'Hungry' Alcántara hoping to pounce on big league prey in '25
MESA, Ariz. -- The thing about jaguars is, you don’t want to see one when it’s hungry. So when Cubs legend Sammy Sosa spoke to the organization’s No. 6 prospect per MLB Pipeline -- and the No. 89 prospect overall -- the former slugger gave him some apt advice. “His
Cubs have MLB stars AND loaded farm system
MESA, Ariz. – It’s a testament to where a farm system is when a Top 100-caliber hitter gets traded away and there’s still a desire to tout the bats. The Cubs traded Cam Smith to the Astros in the Kyle Tucker deal, but they still have seven players on the
Here are the 10 best potential prospect matchups at Spring Breakout
Spring Breakout will soon offer the opportunity for the majority of baseball's top prospects to face off against each other for the second straight year. Fearsome sluggers against hard-throwing pitchers. Speedy baserunners against cannon-armed catchers. Well-rounded shortstops battling to prove who should be ranked higher. Full rosters for all 30
8 of the best team matchups in Spring Breakout
After Spring Breakout's dynamic debut last year, the prospect showcase event returns in full force for 2025. All 30 Major League teams will field squads of top prospects to face off in 16 games from March 13-16 -- the Cubs and Nationals will play twice since there's an odd number
15 prospects primed for a bounceback season from injury
A lot of players will be getting a fresh start heading into the 2025 season. Prospects who missed significant time due to injury have had upwards of six months between regular-season games to return to health. Now they'll be looking to re-establish their value and maybe even reach new heights.
Here are 18 prospects who also starred on the gridiron
The two-time defending-champion Kansas City Chiefs are set to meet the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX, and plenty of baseball prospects will be keeping a close eye. After all, many current Minor Leaguers played football at a high level before committing fully to the diamond. No, there aren't any
Answering your Top 100 Prospects list questions
MLB Pipeline released its new Top 100 Prospects list on Friday, and it was met with a bevy of questions and comments about fans' favorite prospects. To help make sense of all the inquiries, Pipeline's Jonathan Mayo took to Reddit and responded to fan questions in a Top 100 Prospect-focused
Here are the Top 10 third base prospects for 2025
MLB Pipeline will reveal its 2025 Top 100 Prospects list at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, Jan. 24, with a one-hour show on MLB Network and MLB.com. Leading up to the release of the Top 100, we'll examine baseball's top 10 prospects at each position.
Here are the Top 10 catching prospects for 2025
The Dodgers understand the importance of a top catcher. While superstars Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman grab plenty of headlines, Will Smith remains one of the pillars of Los Angeles’ success. Since he debuted in 2019, Smith ranks second among all Major League catchers with an 18.5 fWAR,
How the Rule 5 Draft impacted teams' Top 30 Prospects lists
MLB Pipeline gives our organizational Top 30 prospect rankings complete refreshes twice per calendar year (once in spring, once in-season) and provides other live updates as graduations and other transactions necessitate them. In the latter category, two dates in particular are our busiest for Top 30 updates: the Trade Deadline
Here's the 2024 All-Arizona Fall League Team
Season No. 32 of the Arizona Fall League is in the books, with the Salt River Rafters beating the Surprise Saguaros, 3-2, in the Championship Game on Saturday. It was another fall full of top prospects and top performances. Below is the 2024 MLB Pipeline All-AFL Team. This is based
Cubs' Long, Tigers' Miller earn Fall League Week 5 honors
Week 5 in the Arizona Fall League was about spotlighting the best the top prospect circuit had to offer, with Fall Star festivities limiting regular-season AFL play to only four days in the desert. These two players stood out for squeezing exceptional performances into that small sample. Mesa corner outfielder/infielder
Arizona Fall League Week 5 top performers
Here are the top performers from the fifth week of AFL action:
