Risers, Fallers & New Additions To August 2025 Top 100 Prospects Update

Players Who Joined The Top 100

Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Twins (No. 81) 

Culpepper was dropped from the Top 100 when we added 2025 MLB draftees. But he’s kept mashing at Double-A while showing he can be a valuable middle infielder defensively. With the Twins’ late July sell-off, it’s worth wondering how quickly Culpepper could help them in 2026.

Nate George, OF, Orioles (No. 82)

In his first pro season, George is hitting .352/.423/.512. He’s a top-of-the-scale runner who has hit nine triples in just 66 games. His power is developing, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him hitting 15+ home runs before too long. It’s even easier to predict 50+ steal seasons in his future.

Dylan Beavers, OF, Orioles (No. 84)

Beavers is pushing for a big league promotion. The 2022 first-rounder has cut his strikeout rate from 23.5% last year to 17.2% while increasing his power. He’s now a well-rounded corner outfielder who hits for average, gets on base and punishes pitchers who make mistakes.

Bo Davidson, OF, Giants (No. 89)

An undrafted free agent signed out of Caldwell (N.C.) Tech JC in 2023, Davidson has turned into a player with five potential average-or-better tools. He’s a .307/.411/.524 career MiLB hitter, and he just gets better and better each year.

Logan Henderson, RHP, Brewers (No. 98)

This is a return trip to the Top 100 for Henderson, who has hovered around the back of the list for months. He was bumped off when draftees were added, but we’ve rectified that now. Unfortunately, just after we did so, news broke that he’s been on the injured list with elbow soreness.

Edward Florentino, OF, Pirates (No. 99)

Florentino battled George for the title of best position player prospect in the Florida Complex League. He’s still filling out and growing into his 6-foot-4 frame, but he’s already showing real power and surprising basestealing ability.

Brandon Sproat, RHP, Mets (No. 100)

Sproat is another returnee to the Top 100. He ranked 99th in May before dropping off the list. Since then, he has seen his velocity tick up a bit, and he’s figured out a better approach against lefthanders.

Players Who Dropped Out Of The Top 100

Blake Mitchell, C, Royals (Was No. 67)

Injuries have derailed Mitchell’s season. He’s played just 35 games, which may require him going back to High-A to start 2025. It’s hard to say he’s mastered the level when he’ll be lucky to get to 45 games played at Quad Cities. 

Xavier Isaac, 1B, Rays (Was No. 71)

It’s been a lost season for Isaac. A spring training elbow injury meant he’s yet to play a game in the field this season, and a wrist injury has sidelined him since late June. First basemen have to mash, and, now a full year removed from his last big month of production, concerns about his ability to make consistent hard contact remain.

Theo Gillen, OF, Rays (Was No. 77)

Gillen has been excellent this year, but his success is heavily dependent on drawing tons of walks. He’s not far off the Top 100, but he’ll need to show more power eventually.

Brandon Clarke, LHP, Red Sox (Was No. 81)

Clarke has big stuff, but since his June trip to the injured list, he’s been a wild 2-3 inning pitcher. Concerns he may end up in the bullpen are growing.

Jaison Chourio, OF, Guardians (Was No. 82)

Chourio is a better hitter than his .219 batting average or hard-to-fathom .254 slugging percentage would indicate. He actually hits the ball harder than the average Class-A hitter, but a steady diet of worm-burners means he has just six extra-base hits (and one home run) in 65 games. As much as his ability to grind out at-bats and play excellent defense in center field remains alluring, he has to prove he can do more damage.

Hagen Smith, LHP, White Sox (Was No. 83)

The White Sox are working to improve Smith’s delivery and strike-throwing, but he’s yet to show he has a “Plan B” if hitters recognize his slider and won’t chase it out of the zone. There were scouts who saw Smith as a quality reliever coming out of college. He needs to improve his control and add an offspeed pitch to put those worries to rest.

Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Diamondbacks (Was No. 96)

In the case of Waldschmidt, he was at the very back of the 100 and got bounced off the list by other players moving on. Now he’s back.

Biggest Top 100 Risers

Carson Benge, OF, Mets (+65 spots from No. 98 to No. 33)

After focusing on hitting full time, Benge has quickly blossomed, as he’s gotten even better after his promotion to Double-A Binghamton. Lining up the Mets’ top prospects is difficult, as each of their top three has an argument to rank No. 1, but the feedback we are getting is that Benge has climbed to their top spot.

Robby Snelling, LHP, Marlins (+28 spots from No. 70 to No. 42)

After a down year in 2024, Snelling’s stuff has rebounded in 2025, highlighted by a mid-90s fastball with riding life and an improved slider that has generated strong results. Since making his Triple-A debut on July 10, he has posted a 1.63 ERA with 34 strikeouts against five walks over 27.2 innings for Jacksonville.

Josue Briceño, C, Tigers (+20 spots from No. 75 to No. 55)

Briceño slashed .296/.422/.602 with 15 home runs, 13 doubles and 41 walks to 40 strikeouts over 55 games, which trigged a promotion to Double-A Erie. Briceño’s bat is loud enough to play whether he catches or ends up at first base, and his performance has allowed him to climb quickly in a strong Tigers system.

