Baseball America

We're going deep on each of the top prospects in the NL Central. We explain how each respective player climbed to No. 1 in their system, run through their scouting reports and lay out what you should expect in 2026.Time Stamps(0:00) — Moises Ballesteros, Cubs(8:25) — Sal Stewart, Reds(16:55) — JJ Wetherholt, Cardinals(25:55) — Jesús Made, Brewers(34:50) — Konnor Griffin, PiratesAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The final week before the full slate of minor league games is upon us and we celebrate on the Baseball America Fantasy Podcast with an NL West prospects preview. This is our final of the divisional prospect previews and with the loaded Giants and Dodgers systems in tow there's plenty to discuss as Geoff Pontes is joined by Ian Cundall.Los Angeles Dodgers(2:00) River Ryan (3:00) Alex Freeland (5:00) Eduardo Quintero, Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope and Mike Sirota (8:00) Zach Root  (10:00) Adam SerwinowskiArizona Diamondbacks (11:00) Ryan Waldschmidt (13:00) Jose Fernandez (15:00) David Hagaman(16:00) JD Dix San Diego Padres(19:00) Miguel Mendez and Bradgley Rodriguez (21:00) Kruz Schoolcraft (22:00) Kash Mayfield (24:00) Kale Fountain (27:00) Tucker Musgrove San Francisco Giants (29:00) Bryce Eldridge (31:00) Carson Whisenhunt (33:00) Josuar Gonzalez (35:00) Luis Hernandez (37:00) Luis De La Torre (38:00) Argenis Cayama Colorado Rockies(39:00) Charlie Condon (40:00) TJ Rumfield (43:00) Ethan Holliday (46:00) Roldy Brito (48:00) Jackson CoxAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We just rolled out an update of our MLB Draft rankings as we expanded them to the Top 300 prospects. On this week's Draft Podcast, Carlos Collazo and JJ Cooper take a look at some of the players who moved up and down the most.(0:00) What’s the current perception of the class?(7:30) Vahn Lackey(10:30) Ace Reese & Chris Hacopian(13:20) Derek Curiel & Eric Becker(18:30) Kevin Roberts Jr. & Brady Harris(23:00) More polarizing profiles(33:30) In the weeds of the 200 rangeAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Baseball America national college reporter Jacob Rudner is joined by editor-in-chief JJ Cooper to discuss South Carolina's early season firing of coach Paul Mainieri and what's next for the Gamecocks. Rudner and Cooper also take a deep dive on BA's Week 7 college baseball Top 25, one of the most predictive in-season polls of the year. Fifteen of the last 16 NCAA champions have been ranked inside the top 16 in the BA poll at this time of year.(1:44) South Carolina fires Paul Mainieri(11:47) The importance of the Week 7 poll(20:20) Why we ranked Auburn sixth in Week 7(32:08) UCLA is a unique No. 1(42:44) The Top 25 demarcation lineMINT MOBILEIf you like your money, Mint Mobile is for you. Plans start at $15/month at https://MintMobile.com/TerritoryAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Geoff Pontes and JJ Cooper have been all over the Florida backfields and Spring Breakout games, so this week they're sharing thoughts on prospects who impressed.(00:00) Eli Willits looks really polished for his age(05:45) Gavin Fien can hit, but we didn't see him field(09:45) Anthony Eyanson's velocity jump is notable(19:15) John Gil is a Braves hitter who could rise up our rankings(21:15) Fenwick Trimble caught our eyes(22:45) The Cardinals' Tanner Franklin can elevate and celebrate(25:15) The Blue Jays have a pair of young infielders who should provide powerSEAT GEEKUse our code TERRITORY10 for 10% off your next SeatGeek order* https://seatgeek.onelink.me/RrnK/TERRITORY10 Sponsored by SeatGeek. *Restrictions apply. Max $20 discountAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's Hot Sheet Show, Ben Badler, J.J. Cooper and Jacob Rudner welcome Nationals pitching prospect Miguel Sime Jr. joins to discuss his spring and lots more.We also talk about Spring Breakout, Kevin McGonigle making the Tigers and players rising in our upcoming 2026 draft rankings update.The Hot Sheet Show airs live on the BA YouTube channel every week on Tuesday at 3 p.m. Give us a sub, and we'll see you then!Time Stamps(0:00) Introduction (0:55) Things that stood out at Spring Breakout (2:55) Why Spring Breakout matters (5:40) Kevin McGonigle makes the Tigers' Opening Day roster (11:15) Miguel Sime Jr. joins the show (22:00) Vahn Lackey climbs the draft rankingsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We're going deep on each of the top prospects in the NL West. We explain how each respective player climbed to No. 1 in their system, run through their scouting reports and lay out what you should expect in 2026.Time Stamps(0:00) — Bryce Eldridge, Giants(9:15) — Ryan Waldschmidt, Diamondbacks(18:00) — Ethan Holliday, Rockies(27:25) — Ethan Salas, Padres(35:30) — Eduardo Quintero, DodgersAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

