10 Players Primed To Rise In Our 2025 Top 100 MLB Prospects Ranking

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Image credit: C Thayron Liranzo (Photo by Bill Mitchell)

Baseball America’s initial Top 100 for 2025 has been released. Once the season begins, it will go through plenty of changes. As soon as leather starts popping and lumber starts cracking, players will begin making their cases to move higher and higher on the list. 

Last year, this article included White Sox lefthander Noah Schultz, Mariners shortstop Colt Emerson, Twins outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez, Pirates righthander Bubba Chandler and Padres shortstop Leodalis De Vries. All five of those players currently rank within the top 20 of the current list.  

Any player is capable of making the developmental gains needed to rise higher on the Top 100, but these 10 players have the strongest chances. 

Sebastian Walcott, SS, Rangers

Current Rank: 21

Walcott was neck and neck with Kumar Rocker for the top spot in the Rangers’ system. This time next year, he should be in the conversation for the top spot in sport. The dynamic shortstop’s development path has been unusual, an adjective which also applies to his tool set. Walcott is an athletic defender with a whippy swing that produces shocking power for a player who would have been entering his high school draft year were he American. He was one of just eight minor leaguers who finished the season with 30 doubles, 10 home runs and 25 stolen bases. He was the youngest of that octet. 

Jaison Chourio, OF, Guardians

Current Rank: 32

By now, you’re familiar with budding Brewers superstar Jackson Chourio. A year from now, his younger brother might be hot on his heels. The center fielder showed immaculate knowledge of the strike zone in an injury-shortened year at Low-A Lynchburg, where he finished with far more walks (86) than strikeouts (69) over the course of 432 plate appearances. He has a knack for finding the barrel, produces big-time exit velocity and has the plus speed to aptly man center field. The speed might tick down as he matures and adds strength, though it might be worth it if comes with more power. 

Thomas White, LHP Marlins

Current Rank: 33

White ranks behind only White Sox fireballer Noah Schultz among lefthanded pitching prospects. He earned that rep by delivering an outstanding first full professional season, which he split between Miami’s Class A affiliates. He announced his presence early with a standout performance in Miami’s Spring Breakout game, then performed well enough early to earn a berth in the Futures Game. Along the way, he whiffed 120, walked 38 and ascended to the top spot in the Marlins’ system. White should reach the upper levels in 2025. If he passes that test, he has the stuff to nestle nicely toward the front of a rotation led by Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez. 

Angel Genao, SS, Guardians

Current Rank: 40

In 2022, Genao’s name was among the buzziest in the Arizona Complex League. His ascent stalled in 2023 as he recovered from knee surgery, but in 2024 he looked rejuvenated. The whispers from the backfields started in spring training, and his performance in the regular season was illuminating. He split his season between the Class A levels and showed no dropoff after the promotion. His .330 batting average with the fifth-best in the minor leagues, and his hits (148) and doubles (38) were each among the top 10 in the sport. His next steps will come at the upper levels. If he succeeds, he could vault into the game’s elite.  

Luke Keaschall, 2B, Twins

Current Rank: 46 

Though his season was cut short by Tommy John surgery, Keaschall showed enough to push for a spot in Minnesota sometime in 2025. He’s a cerebral hitter who has plenty of bat-to-ball skills and should hit for at least average power, assuming everything reverts to normal after he’s recovered. The Arizona State alum is an above-average runner and moved around the diamond plenty in 2024, seeing time at first base, second base and the outfield. Where he winds up will also be influenced by how much his arm strength is affected by the surgery. If all goes well, he could lock up the Twins’ everyday second base job in the coming years. 

Travis Sykora, RHP, Nationals

Current Rank: 59

The Nationals gave Sykora more than double the recommended slot value when they picked him in the third round of the 2023 draft. So far, the investment has proved wise. The fireballer blitzes hitters with a double-plus fastball and a changeup and slider that each grade as future above-average pitches. His control is only average, but he pounded the strike zone and flummoxed hitters over the second half of the Carolina League season and into the playoffs. Sykora’s tangible traits are also amplified by an aggressive mound presence that comes through with every fastball that sizzles off his fingertips. 

Thayron Liranzo, C, Tigers

Current Rank: 69

Liranzo was part of the two-player package the Dodgers used to get Jack Flaherty from Detroit in the middle of the season. Before the deal, Liranzo was only showing flashes of his potential at High-A Great Lakes. After the trade, the script flipped and he became an offensive force. With West Michigan, Liranzo, the switch-hitting bopper posted a .315/.470/.562 line with five home runs and more walks (26) than strikeouts (20). His hot streak continued in the Arizona Fall League, where he posted an 1.158 OPS and popped two more home runs. Liranzo has the offensive skills to fit in the middle of a lineup, and sticking behind the plate would push him well up the board.

Demetrio Crisantes, 2B, D-backs

Current Rank: 84

Crisantes entered the season as an unknown and closed it on a molten hot streak. He finished the regular year with an on-base streak of 57 games, just nine games shy of the stretch put together by Dodgers all-star outfielder Mookie Betts between the 2013 and 2014 season. Crisantes is as pure of a hitter as you’ll find in the minor leagues. He was one of five players 20 or younger to finish the year with 20 doubles, 30 stolen bases and fewer than 70 strikeouts. Crisantes’ defense is a bigger question thanks to arm strength that has waned and waxed thanks to a pair of elbow surgeries. Still, his abilities in the batter’s box should lead to a future as an MLB regular.

Trevor Harrison, RHP, Rays

Current Rank: 90

Harrison exerted his will on hitters in the Florida Complex League until July 4, when the Rays showed mercy and moved him to Low-A. His control got a tick worse against more seasoned hitters, but his strikeout numbers remained nearly identical. The righthander from Florida’s fastball and changeup each grade as potentially plus offerings, and his changeup is only a tick below those heights. His control projects as average. Harrison’s ceiling is as high as any pitcher in Tampa Bay’s season, and he could continue scratching at it in 2025. 

Eduardo Tait, C, Phillies

Current Rank: 93

Tait signed with the Phillies in 2023 for a small bonus and immediately set to work detonating the competition in the Dominican Summer League in a season played almost exclusively before he turned 17 years old. He took a little while to get adjusted to the Florida Complex League, but by the time the Florida heat reached full blast he had returned to making the kind of contact that gives pitchers whiplash. Tait finished his time in the FCL with six home runs, then earned a promotion to Low-A to close the year. He upped the ante under the lights and smashed five more home runs in just 28 games with Clearwater. Whether Tait will catch long-term is an open question, but his bat is very, very real.

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