Prospects we want to watch in 2024 Arizona Fall League

We love the Arizona Fall League and can’t wait to see several of baseball’s best prospects face off against each other. The 30-game schedule begins Oct. 7, with the Fall Stars Game slated for Nov. 9 and the championship game for Nov. 16.

Since the developmental circuit began play in 1992, it has produced more than 3,000 big leaguers. AFL alumni include Hall of Famers Roy Halladay, Todd Helton, Derek Jeter and Mike Piazza, as well as future Cooperstown inductees Albert Pujols, Max Scherzer and Mike Trout. Current stars who competed in the Fall League include Ronald Acuña Jr., Mookie Betts, Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Francisco Lindor and Corey Seager.

Rosters won’t be announced for another week or two, so we’re happy to lend a helping hand. We’ve assembled a list of prospects we hope to see in the AFL in case clubs need some suggestions. Our group of 30 candidates — one from each organization — features 17 Top 100 prospects and four first-round picks from the 2024 Draft.

Blue Jays: Kendry Rojas, LHP (No. 12)
Rojas was out of the High-A Vancouver rotation for nearly three months due to a shoulder issue but has dominated since his July 9 return with a 2.16 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 50 innings. His 62 2/3 frames on the year are still below his career single-season high of 84, making the AFL a prime place to make up for lost time, and his above-average fastball and slider could be promising weapons in such a loaded circuit.

Orioles: Samuel Basallo, C/1B (No. 2/MLB No. 9)
This might be more wish list than realistic thinking, given that the 20-year-old has played 117 games as of Wednesday and reached Triple-A. But getting some at-bats in Arizona could help him work on lessons he’s learned while scuffling a bit in Triple-A (.553 OPS) so that his bat can be ready to make an impact in Baltimore in 2025. Even catching bullpens in the AFL can be useful for a young backstop, too.

Rays: Chandler Simpson, OF (No. 4)
The AFL is a place where elite skills should be on display, and Simpson has two of them with his hit and run tools as the Minor League leader in average (.356) and stolen bases (102) between High-A and Double-A in 2024. Scouts would flock to see what kind of havoc his wheels could wreak in the desert and to get a better idea if he can keep hitting for such a high average with such little pop. Keep this in mind: the AFL record for steals is 24, set by Rick Holifield in 1994.

Red Sox: Jhostynxon Garcia, OF (No. 12)
Signed for $350,000 out of Venezuela in 2019, Garcia totaled 11 homers in his first three pro seasons before exploding for 23 while slashing .291/.360/.544 with 17 steals between two Class A stops and Double-A this summer. He has solid power and arm strength, flashes similar speed and fits best in right field.

Yankees: Spencer Jones, OF (No. 2)
Jones offers an intriguing combination of size (6-foot-6, 235 pounds), athleticism and power, but he ranks second in the Minors in strikeouts (198) and could use some more at-bats to work on his contact issues. The 2022 first-rounder from Vanderbilt is slashing .259/.336/.450 with 16 homers and 25 steals in Double-A.

Guardians: Angel Genao, INF (No. 5/MLB No. 87)
We can hope for second baseman Travis Bazzana, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 Draft, but Genao is more realistic. He’s an advanced switch-hitter and versatile defender with a high baseball IQ. Signed for $1.175 million out of the Dominican Republic in 2021, he slashed .330/.379/.499 with 10 homers and 25 steals between Single-A and High-A.

Royals: Gavin Cross, OF (No. 6)
This wouldn’t be Cross’ first rodeo in the Valley. The 2022 No. 9 overall Draft pick played eight games for Surprise last year but was limited by a hamstring injury. He’s been more effective in his second full season with Double-A Northwest Arkansas, slashing .261/.342/.428 with 15 homers and 30 steals in 101 games, but has been slowed again by recent back discomfort.

Tigers: Jackson Jobe, RHP (No. 2/MLB No. 6)
Another potential Fall League repeat, Jobe has been limited to 82 2/3 innings this season because of a left hamstring strain that cost him six weeks during May and June, but he has continued to flash why he’s the game’s top pitching prospect with a 1.96 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 26.8 percent K rate in that span. He was just promoted to Triple-A Toledo, lengthening his season some, but if the 22-year-old — and his mid-90s fastball, plus-plus slider and plus changeup — were to get Fall League time, that would be a chance to surpass the 100-inning threshold for the first time in the pros.

Twins: Walker Jenkins, OF (No. 1/MLB No. 2)
Why stop now? Jenkins just got nudged up to Double-A to finish off the season, impressive for any high school draftee from the year prior. It’s even more remarkable given that he missed nearly two months with a hamstring injury to start the year and didn’t reach full-season ball until June. As a result, he’s well shy of a full season of reps at the plate, making his left-handed bat a prime candidate for extra time in the AFL.

