15 MLB Prospects Outside The Top 100 Who Have Stood Out Early In 2025

Luis Peña, SS, Brewers

Low-A Carolina boasts one of the most talented lineups in MiLB to begin 2025. While top prospect Jesus Made is the headliner, so far Peña has been the star at the plate. Over his first eight games, Peña is hitting .358/.435/.528 with a home run and 12 stolen bases on a 14 attempts. Peña brings excellent plate skills, showing advanced bat-to-ball ability, strong swing decisions and burgeoning power. Year over year, his exit velocities have shown a significant early jump, as his 90th percentile EV is up more than five miles per hour.

The biggest knock on Peña’s profile is his lack of fielding ability. He’s had five starts at shortstop this year and made four errors. He’s not a shortstop long term, but cleaning up his actions and fielding ability will be a point of emphasis as he advances. 

Brandon Clarke, LHP, Red Sox

The Red Sox system has an embarrassment of riches. While the strong positional core is beginning to matriculate to the major league level, the system’s lower levels are flush with pitching talent. So far, the standout of this group has been Clarke, a 2024 fifth-round pick.

The lefthander made his professional debut last week and tossed four perfect innings, sitting down all 12 batters he faced. Clarke’s stuff is elite, as he sat 97-99 mph on a fastball that touches 100 mph at peak. While his velocity is eye-catching, it’s his slider that steals headlines. The pitch is a sweeper in the high 80s to low 90s with 9-11 inches of movement. It’s a rare combination of power and sweep, and he showed strong command of the pitch in his debut. It’s Low-A and Clarke has a history of command issues, but if he’s throwing strikes, he’s going to be a fast riser this season.

A.J. Ewing, OF, Mets

When the Mets selected Ewing in the supplemental fourth round in 2023, he was a toolsy shortstop with some questions around how he’d progress. Ewing shifted to the outfield pretty much full time upon signing, and he’s shown well after the move to the grass. To begin 2025, Ewing is seeing beachballs at the plate. Over his first nine games with Low-A St. Lucie, he is 14-for-33 with four extra-base hits and six stolen bases. He’s shown significant power growth this season, as he had multiple games in the first full week of the season in which he hit three balls in play at 100+ mph.

Ewing faces one of the trickiest park environments for lefthanded hitters in the minors upon promotion to Brooklyn. In all likelihood, his stat line will take some hits due to a difficult right field, but his overall abilities should make him one of the Mets’ big risers to begin the season. 

Cristian Hernandez, SS, Cubs

Hernandez received a club-record signing bonus of $3 million in January 2021 but struggled for a few seasons before taking a step forward in repeating Low-A last year. This season, Hernandez is off to a hot start with High-A South Bend, hitting .328/.400/.522 over 17 games with a 15.7% strikeout rate and 9.2% walk rate. Hernandez is employing a far more aggressive approach, as his swing rate is up 25% from last year, resulting in more power over the first few weeks. With the ability to play shortstop long term and improving game power, Hernandez is once again a relevant name outside the Top 100.   

Robby Snelling, LHP, Marlins

Sometimes, what’s old is new again. In 2023, Snelling was BA’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year and ranked in the middle of the Top 100. After difficult 2024, however, the lefthander fell off the list. Traded to the Marlins at last year’s deadline, Snelling has recaptured his old form with Double-A Pensacola. He has induced whiffs at a higher rate (15.6% swinging strike rate over the first month) while generating a high rate of ground balls (56.6%). The return of Snelling’s command and his best fastball and curveball has led to an April renaissance. Continued strong performance could vault him back into the Top 100.

Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Diamondbacks

Drafted in the supplemental first round in 2024 out of Kentucky, Waldschmidt was a divisive player among scouts and analysts, as he’s a strong athlete with an unusual swing who posted solid results in two SEC seasons. So far in 2025, Waldschmidt is off to a fast start with High-A Hillsboro, as he’s hitting .357/.513/.625 with four home runs and 15 walks to 16 strikeouts. It’s been a stellar early showing at the plate, as he’s displaying patience, strong bat-to-ball skills (6.8% swinging strike rate) and power. Waldschmidt also has a knack for hitting the ball to his pull side while avoiding higher rates of popups. So far, he looks like a player barreling toward the Top 100. 

Braylon Doughty, RHP, Guardians

The Guardians held the top overall pick in the 2024 draft, as well as four picks inside the first 100 selections. They used their pool money to land a trio of high school righthanders in Joey Oakie, Chase Mobley and Doughty, the latter of whom received the biggest bonus and was the only member of the trio to break camp with a full-season affiliate.

So far, Doughty has made four starts, showing solid stuff and above-average command while striking out 30.8% of batters and walking 7.7%. His ERA of 4.30 is well above his FIP of 2.09. Doughty throws a four-seam fastball at 91-93 mph with around 17-18 inches of induced vertical break and slight cut. His primary secondary is a low-80s curveball with vicious two-plane bite. He’ll show a changeup, as well, providing Doughty the foundations of an above-average three-pitch mix. He’ll need to add more power to his arsenal in the coming years, but Doughty has a strong pitchability floor to stand on. 

