2020-utgaven av Baseball America.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra March 2020-utgaven av Baseball America.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Wood Has Towering Upside- Nationals rookie James Wood also stands 6-foot-7 and also has game-changing power.
Aaron Judge and Oneil Cruz are 6-foot7 sluggers who stand out for their power in this year’s MLB Best Tools voting. Wood spent half of this season with Triple-A Rochester before making his MLB debut on July 1. While he was in the International League, he captured managers’ attention. Wood unanimously won Best Power Prospect and also claimed Most Exciting Player in a survey of league skippers. Wood hit .353/.463/.595 with 10 home runs in 52 games for Rochester. His .242 isolated slugging was the best for a player 21 or younger at Triple-A this season.
ROAD BLOCK?
Scholarship expansion puts mid-majors at a major disadvantage on the road to Omaha
ROYALS REVIVAL
A revamped and rejuvenated farm system has Kansas City ready to rebound
SUMMER STANDOUTS
The top prospects in summer college leagues are poised to impact the 2025 draft
FLORIDA COMPLEX LEAGUE TOP 10
Last year’s Florida Complex League prospect crop has been beset by lengthy injuries to many of its top players, including Yankees pitchers Henry Lalane and Carlos Lagrange, Mets infielder Marco Vargas and Red Sox catcher Johanfran Garcia.
IN WITH THE NEW
The 2024 draft is in the books. The trade deadline is history.
WALCOTT BLASTS OFF
It took some time for Rangers shortstop Sebastian Walcott to find his footing at High-A Hickory.
A RECORD NIGHT FOR COLLEGIANS
Four key takeaways from the 2024 draft
K.C.MASTERPIECE
Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. wins games for the Royals with his bat, glove, speed and baseball IQ. He might be the most tooled-up player in the game.
HOW THE MAJORS HAVE CHANGED FOR YOUNG PLAYERS
When negotiating the 2022 Collective Bargaining Agreement, the MLB Players Association prioritized the earning power of young major league players, especially young stars.