White Sox: Grant Taylor, RHP (No. 6)
The White Sox selected Taylor in 2023’s second round even though he missed Louisiana State’s national championship season following Tommy John surgery. He returned to the mound this May but was shut down a month later with a right lat strain. He regained his stuff (a fastball that climbs into the upper 90s, a sharp cutter and a pair of solid breaking balls) while posting a 32/2 K/BB ratio and 2.33 ERA in 19 1/3 innings, mostly in Single-A.

Angels: Christian Moore, 2B (No. 2/MLB No. 75)
Moore’s meniscus issue might mean the Angels want to err on the side of caution and shut him down. And between the University of Tennessee’s championship run and him getting to Double-A in his summer debut, Moore has played a lot of quality baseball. But … it sure would be fun to see him swing the bat a little more so that he’s ready for the big leagues next year in an organization that loves getting its Draft picks to Los Angeles in a hurry.

Astros: Brice Matthews, SS/3B (No. 3)
Matthews has missed six weeks with lower-back issues this summer, so the AFL would give him a chance to recapture some lost at-bats. The 2023 first-rounder from the University of Nebraska combines plus raw power and speed and has slashed .286/.407/.528 with 15 homers and 30 steals in 68 games between four levels in his first full pro season.

A’s: Nick Kurtz, 1B (No. 2/MLB No. 42)
This is another 2024 first-rounder currently on the shelf, but we can dream, right? Kurtz went No. 4 overall and went from Single-A Stockton to Double-A Midland, posting a combined 1.283 OPS before landing on the injured list with a hamstring injury. He was dinged up at Wake Forest this year, too, and some added ABs with Mesa could put help him on the fast path to the big leagues.

Mariners: Colt Emerson, SS/3B (No. 1/MLB No. 27)
There are a few excellent options here and we wouldn’t be upset if Emerson joins Cole Young and Lazaro Montes in Peoria this fall. But if we can only have one, let’s take the top prospect. The 2023 first-round pick also missed a good chunk of time with an oblique injury early and a foot fracture later in the year, so the Fall League would provide the left-handed-hitting infielder extra time to prep him for a move to Double-A next year.

Rangers: Sebastian Walcott, SS (No. 1/MLB No. 35)
After leading the High-A South Atlantic League in extra-base hits (50) and total bases (192) while slashing .261/.342/.443 as its youngest regular (age 18), Walcott went 1-for-4 with a double in his Double-A debut Tuesday night. His impressive combination of tools (plus power, solid speed, well-above-average arm strength) earned him a $3.2 million bonus out of the Bahamas in 2023.

Braves: JR Ritchie, RHP (No. 7)
The Braves took Ritchie out of the Washington (state) high school ranks No. 35 overall in 2022 and went a bit over slot to sign him, but they didn’t really get any return on that investment in 2023 when he needed Tommy John surgery after just four starts. He made a solid return to the mound this year, making his way to High-A and amassing just under 50 innings of work. Seeing his four-pitch mix while he adds to this total could set him up nicely for a full, unfettered 2025 campaign.

Marlins: Kemp Alderman, OF (No. 13)
The 6-foot-3, 250-pound Alderman features some of the best raw power in the Minors but has been hampered by a broken hamate that cost him the first two months of the season. The 2023 second-rounder from Mississippi also comes with plus arm strength and has slashed .248/.316/.393 with seven homers in 72 games between four levels.

Mets: Jett Williams, SS/OF (No. 2/MLB No. 53)
The 2022 14th overall pick got 11 games into this season with Double-A Binghamton before suffering a right wrist injury that required surgery. He didn’t return to the Rumble Ponies’ lineup until Aug. 30 and has struggled out of the gate (6-for-31, 16 K’s), though part of that is getting the rust off. When healthy, Williams can be an on-base and stolen-base machine, and he could get back to that foundation with an extended Fall League sample.

Nationals: Cade Cavalli, RHP (No. 8)
This was meant to be the year Cavalli got back on the mound after undergoing Tommy John surgery in spring 2023, but a bout with the flu and “dead arm” has limited him to only three Minor League outings (none since June 21). In the most recent update, the 2020 first-rounder threw 20 pitches in a Sept. 3 bullpen session, and the Nationals have expressed a desire to have him face hitters before the year is out. The AFL could provide the perfect opportunity for that.

Phillies: Andrew Painter, RHP (No. 2/MLB No. 31)
We’ll be honest here: we don’t know exactly how to rank Painter right now given that he hasn’t thrown a competitive pitch since September 2022. While he was shelved with an elbow injury early in 2023, he didn’t have Tommy John surgery until July of that year. Still only 21, he’s been throwing and recently faced hitters at the Phillies’ complex, touching 99 mph. Letting him shake off some rust in Arizona sounds like a fantastic idea as he hopes to reclaim his role as one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball.

Brewers: Logan Henderson, RHP (No. 10)
Henderson was circled as a breakout candidate entering the year before a left oblique injury delayed his season debut until May 9. He’s punched out 100 batters in 77 1/3 innings across four levels (primarily Double-A and Triple-A), and there might be room for more work given that limited innings load. His low-80s changeup continues to be one of the best in the system and could work wonders in the AFL.

Cardinals: Tink Hence, RHP (No. 2/MLB No. 48)
Hence, another potential AFL returnee from 2022, missed most of July with shoulder and chest tightness and has been back to dominance with Double-A Springfield since his return (1.52 ERA, 35 strikeouts in 23 2/3 innings), albeit while not having pitched more than four innings in a start. The 22-year-old is at 78 1/3 frames on the season, 17 2/3 fewer than he threw in 2023, and as he brings his special four-pitch mix closer to the Majors, he should be in a position to expand his work load and make up for the lost time.

Cubs: Cam Smith, 3B (No. 7/MLB No. 100)
The 14th overall pick in July after an All-America season at Florida State, Smith has a promising combination of hitting ability and power, and also shows off a strong arm while getting the job done at third base. He homered in six straight games at Single-A and has raked in his pro debut, slashing .323/.415/.646 with seven homers in 28 games across three levels.

Pirates: Termarr Johnson, 2B (No. 3/MLB No. 78)
For the second straight year, the Pirates’ top pick in the 2022 Draft got off to a slow start, but like he did a year ago, Johnson clicked as the season wore on, particularly in June and July. He earned a bump up to Double-A late in August and it’s been a bit of a rough transition out of the gate, so some AFL plate appearances could help him avoid another slow start back in Altoona in 2025.

Reds: Edwin Arroyo, SS (No. 3/MLB No. 67)
This one is a gimme because it’s already been reported that he is heading to the AFL. A torn labrum that required surgery in his non-throwing shoulder cost him the 2024 regular season, but he was progressing nicely during his rehab and is expected to be a full-time participant in the AFL. Arroyo reached Double-A in 2023 while playing nearly all of the season at age 19.

D-backs: Yu-Min Lin, LHP (No. 7)
Who wants to see some funk at Salt River Fields? Lin missed six weeks after being struck in the face by a foul ball in late April, and he enters Wednesday with 91 2/3 innings on the season, nearly 30 fewer than his 2023 total. The 5-foot-11 southpaw doesn’t pop for his velocity (sitting around 90-92 mph with his fastball) but sports a deep repertoire, with a 79-81 mph changeup and mid-70s curveball that sports high whiff rates.

Dodgers: Maddux Bruns, LHP (No. 18)
If Bruns heads to the AFL after missing 10 weeks with back issues, his three plus pitches (lively mid-90s fastball, hammer upper-70s curveball, sweeping mid-80s slider) will make him one of the best arms there. A 2021 first-rounder as an Alabama high schooler, he posted a 2.22 ERA with 37 strikeouts in 28 1/3 innings in High-A.

Giants: Bryce Eldridge, 1B (No. 1/MLB No. 50)
The best two-way prospect in the 2023 Draft, Eldridge has focused solely on hitting since going 16th overall last year. That decision makes a lot of sense because he’s an advanced hitter with massive raw power, attributes that have translated into a .293/.377/.537 slash line with 23 homers in his first full pro season as he has climbed from Single-A to Double-A at age 19.

Padres: Leodalis De Vries, SS (No. 2/MLB No. 44)
Sending a 17-year-old to the Fall League would feel drastic for any other organization. For the Padres, it feels par for the course. Despite his age, De Vries was starting to dominate for Single-A Lake Elsinore with a .284/.407/.589 slash line with 21 extra-base hits in 35 games from July 2-Aug. 17 when he suffered a right shoulder strain. An AFL assignment could get De Vries a few more of the at-bats he missed in the California League and allow San Diego to monitor one of its best talents close by in Peoria to start the offseason.

Rockies: Charlie Condon, OF/3B (No. 1/MLB No. 10)
Condon has played a lot of baseball between his year at Georgia and then his time with High-A Spokane, including the Northwest League playoffs. The No. 3 overall pick in this year’s Draft hasn’t hit as well as some might have hoped (small sample size), with a .499 OPS if you count Game 1 of the postseason, so he could wash that away with a strong AFL campaign that could get him ready to jump straight to Double-A next year.