Because the Pipeline Podcast wraps up 2024, Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo preview the ’25 season with a variety of predictions. The duo breaks down eight classes, from Rookies of the 12 months in each leagues and the No. 1 total Draft choose to which group will end with the top-ranked farm system at season’s finish and extra.
Final yr’s version had a couple of large hits. Callis appropriately pegged Paul Skenes to win NL Rookie of the 12 months. He additionally appropriately predicted Cubs high prospect Matt Shaw would make an enormous leap on the High 100 prospects checklist, which occurred. (Shaw jumped from No. 96 this time a yr in the past to No. 22 presently.)
Let’s examine how this yr’s guesses stack up.
ROOKIES OF THE YEAR (not counting Roki Sasaki)
“With the best way Bubba Chandler completed final yr at Triple-A, he’s shut. Pittsburgh had a reasonably deep rotation on the large league stage, so I wasn’t certain how that was going to work. And that is the place the Spencer Horwitz commerce comes into play, as a result of in that commerce the Pirates despatched Luis Ortiz to Cleveland, in order that creates just a little bit extra of a gap in my e book. They’ve another choices, I do know. However for me, that opens an avenue for Bubba Chandler to hit the rotation sooner somewhat than later. Is it Opening Day? I don’t know. However Paul Skenes wasn’t on the Opening Day roster and he ended up being Rookie of the 12 months.
“I suppose the one cause to not choose Coby Mayo could be, what? The place is he going to play on daily basis? It’s clear his energy bat is prepared. He has nothing left to show within the Minors. They’re going to need to discover a method to get that into the lineup every day, even when he has to maneuver round fairly a bit.”
“The caveat right here is we each really feel like Roki Sasaki goes to be the frontrunner and apparent choose for Rookie of the 12 months in whichever league he indicators. I picked Dylan Crews a few weeks in the past. [In the National League], my intestine was telling me to go together with Matt Shaw, however I wasn’t certain if Matt Shaw was going to get sufficient taking part in time on the Cubs. However after the Kyle Tucker commerce, Isaac Paredes is gone, and I believe Matt Shaw goes to finish up at second with Nico Hoerner at third or he’s going to be at third with Nico Hoerner at second. I actually like Matt Shaw now. I’m hedging far and wide so I can take credit score for whoever wins. I believe its Roki Sasaki if he indicators within the NL. If he doesn’t, I believe it’s Matt Shaw. But when Dylan Crews wins I’m going to level out that I picked him two weeks in the past.
“[In the AL], I believe Mayo is the favourite. My second alternative was Jasson Domínguez. Particularly with Juan Soto leaving, it seems prefer it’ll be a clearer path to at-bats for Jasson Domínguez on the Yankees. A few weeks in the past, Jonathan talked about Jackson Jobe. We’ve each talked about Jacob Wilson. I really feel just like the Nationwide League crop is just a little stronger than the American League crop, however we each have Coby Mayo as our frontrunner.”
PIPELINE HITTER OF THE YEAR
“Many of the finest hitting prospects within the sport are going to be within the large leagues subsequent yr. We all the time need to intertwine Walker Jenkins and Max Clark. I believe these are your two main contenders, except you go together with anyone from the Draft final yr like Travis Bazzana, Charlie Condon or JJ Wetherholt. I believe Walker Jenkins winds up being a reasonably apparent alternative. He’s simply very gifted. He wants to remain wholesome. Jonathan and I had been each adamant that he would’ve received this yr if he’d keep wholesome.”
“The instruments are there. He confirmed when he was wholesome, in order that’s the one factor. There’s nothing to say primarily based on the harm or something we’ve heard, that he doesn’t care for his physique or that there could be a recurrence. All the explanations we thought he was going to win it this previous season nonetheless stand true.”
PIPELINE PITCHER OF THE YEAR
“I’m barely fearful he’s going to be so spectacular he’s going to damage his candidacy by attending to the large leagues too shortly. Alternatively, his staff is atrocious they usually aren’t going to contend in order that they don’t need to rush him. I’m going with the very best left-handed pitching prospect in baseball. I need to see just a little extra sturdiness out of him. They’ve dealt with him fastidiously … his fastball’s gotten higher, he nonetheless has the wipeout slider he had in highschool, he’s growing a changeup, he’s throwing strikes. It’s very, very spectacular. I believe he’s going to tear it up.”
“I believe he’s going to spend nearly the complete season within the Minor Leagues … and I believe he’s going to place up some fairly spectacular numbers simply due to the premium stuff and the swing and miss he will get.”
“Different guys might bounce to the fore. I believe if Tyler Bremner or Jaime Arnold from the faculty aspect take large jumps, they may issue into it. However proper now I’ve the idea that Ethan Holliday goes to come back out this spring … and have an enormous spring that offers him each likelihood to sort of separate himself in the best way folks thought he was earlier than we bought to final yr’s summer season showcase circuit.”
“He’s good. Nevertheless it’s not like its Ethan Holliday and all people else. He’s certainly one of 4, 5 gamers within the combine. Jonathan, you didn’t point out Jace LaViolette and I agree, as a result of the Nationals have the No. 1 choose and I don’t see them drafting one other outfielder when that’s clearly the energy of the staff. If I used to be to rank the probability at No. 1, I’d choose Ethan Holliday, then the 2 pitchers, Bremner or Arnold could be my second and third alternative, after which I’d put LaViolette 4 within the pecking order because it stands at present.”
NO. 1 PROSPECT AT THE END OF THE YEAR
“He’s a 60-hitter with 60 energy who walked greater than he struck out whereas reaching Double-A as a 19-year-old. That’s a fairly spectacular resume.”
“Final yr I picked Ethan Salas, who the Padres pushed so aggressively to Double-A. He spent this yr at Excessive-A, and wasn’t nice. He’s down at No. 19 now. I couldn’t look previous Walker Jenkins. Even when he touches the large leagues, perhaps he finally ends up being an analogous state of affairs to Dylan Crews, the place he will get a good variety of at-bats however stays on prospect lists.”
NO. 1 FARM SYSTEM AT THE END OF THE YEAR
Callis: Dodgers (over Tigers)
“The reasoning behind my choose was how younger the Dodgers system is. I don’t assume they will get a whole lot of guys promoted out of their High 30 to the large leagues. They are not going to lose a Jackson Jobe, as an example. The one man they may lose is Dalton Dashing, a catcher who they did have play some outfield final yr. However I’m not essentially satisfied he’ll lose his rookie standing. He in all probability will, however I don’t assume it’s wherever close to a lock. They simply have this wonderful assortment of younger teenage expertise, from Josue De Paula to Joendry Vargas to Emil Morales to Eduardo Quintero to Kellon Lindsey to Zyhir Hope to Ching-Hsien Ko. I can go on and on. These guys aren’t all going to develop into High 100 prospects, however I believe as they get into full season ball and make their U.S. debuts, they’re going to lift their profiles.”
Mayo: Tigers (over Mariners and Dodgers)
“I picked the Tigers, who had been sixth on our midseason rating. We’re going to presume Jackson Jobe will graduate. However they’ll nonetheless have this nice younger core of hitters: Max Clark, Kevin McGonigle and Bryce Rainer, and after seeing Thayron Liranzo and Josue Briceño within the Fall League, I’m persevering with to be actually excessive on them. They’re actually hitter-heavy and I’m OK with that.”
BIGGEST RISER AMONG CURRENT TOP 100 PROSPECTS
“I believe this man’s flown below the radar just a little bit as a result of he was dealt with with care and didn’t have an enormous prospect pedigree. We talked about Kristian Campbell, who was our Breakout Prospect of the 12 months and Minor League Hitter of the yr. He wasn’t even on the Purple Sox’s High 30 coming into this season. Alejandro Rosario was kinda the pitching equal of that. He wasn’t on our Rangers High 30 coming into the yr – he simply missed. He was in Jonathan’s neck of the draft going again to highschool, after which he went to Miami and he was horrible for 3 years with Miami. 6.53 ERA. He had stuff. There have been no outcomes. So he went within the fifth spherical … The Rangers labored with him on his supply to maintain him closed longer and conceal the ball higher from hitters. He already had some pure deception along with his low launch top. These modifications helped him throw extra strikes. They switched his pitch combine just a little bit … rapidly, he has three plus pitches … he’s throwing extra strikes … he had a 2.24 ERA and a 10-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. If he stays wholesome and retains doing this at higher ranges, he has an opportunity to shoot up this checklist.”
“I’m kinda banking on 2025 being the yr we see the Druw Jones that was ranked so extremely and went No. 2 total in his Draft. He began to essentially determine issues out. He simply wanted reps … he is nonetheless younger. Completed the yr .275/.409/.405 with 21 steals. However from July 1 via the top of the yr, he had an OPS of .855. Large on-base numbers, nearly as many walks as strikeouts and a bunch of stolen bases. The protection remains to be elite. I believe the ability goes to begin to come subsequent season and we’re all going to see the Druw Jones we had been all so enthusiastic about.”
WHO WILL BE THIS YEAR’S BREAKOUT PROSPECT
“He was a man signed in final yr’s worldwide class. I’m not saying he’s nearly as good as Leodalis De Vries, however he’s kinda comparable. The instruments are comparable .. Made stayed within the Rookie-level Dominican Summer time League, hit .331, had an OPS over 1.000, six homers, 28 steals in 51 video games, 25-25 upside, sturdy arm. I believe he’s going to come back over right here … and I wager he tears it up.”
“I rolled the cube large time right here. Kinda flew below the radar as a result of he was harm, so he missed the summer season showcase stuff. He’s a multi-sport man, will get comps to Trea Turner. He’s an 80 runner. He can subject. I believe there’s extra energy there than you may assume. He wants so as to add energy, however the instruments and the athleticism are so thrilling. I really feel like that mixture with the Dodgers participant growth workers, he’s going to have an enormous first full season.”
