25. JORDAN SANCHEZ - DESPITE SOME REALLY BAD K#'S IN 2025 - SANCHEZ STILL SHOWED OFF SOME BIG PRODUCTION - ALTHOUGH HE'S A BIT OLD FOR THE CPX LEAGUE. I'LL BE INTERESTED TO SEE HOW HIS CONTACT RATES IMPROVED OR DIGRESS IN A FULL SEASON OF A BALL IN 2026. HE'S SPENDING THE MAJORITY OF HIS TIME IN RF SO THERE ISN'T GOING TO BE MUCH UPSIDE THERE. HE'LL BE A PLAYER TO KEEP AN EYE ON IN 2026 - LOOKS LIKE A HIGH RISK / HIGH CEILING POSSIBILITY RIGHT NOW WITH A POWER OVER HIT PROFILE.

24. HARITZON CASTILLO - YOUNGSTER WITH REALLY GOOD UNDERLYING DATA - DSL ONLY PLAYERS ARE A GAMBLE BUT I DO HAVE MORE FAITH IN THE ONE WITH GOOD UNDERLYING DATA. DIDN'T SHOW OFF MUCH POWER BUT IT LOOKS LIKE THERE IS AT LEAST A SOLID HIT TOOL HERE. PRETTY EVEN SPLITS BETWEEN SS/2B DEFENSIVELY.

23. JOHN GIL - GIL IS A BURNER WITH A SOLID HIT TOOL THAT COULD REALLY TAKE OFF IF HE RUNS INTO ANY POWER THROUGHOUT HIS DEVELOPMENT. WHILE HIS POWER IS STILL LIMITED, IT'S IMPROVED OVER THE COURSE OF 3 SEASONS. HE SPENDS THE MAJORITY OF HIS TIME AT SS AND IS STILL QUITE YOUNG CONSIDERING HE'S PLAYED 3 YEARS OF AFFILIATED BALL.

22. YULIAN BARRETO - BARRETO HELD REALLY GOOD CONTACT NUMBERS IN THE DSL THIS SEASON BUT DIDN'T GET TO MUCH POWER FOR A PLAYER WHO ALREADY GETS THE MAJORITY OF HIS REPS AT 2B. WHILE HIS UNDERLYING DATA IS GREAT - HE'LL NEED TO GET THE BALL IN THE AIR MORE IF HE PLANS ON GETTING INTO ANY POWER IN THE FUTURE.

21. YAIRO PADILLA - PADILLA HAS A SOLID CONTACT/SPEED TOOL AT THE PRESENT MOMENT AND REALLY IMPROVED HIS K NUMBERS FROM THE DSL TO THE CPX LEAGUE. HE POSTED SOME HIGH GB/FB RATES IN 2025 AND DIDN'T RUN INTO ANY POWER. POWER DEPENDENT CEILING PLAYER - WITH A SPEED & CONTACT FLOOR.

20. LIBERTS APONTE - APONTE HAS ABOVE AVERAGE POWER WITH REASONABLE K#'S IN THE DSL.  WE'LL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL HE COMES STATESIDE TO SEE HOW HIS OFFENSIVE PROFILE LOOKS WITH BETTER PITCHING.  POWER HITTING SS'S ARE QUITE POPULAR IN THIS HOBBY BUT ONLY THE FUTURE WILL TELL IF HE CAN STICK AT THE POSITION AND KEEP HITTING BOMBS AS HE INCREASES LEVELS. 

19. DIEGO TORNES - BIG KID FOR AGE STANDING AT 6'2 AND PLAYED SOME OF THE DSL AT AGE 16.  SHOWED OFF A SOLID CONTACT/SPEED TOOL BUT HASN'T RUN INTO ANY POWER YET.  HE'S ONE OF THE YOUNGER PLAYERS ON THIS CHECKLIST SO IT MAY TAKE TIME TO DEVELOP MORE POWER (IF HE DOES AT ALL). 

18. JOSE ANDERSON - ANDERSON HAS A SIMILAR PROFILE TO JORDAN SANCHEZ BUT HE'S MUCH YOUNGER AND ALREADY HAS NEARLY A FULL SEASON OF A BALL UNDER HIS BELT.  HE'S FLASHED SOME BIG POWER NUMBERS FOR HIS AGE BUT HIS CONTACT & K DATA ISN'T GREAT.  HE'LL MOST LIKELY END UP IN A CORNER OF POSITION BUT HE COULD PRODUCE ENOUGH BAT TO OVERCOME HIS LACK OF DEFENSIVE UPSIDE. ANOTHER GUY TO WATCH IN 2026 - ESPECIALLY IF HE'S CHEAP ON RELEASE DAY. 

17. SHOTARO MORII - MORII IS A 2WP ALTHOUGH I DON'T THINK HE'S MADE HIS PROFESSIONAL DEBUT ON THE MOUND YET.  HE'S GOT A PRETTY HIGH POWER CEILING OFFENSIVELY AND PROVIDES PLENTY OF VELOCITY ON THE MOUND.  HE DID SHOW SOME CONTACT RISK THIS SEASON IN THE CPX LEAGUE BUT HE WILL PROBABLY BE A HIT OVER POWER TYPE BAT IN THE FUTURE.  NOT SURE HOW THE 2WP HYPE WILL AFFECT HIS PRICES ON RELEASE DAY - PROBABLY A LOT IF I KNOW THIS HOBBY WELL ENOUGH. 