Ryan Sloan, RHP, Mariners (+19 spots from No. 86 to No. 67)

Usually young pitchers with big stuff have to figure out how to harness it in a multi-year journey of discovery. Sloan, however, has not walked more than two batters in any of his first 17 starts this year. He’s walked no one in six starts. He’s extremely pitch-efficient for a teenager.

Jonah Tong, RHP, Mets (+17 spots from No. 60 to No. 43)

Tong is the least conventional of the Mets’ “Big Three.” His extreme trunk-tilt and reliance on a fastball/changeup combo makes him riskier than Carson Benge or Nolan McLean, but he’s also been the best pitcher in the minors this year.

Jarlin Susana, RHP, Nationals (+17 spots from No. 85 to No. 68)

Susana opened the year at No. 67 and briefly moved out of the top 80, but 39.2 very successful innings spread across High-A and Double-A have the 6-foot-6 righty back up to No. 68. Susana this year owns a 3.63 ERA with 60 strikeouts. His control is still a work in progress, but his stuff is undeniable.

Jhostynxon Garcia, OF, Red Sox (+15 spots from No. 95 to No. 80)

At this time last year, it felt like Garcia had come out of nowhere. But at some point, consistent production becomes expected, and Garcia is reaching that point. He’s getting on base, should reach 20 home runs in the next few days and he’s answering any remaining questions about whether his bat could project as an everyday regular.

Sal Stewart, 3B, Reds (+13 spots from No. 100 to No. 87)

Stewart is getting to his power more and more, but it hasn’t diminished his ability to be a pure hitter. He’s hit .300 or better in four of five months this season.

Nolan McLean, OF, Mets  (+11 spots from No. 51 to No. 40)

McLean should be pitching in New York soon. In fact, you could make the argument that maybe he should have arrived last month. He’s working into the sixth and seventh innings regularly without ever getting to 100 pitches.

JJ Wetherholt, SS, Cardinals (+5 spots from No. 10 to No. 5)

Wetherholt has been a top 25 prospect for most of the season, but his consistent performance at Double-A and now Triple-A has led to another bump into the top 10. While most of the hitters in the top 10 are high-ceiling prospects who have yet to see significant time in Double-A, Wetherholt is knocking on the door of an MLB call-up.

Samuel Basallo, C, Orioles (+5 spots from No. 12 to No. 7)

Basallo enters what are likely his final weeks in Triple-A with an impeccable offensive resume. He has 23 home runs in just 72 games with a .277/.384/.613 slash line. Basallo isn’t throwing like he did earlier in his career, and his defense at catcher remains a question, but few 20-year-olds have hit like Basallo at Triple-A this year.

Biggest Top 100 Fallers

Travis Sykora, RHP, Nationals (-61 spots from No. 36 to No. 97)

Sykora will miss the remainder of 2025 and likely most or all of the 2026 season recovering from Tommy John surgery. He is one of the better young pitching prospects in the game, but the lost development time and the risk that comes with Tommy John leads to a significant drop in the rankings.

Charlie Condon, OF, Rockies (-33 spots from No. 52 to No. 85)

Hitters often take some time to fully bounce back from wrist injuries, but Condon’s lack of power (five home runs in 71 games) and steadily-rising strikeout rate (30.4% since he was promoted to Double-A) are concerns for a slugger whose value is largely tied up in his bat. As one of our editors noted during our meeting to settle on the Top 100, it’s hard to say right now what Condon or Braden Montgomery (see below) are doing better than fellow 2024 draftee Kaelen Culpepper, who provides much more value defensively.

Braden Montgomery, OF, White Sox (-30 spots from No. 53 to No. 83)

Montgomery is coming off of a serious leg injury suffered in 2024, so there’s potentially more to come once he gets further into his recovery. Even so, it’s been a pretty modest season for a corner outfielder who needs to be a middle-of-the-order bat. The White Sox moved Montgomery more slowly than most 2024 college first-rounders, and his start at Double-A (17 strikeouts in his first 11 games) offer hints as to why.

Jeferson Quero, C, Brewers (-23 spots from No. 46 to No. 69)

Quero is one of the best catching prospects in the game, but the concerns about his durability keep growing. He missed all of last year with a freak shoulder injury. This year, he’s had two IL stints because of a hamstring injury and a second, separate shoulder injury. He’s now had five IL stints since 2023 and will go into 2026 having yet to play 100 games in a season.

Rhett Lowder, RHP, Reds (-15 spots from No. 55 to No. 70)

If healthy, Lowder would likely have graduated by now. Instead, the 2025 season looks like a complete wipeout after a forearm strain in spring training and an oblique injury nixed his early-June comeback. The hope now is that he’ll pitch in the Arizona Fall League.

Angel Genao, SS, Guardians (-13 spots from No. 33 to No. 46)

Genao gets a slight shift downward because of concerns about his offensive impact. He’s showing signs of being more of a bottom-of-the-order hitter, but he’s also trying to make up for lost time after missing multiple months with a shoulder injury.

Cooper Pratt, SS, Brewers (-13 spots from No. 34 to No. 47)

Pratt’s jump to Double-A has sapped his power. He’s still a top-tier shortstop prospect, and it is likely his power will blossom eventually. But this is a slight recalibration.