This year’s Fall League campaign begins Monday with Scottsdale hosting Peoria at 6:30 p.m. local time (9:30 p.m. ET). We get excited about seeing many of baseball’s top prospects competing against each other in one place for six weeks, but there’s much more to the showcase circuit than just the names you already know.
The environment is a perfect one to foster breakouts among lesser-known talents, like those who didn’t get to play much during the summer due to injury or those who ran out of time to exhibit adjustments that would have led to better numbers over larger samples. Just think of last year’s AFL Triple Crown winner and MVP Josue Briceño, who rebounded from an early knee injury last year to push himself onto the Top 100 Prospects list with his time in the desert.
Blue Jays: Yondrei Rojas, RHP
The 22-year-old right-hander stands only 5-foot-10, but he’ll run his fastball up to 96-98 mph from a low three-quarters arm angle, buzzing the heater above bats fairly consistently. He also works with an 88-90 mph cutter with enough differentiation to generate whiffs and a slower mid-80s slider. Pitching exclusively out of the bullpen, Rojas posted a 1.43 ERA with 47 strikeouts and only 11 walks in 37 2/3 innings between High-A and Double-A. He will be Rule 5 Draft-eligible this offseason.
Orioles: Ethan Anderson, 1B/C
Anderson was the Orioles’ second-rounder in 2024 out of the University of Virginia and was on their Top 30 for a spell thanks to his college resume, highlighted by an OPS of .943 as a junior for the Cavaliers. He did reach Double-A in his first full season, though he finished with a less-than-robust combined OPS of .677. Anderson hit .288 with a .391 OBP from Aug. 1 on, albeit without a ton of impact, though he was doing it all while working on his catching. If he can get to some pop, he could still develop into something interesting.
Rays: Mason Auer, RHP
Auer has been in the Arizona Fall League before. He hit .229/.308/.471 in 18 games with Mesa in 2022. Now he’s back … as a pitcher. The 24-year-old right-hander ran into serious contact issues at Double-A as an outfielder, but his plus-plus arm strength could give him second life on the mound. He made only six appearances for Single-A Charleston during the regular season and allowed eight earned runs on nine hits and 10 walks in 10 2/3 innings, so clearly he has a lot of room to grow in the desert. While he has the rocket arm, his slider fooled more batters with its significant drop.
Red Sox: Jojo Ingrassia, LHP
A 14th-round pick out of Cal State Fullerton in 2023, Ingrassia has posted a 2.15 ERA, .178 average-against and 114 strikeouts in 75 1/3 innings over two Class A levels during his two pro seasons while dealing with elbow and shoulder issues. His low-90s fastball plays better than its velocity because he throws from a low slot with crossfire and extension that create sink, horizontal action and deception. It works well in tandem with a mid-80s changeup that fades in the opposite direction.
Yankees: Enmanuel Tejeda, 2B
Signed for $40,000 out of the Dominican Republic in 2022, Tejeda is a contact hitter with solid speed and a career .424 on-base percentage in the Minors. A right knee injury in July 2024 kept him out of games for a full year and he slashed .242/.389/.342 with 12 steals in 35 Single-A games this season.
Guardians: Wuilfredo Antunez, OF
One of the last signings in the Guardians’ 2018-19 international class, Antunez turned pro for just $10,000 but has turned into one of the best offensive players in their system. He batted .275/.335/.521 with 18 homers and 16 steals in 101 games between High-A and Double-A, making plenty of hard contact despite his aggressive approach.
Royals: A.J. Causey, RHP
The 2024 fifth-rounder will be one of the funkier pitchers in this year’s Fall League because of his low arm slot and the braking action (as in a car’s brakes) on his running changeup and the gloveside break on his slider, both coming in the upper 70s. He’ll buzz in the 89-91 mph fastball, but it’s the secondaries that do the bulk of the work here. Causey has posted a 1.72 ERA with 75 strikeouts over 73 1/3 innings out of High-A and Double-A bullpens.
Tigers: Kenny Serwa, RHP
There should at least be a lot of intrigue in Serwa’s appearances in the desert. The Tigers signed the 27-year-old last offseason after a stint in the independent American Association on the strength of his knuckleball. Yes, we’ll have a knuckleballer in the Fall League. Serwa can also mix in an 89-91 mph fastball to sneak pitches past hitters, but it’s the knuckler that should draw intrigue. Serwa had a solid first season in affiliated ball with a 3.58 ERA in 118 innings at High-A and Double-A, but he didn’t miss a ton of bats with 84 strikeouts in that span.
Twins: Dylan Questad, RHP
The Twins’ fifth-rounder in 2023 who got a bit over slot to sign out of the Wisconsin high school ranks, Questad is a bit of a project who has had trouble throwing strikes consistently over his year-plus of pro ball. But he’s still only 20 and has some intriguing stuff, with a fastball that touches 96 mph, an 86-mph cutter, an upper-70s curve with good spin rates and a spin-killing splitter. He walked 7.5 per nine in 2025 at Single-A, so that will be a key focus in his development.
White Sox: Jarold Rosado, RHP
Acquired from the Royals in a July 2024 trade for Paul DeJong, Rosado logged a 4.45 ERA with 32 strikeouts in 32 1/3 innings between High-A and Double-A while also missing six weeks with an illness. He features an interesting three-pitch mix with a 93-95 mph fastball that touches 97, as well as a low-80s slider and mid-80s changeup that can miss plenty of bats when he locates them well.
Angels: Ryan Costeiu, RHP
Costeiu had crept up close to the top 10 of the Angels’ Top 30 following a solid 2022 when given his first chance to start after relief work at Arkansas in 2021. But Tommy John surgery that July kept him out for all of 2023, and while he threw well with a return to High-A in 2024, his 2025 wasn’t as productive. He did strike out 9.7 per nine, missing bats particularly with his low-80s changeup.
Astros: Jeron Williams, SS/2B
Williams comes with plus-plus speed and topped NCAA Division I with 49 steals in 53 tries at Toledo in 2023 before signing as a ninth-round pick. He tore the labrum in his right shoulder late in the 2024 season, leading to surgery that cost him two months of this year, then hit .250/.312/.342 with 17 swipes in 56 Double-A games.
A’s: Corey Avant, RHP
A reliever with power stuff at Wingate, Avant largely pitched out of the ‘pen in his first pro season in 2024. He actually had a little more success when given a chance to start this season. It might be a relief profile long term, with a fastball that’s touched 100 mph at times and a power curve that can be a plus swing-and-miss pitch when he can land it in the zone.
Mariners: Christian Little, RHP
Little might have been a highly-sought-after high school prospect if he hadn’t graduated early to head to Vanderbilt. After two years there (the second spent in relief), he transferred to LSU and pitched out of the ‘pen for two more seasons before the Mariners took a flier on him in Round 11 of the 2024 Draft. The M’s gave him a chance to start, and while he missed about a month and a half with a bone spur in his elbow, Little pitched well enough to earn a bump up to High-A Everett at season’s end. In nine outings from the beginning of June until the end of the campaign, he posted a 2.08 ERA and a .162 BAA.
Rangers: Joey Danielson, RHP
The Rangers sent only one non-Top 30 prospect to the Fall League, so Danielson is our sleeper by default. He began his college career at North Dakota State as a catcher before converting to the mound, and the Rangers signed him for $25,000 in 2024 as a fifth-year senior selected in the 17th round. Armed with a mid-90s fastball with carry and a mid-80s slider, he compiled a 4.34 ERA with 67 strikeouts in 56 innings between High-A and Double-A.
Braves: Patrick Clohisy, OF
After hitting .380 with 24 steals and a 1.150 OPS at St. Louis, Clohisy went in the 11th round of the 2024 Draft to the Braves. Then he played, or mainly ran, his way from High-A to Double-A in his first full season. There hasn’t been a ton of impact (.681 OPS) but the outfielder swiped 79 bags, good for third among all Minor Leaguers. He could give someone like the Orioles’ Enrique Bradfield Jr. or Dodgers’ Kendall George a run for the AFL stolen-base title.
Marlins: Aiden May, RHP
A 2024 supplemental second-rounder out of Oregon State, May had arthroscopic elbow surgery in March, delaying his pro debut until July. He recorded a 3.05 ERA, .164 average-against and 20 strikeouts over 20 2/3 Single-A innings, displaying a 93-95 mph sinker and a low-80s slider that grades as a plus pitch at its best.
Mets: D’Andre Smith, OF
The 2022 fifth-rounder from USC is coming off a breakout season between High-A and Double-A, where he combined to hit .282/.345/.417 with a 127 wRC+ over 101 games. His eight homers and 31 steals were significant increases from his previous career highs of three and nine, respectively. Listed at just 5-foot-9, Smith thrives on making a good amount of contact from the right side but he can expand the zone too much at times. He got time in both outfield corners and sprinkled in some work at second base.
Nationals: Pablo Aldonis, LHP
With a 1.64 mark in 55 innings between Single-A and High-A, Aldonis had the lowest ERA of any Nationals farmhand with at least 50 frames this season. He also led the way with a 0.78 WHIP and ranked fourth in that group of 46 with a 30.9 percent K rate, so this is a reward of sorts. The 23-year-old southpaw only works 90-93 mph with his fastball but gets a ton of whiffs on his 82-84 mph sweeping slider.
Phillies: Jaydenn Estanista, RHP
Estanista, who will turn 24 just before the start of the AFL season, had snuck onto the Phillies’ Top 30 because of his raw stuff and upside in 2023, and he missed a lot of bats in ’24 but has battled inconsistency with the strike zone, with a career 6.0 BB/9 rate. He still can miss bats and featured a fastball up to 98 mph in 2025, a slider and cutter both in the mid-80s, and even a splitter mixed in occasionally.
Brewers: Michael Fowler, RHP
Could this be the Brewers’ next big arm? Milwaukee signed Fowler, who began his collegiate career at LSU before having stints with Tulane and Southern Miss, out of the Frontier League on July 29 and he promptly posted a 1.08 ERA with 11 strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings for Single-A Carolina. (He also mixed in a single appearance with Triple-A Nashville.) The 6-foot-3 righty works 94-97 mph with his fastball and plays off that with a 79-81 mph curveball, both of which could open eyes in this showcase league.
Cardinals: Travis Honeyman, OF
A former Boston College star, Honeyman joined the Cardinals as a third-round pick in 2023 but has yet to break above High-A, in part due to shoulder issues from college that required surgery last year. Using a crouched stance and leg kick, Honeyman keeps strikeouts in check but has yet to hit for much power at all; he had just a .322 slugging percentage in 53 games at High-A this season. An above-average runner, there are other ways he can provide value, but showing improved pop in the Fall League would certainly help him rebuild his prospect stock.
Pirates: Carlson Reed, RHP
The decision to let Reed develop as a starter after taking him in the fourth round of the 2023 Draft seemed like a solid one after the right-hander finished his first full season with a 1.99 ERA and a 10.8 K/9 rate across both levels of A ball. He was slated to jump to Double-A in 2025 but a back injury limited him and he threw most of his 70 2/3 IP back at High-A. His fastball sat at around 92 mph, but he missed plenty of bats with a low-80s slider and a mid-80s changeup.
Reds: Johnathan Harmon, RHP
A 13th-round pick in 2022, Harmon had a solid, albeit unspectacular, first full season of pro ball in ’23. His 2024 campaign ended in June with Tommy John surgery. He handled his rehab very well and finished the season impressing at High-A, showing a four-pitch mix with a fastball that touched 97 mph and effective breaking and offspeed stuff. The Reds think he has an up arrow next to his name entering the fall.
D-backs: Jacob Steinmetz, RHP
The 2021 third-rounder greatly improved his control in 2024 with an 8.9 percent walk rate between Single-A and High-A and was up to 99 mph in offseason throwing sessions after adding muscle, setting up what looked like a potential breakout season. Instead, he didn’t pitch for an affiliate after dealing with an early oblique issue. Standing 6-foot-6, the 22-year-old could get long looks with Salt River this fall as he tries to make up for that lost time, and after participating for the country in 2023, he could also have an eye on a return to Team Israel for next spring’s World Baseball Classic.
Dodgers: Alex Makarewich, RHP
The Dodgers have helped Makarewich soup up his stuff since signing him as a 13th-rounder out of Northwestern State in 2023, and he now operates with a fastball that sits at 95-97 mph and touches 100 to go with a pair of power breaking pitches — an upper-80s slider and a mid-80s curveball. He logged a 3.07 ERA with a .149 average-against between two Class A stops, ranking fourth in the full-season Minors (minimum: 40 innings) in strikeouts per nine innings (15.3) but also third-worst in walk rate (24 percent).
Giants: Parks Harber, 3B/1B
The Yankees signed Harber for $50,000 as a nondrafted free agent in July 2024 after he hit 54 home runs in four college seasons between Georgia and North Carolina, then spun him to the Giants a year later in the Camilo Doval trade. Power is his carrying tool and he slashed .323/.420/.550 with 13 homers in 79 games between three Class A stops, ranking second in the Minors (minimum: 300 plate appearances) with a 173 wRC+.
Padres: Tucker Musgrove, RHP
The Padres took Musgrove in the seventh round out of an NAIA program at the University of Mobile as a potential two-way player in 2023, but Tommy John surgery delayed his debut until this past April at Single-A. He finished with a 5.40 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 20 innings, but more importantly, he showed off dynamic stuff with an upper-90s fastball and an impressive sweeper that got both whiffs and chases. With a healthy fall, he could easily push into San Diego’s Top 30.
Rockies: Braylen Wimmer, UTIL
When Wimmer, an eighth-round senior sign out of South Carolina, hit .285 with 14 homers and 34 steals in his first full season, it was easy to discount it as coming from a 23-year old playing the whole year in the Single-A California League. He’s making us pay a little more attention after playing his way from High-A to Double-A in 2025 and finishing with a .296/.366/.466 line, 17 homers and 37 steals. His 125 wRC+ was among the best in the system and he did it while manning second, third and seeing time in all three outfield spots.