Fall League sluggers light up the night in Home Run Derby
The 2024 Arizona Fall League Home Run Derby lived up to its billing with a last-second long ball to close things out. Yankees prospect Garrett Martin finished with a flourish in the final round, hitting his 10th tater of the session to inch past Brewers No. 8 prospect Brock Wilken
Cubs' Double-A team brings 'that Wrigley Field vibe' home to Knoxville
Prior to the 2000 season, Knoxville’s Double-A Southern League franchise relocated 20 miles east, to the town of Kodak, and christened themselves the Tennessee Smokies. Twenty-five years later, the team is going back to its roots. The Smokies return to Knoxville in 2025, operating out of brand-new Covenant Health Ballpark
Ballesteros hopes consistent power in AFL leads to winter ball, spring camp
SURPRISE, Ariz. -- The rapid ascent of Moises Ballesteros continues. The Cubs landed the catcher for $1.2 million out of Venezuela in January 2021, and all he’s done ever since is hit. He reached Double-A Tennessee in 2023 as a 19-year-old, so expectations were high for the organization’s No. 4
Cubs prospect Long carving out his place on the depth chart
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – The Cubs didn’t give Jonathon Long specific instructions after taking him in the ninth round of last year’s Draft. That was by design. The Long Beach State first baseman/third baseman was coming off his best collegiate season yet, hitting .312/.404/.600 with 15 homers in 55 games, but
Young slugger Ballesteros leads Cubs' AFL contingent
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Moises Ballesteros is getting accustomed to playing on loaded teams. The Cubs catcher began 2024 at Double-A Tennessee, the lone club in the Minors with four Top 100 Prospects on its Opening Day roster: right-hander Cade Horton, infielder Matt Shaw, outfielder Kevin Alcántara and second baseman James
Ballesteros' work behind plate translating into even more productive fall at-bats
SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Moises Ballesteros can be found at the following address this autumn: Home Plate Valley of the Sun, Arizona MLB No. 44 overall prospect is making a residence at and behind the dish during his time in the Arizona Fall League, and as Ballesteros proved Sunday for Mesa
Here are the weirdest stats, plays from the final month of the MiLB season
Welcome to Crooked Numbers, a monthly column dedicated to Minor League Baseball on-field oddities and absurdities. The edition, rounding up the month of September, encapsulates the end of the regular season as well as the playoffs. Thanks for reading this season, and here's to an even more "Crooked" 2025.
Here's the '24 All-MiLB Prospect Team
Just think of some of the big numbers put up in the Minors this year -- 40 homers, 104 stolen bases, 202 strikeouts -- and they’re just the tip of the iceberg. Terrific performances came in a variety of shapes and sizes during the 2024 Minor League season. To celebrate
Shaw leads top Cubs prospects' hit parade for Iowa
The next crop of Wrigley Field sluggers surged in unison Sunday. Matt Shaw, Owen Caissie, Moises Ballesteros and Kevin Alcántara contributed to nine of Triple-A Iowa's runs in a 17-10 loss to Louisville at Principal Park. The Top 100 prospects combined for 13 hits -- seven for extra bases --
Watch the introductory Minor League Big Inning on Tuesday night for FREE
We here at MiLB.com can never get enough Minor League Baseball. If you're reading this, we're guessing the same can be said for yourself. Now we've made it easy for you to take in four games at a time and up to eight games total, all from the comfort of
Former FSU teammates Smith, Tibbs III hit seminal homers on same night
Many miles separate the duo that used to hit back-to-back in the Florida State lineup, but their connection seems to extend beyond that. Cam Smith and James Tibbs III both knocked their first High-A homers -- and they both went to left-center field -- on Wednesday night. Tibbs' dinger for
Here are the 10 farm systems with the best outfield prospects
Last week, we looked at the top farm systems based on infield talent. This week, let’s go from the dirt to the grass. Below is a ranking of the top 10 organizations when it comes to those who patrol the outfield, using a combination of top-end Top 100 talent and