This week on the Baseball America Fantasy podcast host Geoff Pontes is joined by Ian Cundall to discuss NL Central prospects. The most prospect loaded division in the game has plenty of names to dive into making for some exciting discussions.Milwaukee Brewers(5:00) Jett Williams (8:00) Brandon Sproat(11:00) Jesus Made(13:00) Bishop Letson(14:00) Josh Adamczewski (15:00) Brock WilkenChicago Cubs(17:00) Moises Ballesteros (21:00) Jaxon Wiggins(23:00) Ethan Conrad(24:00) Kane Kepley (26:00) Cole MathisPittsburgh Pirates(27:00) Konnor Griffin(28:00) Bubba Chandler(29:00) Seth Hernandez(30:00) Edward Florentino(32:00) Reinold NavarroCincinnati Reds (34:00) Sal Stewart  (35:00) Rhett Lowder(36:00) Steele Hall (37:00) Tyson Lewis(39:00) Hector Rodriguez (40:00) Eli PittsSt. Louis Cardinals (42:00) JJ Wetherholt and Quinn Mathews(43:00) Rainel Rodriguez and Joshua Baez(45:00) Deniel OrtizAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

JJ Cooper and Geoff Pontes want to get you ready for the Spring Breakout games on the latest Baseball America Prospect Podcast. We take a look at less prominent prospects who are worth watching this week.(00:00) Why this week's podcast was delayed(01:00) Geoff's World Baseball Classic experience was amazing(07:40) Why these rosters are a bit disappointing(11:00) Games well worth watching(15:00) Geoff and JJ each pick a Non-Top 100 Top 10 Prospect to watch in the breakout games(20:00) Geoff and JJ each pick a Top 30 prospect outside the Top 10s to watch(24:00) Geoff and JJ each pick a non Top 30 prospect to watch in the breakout games(31:00) JJ found a deep, deep sleeper on the back fields at Astros campBLUE CHEWGet 10% off your first month of BlueChew Gold with code FOUL at https://bluechew.com/Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's Draft Podcast, Carlos Collazo and JJ Cooper take a look at several prospects who will move up in our next draft rankings update.(0:00) Draft rankings process(4:10) Jake Brown(7:45) Hunter Dietz(11:35) Bo Holloway(15:45) Taj Marchand(19:00) Vahn LackeyBLUE CHEWGet 10% off your first month of BlueChew Gold with code FOUL at https://bluechew.com/Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Baseball America national college reporter Jacob Rudner is joined by BA national writer Carlos Collazo to discuss reigning national champion LSU's stunning fall out of the Top 25 for the first time since 2024. Rudner and Collazo also give insights into how the Baseball America Top 25 is decided, break down at teams on the rise and look ahead to the draft.(3:19) What's happening to LSU(8:55) Explaining BA Poll Mechanics(14:29) The challenge of ranking Big Ten teams(22:56) Southern California stock booming(29:47) Florida State enters the top 10(39:21) Things we're looking forward to this weekend(48:10) Lingering thoughtsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's Hot Sheet Show, Jacob Rudner, Ben Badler and Carlos Collazo talk about prospects in the World Baseball Classic finals spotlight, Spring Breakout players to watch and the NCAA Top 25.The Hot Sheet Show airs live on the BA YouTube channel every week on Tuesday at 3 p.m. Give us a sub, and we'll see you then!Time Stamps(0:00) Introduction(0:45) U.S. vs. Venezuela in the WBC—Nolan McLean on the mound(6:25) More standout players in the WBC(9:45) Championship predictions(12:00) MLB Spring Breakout—who we're excited to see(16:30) First 2025 draft pick to make MLB(19:30) Breakout picks for 2026(23:05) LSU out of the Top 25Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We're going deep on each of the top prospects in the NL East. We explain how each respective player climbed to No. 1 in their system, run through their scouting reports and lay out what you should expect in 2026.Time Stamps(0:00) — Cam Caminiti, Braves(8:10) — Aidan Miller, Phillies(16:35) — Nolan McLean, Mets(27:05) — Thomas White, Marlins(35:25) — Eli Willits, NationalsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The Baseball America Fantasy podcast returns for the weekend with another divisional prospect preview. After running through the American League over the last three weeks, we jump to the National League and the talented NL West division. Hosts Geoff Pontes and Dylan White breakdown all the Phillies, Mets, Braves, Marlins and Nationals prospects to know for 2026 and beyond.Phillies(2:00) Justin Crawford(4:00) Andrew Painter(7:00) Aidan Miller(9:00) Cody Bowker(11:00) Cade ObermuellerMets(13:00) Nolan McLean(14:00) Carson Benge(15:00) AJ Ewing(16:00) Jonah Tong(18:00) Will WatsonBraves(21:00) JR Ritchie(22:00) Didier Fuentes(23:00) Diego Tornes(25:00) Garrett Baumann(26:00) Lucas BraunMarlins(28:00) Robby Snelling(30:00) Thomas White and Kevin DeFrank(33:00)Fenwick Trimble and Andrew SalasNationals(35:00) Harry Ford (37:00) Jarlin Susana and Travis Sykora(39:00) Devin Fitz-Gerald and Christian FranklinAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's Draft Podcast Carlos Collazo and JJ Cooper take an in-depth look at a pair of fascinating and famous college outfielders. LSU outfielder Derek Curiel and Georgia Tech's Drew Burress are the top two college outfielders on our draft rankings, but both draw varied responses from scouts and front office officials. We take a look at why.