Braylon Payne, OF, Brewers

Some considered Payne to be a bit of a surprise pick to Milwaukee at 17th overall last July. So far, the selection looks like a shrewd move by the Brewers. A member of aforementioned Carolina Mudcats lineup boasting Made, Peña, Eric Bitonti and Josh Adamczewski, Payne’s star has also shone bright, as he’s hitting .305/.435/.508 with six extra base hits and 11 stolen bases. Payne is a tooled-up lefthanded-hitting outfielder with projection remaining in his frame. He’s a double-plus runner who’s showing a more polished hit tool than expected to go with surprising thump. Payne has the type of toolsy, up-the-middle profile that often curries favor from front offices during Top 100 feedback. 

Aroon Escobar, 2B, Phillies

Escobar has been a name generating buzz dating back to the early days of spring training. So far, he’s done nothing to dull that chatter, as he’s pulverized Florida State League pitching to the tune of a .386/.500/.684 line with nine extra base hits and 39 total bases. Escobar has continually shown an ability to catch the barrel at optimal angles, allowing him to do damage against a variety of pitches. It’s an advanced hit tool with feel for the strike zone and pullside power. Escobar is undersized and not the sleekest defender, but he’s a high-energy player who has enough hands and actions to stick at second. So far, the 20-year-old Escobar is surging alongside other top young infielders across minor league leaderboards. 

Connelly Early, LHP, Red Sox

Showing increased velocity, Early’s results have been positive during the first month of 2025. He has made three appearances for Portland, allowing three hits, three walks and one earned run over 10.2 innings. Early’s increased velocity and stuff across his pitch mix was on full display during spring training, and he’s continued to trend in a positive direction since. He has elite feel for his changeup, showing the ability to manipulate it into two different shapes: one hard and another around four mph softer. He’s developed a sweeper and scrapped his high-70s curveball while also mixing a harder cut slider in the mid-to-high 80s.

A lefthander with above-average velocity, a plus changeup and a pair of breaking ball shapes is an intriguing starting pitching prospect. If Early can keep up his strong performance, he could soon be within Top 100 consideration. 

Slade Caldwell, OF, Diamondbacks

A highly-decorated high school star and fierce competitor on the diamond, Caldwell has hit the ground running in his professional debut. Assigned to Low-A Visalia, Caldwell is hitting .347/.536/.592 over 15 games with nine extra-base hits and 29 total bases. He’s walked in 24.6% of his plate appearances and boasts a ridiculous 202 wRC+ over the first few weeks. Caldwell’s 6.1% swinging strike rate tells me his high strikeout rate at the present is likely to drop. He’s stinging line drives all over the field and is using his speed and instincts to put pressure on opposing teams. Caldwell boasts a quintessential leadoff hitter profile with the upside to be dynamic at peak. 

Michael Forret, RHP, Orioles

Over four starts this season, Forret has dominated High-A competition, striking out 26 batters in 19.2 innings while allowing seven hits, six walks and two runs total. Forret mixes six different pitch types in four-seam and two-seam fastballs, a gyro slider, a sweeper, a kick changeup and a splitter. His ability to throw the kitchen sink at opposing batters and attack a variety of zones keeps the opposition off balance. While Forret doesn’t have elite velocity or metrics, he has enough power and pitch options to carve up hitters. 

C.J. Kayfus, 1B, Guardians

There may not be a hitter on the planet as hot as Kayfus, who’s slashing .407/.514/.661 with four doubles, four triples and a home run over his first 16 games for Double-A Akron. Kayfus consistently catches flush barrels, allowing him to get the most out of his average raw power. It’s his barrel wizardry that allows him to be a polished contact hitter with above-average on-base skills while still showing strong power production. At the moment, Kayfus boasts the best overall stat line in the minor leagues and, after a breakout debut in 2024, he has a strong Top 100 case. 

Jhostynxon Garcia, OF, Red Sox

“The Password” has been the answer this season to questions about who’s next line among the Red Sox positional corps. Over 14 games with Double-A Portland, Garcia is hitting .314/.419/.451 with five extra-base hits. His approach has significantly improved, as he’s turned away from his overzealous and swing-happy approach of the past. The added patience has decreased his swing-and-miss and bolstered his walk rate. Garcia is blessed with plus raw power and strong bat-to-ball skills, so improved approach could unlock a new level of production in 2025. 

Caleb Bonemer, SS, White Sox

It’s been a long time since the White Sox have drafted an impact hitter. So long that 31-year-old Tim Anderson might be the last homegrown Chicago draftee to meet expectations as a major leaguer. While it’s early in Bonemer’s career, the 2024 second-round pick offers White Sox fans a glimpse of hope that another could finally be on the way.

Hitting for power while showing average plate skills, Bonemer is currently putting together some of the best underlying data in Low-A. His exit velocity data is well above-average for his age and level, as evidenced by a 106 mph 95th percentile EV. Beyond the underlying data, Bonemer is putting together some good, old-fashioned production on the field, too. Entering Friday he is hitting .322/.447/.542 with nine extra-base hits and seven stolen bases. Bonemer has a well-rounded skillset with the ability to add strength and more power in the coming years. Could Bonemer be the White Sox great hope? Time will tell.