#prospects

#prospects

The Rockies are starting from scratch, and new baseball ops leaders Paul DePodesta and Josh Byrnes have a long list of issues to address. It'll be a yearslong process, but in the short term, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post writes that it's "likely" the team will bring in some short-term help at first base or second base.

The order for the 2026 MLB Draft gets set on Tuesday December 9th, and the Braves are in position to potentially land a very juicy pick via the lottery thanks to their disappointing and injury-filled 2025 season. The lottery will be at 5:30 PM on MLB Network with the Braves having the ninth worst record, but the sixth best odds due to three teams being ineligible for a top pick due to having had top picks in the last few seasons consecutively.

That is not to say that young, emerging fighters are guaranteed a continual rise. The Nos. 1 and 2 fighters in the 2024 rankings made our list again this year, but they're well down the list. The expansion of our list to age 30 also allowed for the inclusion of a reigning UFC champion, a former titlist, a PFL champ and several who have competed for a belt.

The Dodgers already have four aces in their rotation and an exciting development project in Roki Sasaki. However, teams can never have enough starting pitching, so the Dodgers have no reason not to add another ace to the top of the rotation, especially when they can offer a competitive package and have the resources to keep him long-term, as well,

The Reds announced that they have added three players to the 40-man roster. Infielders Edwin Arroyo and Leo Balcazar had their contracts selected from Double-A Chattanooga, while outfielder Hector Rodriguez was selected from Triple-A Louisville. All three are now protected from the Rule 5 Draft. In addition, right-hander Carson Spiers was designated for assignment. The club's 40-man roster now stands at an even 40.

It's a logical target for the club. The outfield in Kansas City has been a weak spot for years. 2025 was no exception. The team's outfielders had a collective .225/.285/.348 batting line this year. That resulted in a 73 wRC+, indicating the club's outfield group was 27% worse than league average. That was easily the worst mark in the majors, with the Guardians' jardineros second-last with a wRC+ of 77.

The Washington Wizards have quietly positioned themselves as one of the most intriguing rebuilding teams in one offseason alone. Looking at the young pieces on the roster, headlined by Alex Sarr, Tre Johnson, Bilal Coulibaly and now Kyshawn George as the top prospects on the roster. And that's not even mentioning players like Bub Carrington, Tristan Vukcevic, Will Riley and newly acquired Cam Whitmore.

The catching position in Tampa has been a revolving door for many years now. Mike Zunino got the majority of the playing time back there in the 2019 to 2022 stretch but his performance tailed off in the final year of that span. In 2023, the Rays used Francisco Mejia, Christian Bethancourt and without any of those three taking firm hold of the job.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias to discuss... Elias's promotion from general manager to president of baseball operations (1:45) Why the Orioles underperformed in 2025 (3:30) The club's lack of investment in free agent pitching (5:25) The decision making about playing time for prospects when they don't find immediate big league success (9:20)