(0:00) Eric Booth Jr. vs. Kevin Roberts Jr.(4:00) Derek Curiel convo begins(10:00) Why JJ is skeptical(17:30) The college outfield demographic is scary(23:30) Drew Burress enters the fold(31:00) Why the right-right OF demographic is critiqued(34:00) A shifting bias for short hitters(48:00) On being OK with uncertaintyScouting 101 on Derek Curiel: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/scouting-derek-curiel-a-polished-pure-hitter-with-power-questions/Scouting 101 on Drew Burress:https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/scouting-drew-burress-a-tooled-up-college-bat-challenging-first-round-norms/Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Baseball America national college reporter Jacob Rudner and prospect writer Geoff Pontes look back at an upset-filled week in college baseball, including LSU's 1-4 showing that caused it to slide from the top 10. Rudner and Pontes also consider whether the SEC's grip on the top of college baseball has loosened.(1:49) LSU's big blunder(9:18) Florida drops back out of the top 20(16:42) Mississippi State and Texas look elite(21:52) Is the SEC losing its grip(33:00) Southern California pitching(38:21) Wake Forest cracks the top 20(39:49) What we're looking forward to in Week 5HELLO FRESH:Get 10 free meals and a FREE Zwilling Knife (a $144.99 value) on your third box at HelloFresh.com/FT10FM. Offer valid while supplies last. Free meals applied as a discount on first box, new subscribers only, varies by plan.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

With USA Baseball's WBC hopes completely out of their own hands, Carlos Collazo, JJ Cooper and Geoff Pontes gathered for an emergency podcast to discuss what happened in Team USA's loss to Italy, how it happened and what it could mean going forward.(00:00) Setting the stage on a shocking evening of baseball(03:15) Looking through what happened in the game(10:00) What did Mark DeRosa know and when did he know it?(16:45) 3-1 = 3-1 = 3-1. That's not complicated math(21:15) Explaining the tiebreaker permutations.(25:00) Looking the USA managerial choices(31:45) This has been a systemic issue for Team USAAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Geoff Pontes and JJ Cooper are getting ready to head down to spring training to watch the Spring Breakout games and prowl the MiLB games on the back fields. So what do we hope to get out of the trips and what should prospect watchers glean from spring training performances?(01:00) How Shohei Ohtani and Khalil Watson taught us to not over-react(06:00) MiLB spring training assignments can offer useful info(08:45) The back fields give a useful sense of organization depth/talent(11:00) Previewing how we will build our April Top 100 Prospects update(18:05) Looking at our 2025 April Top 100 Movement. Some successes (Kevin McGonigle/Konnor Griffin) and one to regret (Colson Montgomery)(21:30) Why you can get more out of pitchers changes in spring training than hitters(27:00) Things we are looking forward to seeing on our tripUse our code TERRITORY10 for 10% off your next SeatGeek order* seatgeek.onelink.me/RrnK/TERRITORY10 Sponsored by SeatGeek. *Restrictions apply. Max $20 discountAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's Hot Sheet Show, J.J. Cooper, Geoff Pontes and Carlos Collazo discuss players to know from the World Baseball Classic before breaking down our first full mock draft of the 2026 cycle.The Hot Sheet Show airs live on the BA YouTube channel every week on Tuesday at 3 p.m. Give us a sub, and we'll see you then!Time Stamps(0:00) Introduction (1:15) KBO & NPB players who have stood out in the WBC (7:30) HS pitcher Joseph Contreras pitches against the U.S. (10:00) Why the Angels are a WBC winner (11:45) Olympic baseball vs. WBC and our tournament picks (13:50) Breaking down Carlos' first 2026 mock draft (17:45) Roch Cholowsky overreactions (18:50) Thoughts on college pitchers (20:45) Cade Townsend vs. Joey Volckho—who's getting better feedback? (23:25) Vac Veen has bulked up and is performing in spring training (25:15) A's prospects who are standing out this springAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We're going deep on each of the top prospects in the AL West. We explain how each respective player climbed to No. 1 in their system, run through their scouting reports and lay out what you should expect in 2026.Time Stamps(0:00) — Leo De Vries, Athletics(8:15) — Xavier Neyens, Astros(17:30) — Tyler Bremner, Angels(26:40) — Colt Emerson, Mariners(34:50) — Sebastian Walcott, RangersAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy