Does 2025 Top 100 Prospects List Herald A New Era Of Dominance For Pitchers?
Image credit: (Photo by George Kubas/Diamond Images via Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Bubba Chandler
Baseball America has ranked the Top 100 Prospects in baseball for 36 seasons, and this year’s edition is a notable one for pitchers.
It’s not the case that pitching prospects overwhelm the list, but a record number of them are held in high esteem heading into the 2025 season.
Six pitchers rank among the top 10 overall prospects. This has happened just four times in 36 seasons.
Position prospects tend to be favored on prospect rankings. Not only do they carry less injury risk, but the most talented ones contribute both offensively and defensively to team success.
But this year, a combination of pitchers who are more talented than usual and position players who are less bountiful than usual created an environment for pitching prospects to stand tall on the Top 100.
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Here are the Top 100 prospects lists to feature six pitchers ranked inside the top 10. Pitchers are listed with career Baseball-Reference WAR totals through 2024:
1992
1. Brien Taylor, LHP, Yankees (N/A)
2. Todd Van Poppel, RHP, Athletics (–0.3)
3. Roger Salkeld, RHP, Mariners (0.2)
5. Arthur Rhodes, LHP, Orioles (15.2)
9. Frankie Rodriguez, RHP, Red Sox (1.2)
10. Pedro Martinez, RHP, Dodgers (83.9)
2008
3. Joba Chamberlain, RHP, Yankees (7.6)
4. Clay Buchholz, RHP, Red Sox (16.8)
7. Clayton Kershaw, LHP, Dodgers (79.4)
8. Franklin Morales, LHP, Rockies (1.9)
9. Homer Bailey, RHP, Reds (6.2)
10. David Price, LHP, Rays (40.2)
2012
2. Matt Moore, LHP, Rays (8.4)
4. Yu Darvish, RHP, Rangers (33.1)
5. Julio Teheran, RHP, Braves (20.4)
8. Shelby Miller, RHP, Cardinals (8.9)
9. Trevor Bauer, RHP, D-backs (21.1)
10. Dylan Bundy, RHP, Orioles (7.5)
2025
1. Roki Sasaki, RHP, Dodgers
3. Jackson Jobe, RHP, Tigers
7. Bubba Chandler, RHP, Pirates
8. Chase Dollander, RHP, Rockies
9. Andrew Painter, RHP, Phillies
10. Noah Schultz, LHP, White Sox
Favoring pitchers at the top of the Top 100 Prospects has yielded high highs and low lows.
Pedro Martinez is in the Hall of Fame. Clayton Kershaw will join him one day. David Price and Yu Darvish had long, successful careers by any measure. Arthur Rhodes was a dominant reliever who pitched in 20 MLB seasons. Julio Teheran made a couple all-star teams, made six Opening Day starts for the Braves and is one of the most successful major leaguers ever from Colombia.
Even with those notable successes, a greater number of pitchers failed to live up to potential. Injuries are always a factor—Brien Taylor tore his shoulder capsule in a bar fight at the peak of prospect status and never reached MLB—but so, too, is the degree of difficulty inherent in becoming a trusted major league starting pitcher for multiple seasons.
Fun fact: The most common number of pitchers ranking inside the top 10 is two or three. In more than half of Top 100s—19 of 36—either two or three pitchers cracked the top 10 overall.
A pitcher ranks as the No. 1 prospect. This has happened seven times in 36 seasons.
In fewer than 20% of Top 100 Prospects rankings, a pitcher reigns at No. 1. Here are the seven pitching prospects to rank first overall on the Top 100, listed with career bWAR through 2024:
1990: Steve Avery, LHP, Braves (13.8)
1991: Todd Van Poppel, RHP, Athletics (–0.3)
1992: Brien Taylor, LHP, Yankees (N/A)
2000: Rick Ankiel, LHP, Cardinals (3.6 as a pitcher; 5.5 as an outfielder)
2002: Josh Beckett, RHP, Marlins (35.7)
2007: Daisuke Matsuzaka, RHP, Red Sox (9.4)
2025: Roki Sasaki, RHP, Dodgers (2025 MLB rookie)
A pitcher headed the Top 100 Prospects three times in the 1990s—with decidedly mixed results—and then twice in the early 2000s. But not since Josh Beckett in 2002 has a player without prior experience in a major league ranked as the No. 1 prospect in baseball.
The last two pitchers to head the Top 100 were Daisuke Matsuzaka in 2007 and Roki Sasaki this year. Both were established stars in the Japanese major leagues before they signed with MLB clubs.
Fun fact: Mariners righthander Felix Hernandez ranked No. 2 overall in 2005, making him the highest-ranking Latin American international free agent in Top 100 Prospects history. He is a product of Venezuela.
A few other IFAs have ranked top five overall: Braves lefthander Bruce Chen (Panama) in 1999, Dodgers lefthander Julio Urias (Mexico) in 2016 and Cardinals righthander Alex Reyes (Dominican Republic) in 2017 all ranked No. 4. Braves righthander Julio Teheran (Colombia) ranked No. 5 in 2011 and 2012.
Like Matsuzaka and Sasaki, Rangers righthander Yu Darvish (No. 4 in 2012) and Yankees righthander Masahiro Tanaka (No. 4 in 2014) were superstars in the Japanese major leagues before they signed with MLB clubs.
Despite all the pitching plaudits, it is not a deep Top 100 Prospects pitching class overall. Only one time in 36 seasons have fewer pitchers ranked in the top 100.
Six pitchers rank as top 10 overall prospects this year, which ties the high-water mark for a Top 100 Prospects class.
That surfeit of arm talent does not extend beyond the top 10, however. Just seven pitchers rank inside the top quartile this year. Just four previous Top 100s had fewer pitchers ranked inside the top 25.
A total of 14 pitchers rank in the top half of this year’s Top 100. Only one previous edition had fewer pitchers in the top 50.
Overall, the total number of pitchers ranked in this year’s Top 100 Prospects is 29. In only one season has that number been lower. In 2023, a total of 28 pitchers occupied spots on the Top 100.
Over the years, the median number of pitchers ranked inside the Top 100 is 43. This year’s total of 29 pitching prospects ranked among the Top 100 Prospects is 14 shy of the median value.
Fun fact: Pitcher representation in the Top 100 Prospects has shrunk over the year, which means that those spots inside the Top 100 are going to players at other positions.
The biggest beneficiaries in recent years have been position players with up-the-middle profiles. In particular: catchers, shortstops and second basemen have seldom been more represented on Top 100 Prospects lists.
The following chart details how catchers, shortstops and second basemen on the this year’s Top 100 Prospects list all approach the highest total for a single season in Top 100 history. All three positions are comfortably above the median value for Top 100 representation.
| Position | 2025 | Median | Most |
| Shortstop | 23 | 11 | 24 (2022) |
| Catcher | 11 | 6 | 13 (2009, 2023) |
| Second Base | 6 | 3 | 7 (1999) |