16. DEVIN FITZ-GERALD 5TH ROUND PICK OUT OF HS IN THE 2024 DRAFT - HAD A BIG YEAR IN THE CPX LEAGUE DESPITE BEING A BIT OLD FOR THE LEVEL.  LIMITED PRODUCTION OVER A SMALL SAMPLE SIZE AFTER A PROMOTION TO LOW A.  POWER PRODUCTION IN THE FUTURE WILL DETERMINE HIS CEILING AS THERE AREN'T MANY PLUS PHYSICAL TOOLS PRESENT. 

15. JUAN CABADA - LIMITED PHYSICALITY AND DEFENSIVE UPSIDE BUT THE OFFENSIVE NUMBERS ARE DECENT ENOUGH TO GIVE ME SLEEPER VIBES HERE.

14. JOHAN DE LOS SANTOS - DOUBLE PLUS WHEELS AND AN ABOVE AVERAGE CONTACT TOOL WITH DATA TO BACK IT. I'M SURE HIS BA IS JUICED A BIT BY HIS ABILITY TO LEG OUT INF HITS BUT HE'S GOT THE BEST K% AND 2ND BEST SWSTR% OF ANY PLAYER I'VE COVERED SO FAR ON THIS LIST - HE'S ALSO THE YOUNGEST TOO SO FAR. HE HASN'T RUN INTO MUCH POWER BUT HIS GB/FB RATES AREN'T TERRIBLE SO BE SURE TO KEEP AN EYE ON HIS POWER NUMBERS IN 2026.

13. KO CHING-SHIEN - HAD A GREAT SEASON IN THE CPX LEAGUE - 6'3" AND PHYSICAL WITH ABOVE AVERAGE SPEED. WILL MOST LIKELY PROFILE IN A CORNER OF SPOT - HE STARTED PLAYING LF MORE FREQUENTLY IN LOW A. STRUGGLED IN A SMALL SAMPLE SIZE AT LOW A BUT WAS YOUNG FOR LEVEL. FULL SEASON OF LOW A DATA NEXT YEAR WILL GIVE US A BETTER LOOK AT HIS OFFENSIVE PROFILE. HIGH GB/FB RATES IN 2025 AS WELL.

12. TOMMY WHITE - WHITE WAS THE 40TH OVERALL PICK IN THE 2024 DRAFT. I SPENT A LOT OF TIME WATCHING HIM AT LSU AND HE'S GOT A LOT OF THUMP. THE ISSUES WITH HIM WERE LIMITED APPROACH AND CHASE. HE'S HAD A SOLID SEASON SO FAR IN 2025 EARNING A RECENT PROMOTION TO AA WHERE HE'S DOING WELL FOR HIS FIRST TASTE OF THE LEVEL. I THINK THE CEILING WILL DEPEND ON GETTING THE BALL IN THE AIR A BIT MORE AND PULLING THE TRIGGER ON MORE PITCHES HE CAN DRIVE IN THE FUTURE.

11. MARCO DINGES - DRAFTED IN THE 4TH ROUND OF THE 2024 DRAFT OUT OF FSU. HIS PRO DEBUT WAS PRETTY MUCH A WASH WITH A SMALL 55 PA SAMPLE SIZE. HE STARTED THE 2025 SEASON IN LOW A AND PUT UP SOME BIG NUMBERS. FOLLOWING A PROMOTION TO HIGH A HE CONTINUED TO HIT FOR AVERAGE AND POWER. HE WAS GOOD FOR 10 HR'S ACROSS ROUGHLY 300 PA'S IN 2025 WITH DECENT K#'S. THE BAT LOOKS TO BE THE CARRYING TOOL HERE AND IF HE DOESN'T STICK BEHIND THE PLATE, HE MIGHT END UP IN A CORNER OF SPOT.

10. BO DAVIDSON - HIGH SPD/PWR CEILING AND GETS THE MAJORITY OF HIS REPS IN CF. COULD GET TO MORE POWER IF HE GOT THE BALL IN THE AIR MORE - HE'S GOT CONSISTENTLY HIGH GB/FB RATES ACROSS LARGER SAMPLE SIZES. HE'S HIT FOR AVERAGE ACROSS 3 SEASONS. STRUGGLING A BIT IN HIS 1ST TASTE OF AA SO HE'LL NEED TO HIT THE GROUND RUNNING IN 2026 BASED ON HIS CURRENT AGE.

9. KEVIN ALVAREZ - ALVAREZ HAS EVEN BETTER UNDERLYING CONTACT DATA THAN GONZALEZ WHICH IS HARD TO DO. HE'S A 6'4" LEFTY HITTER AT AGE 17 AND WILL HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO ADD TO HIS FRAME AND DEVELOP POWER. HE SPENT THE MAJORITY OF HIS TIME IN CF IN THE DSL BUT WILL MOST LIKELY END UP IN A CORNER. HIS BAT WILL BE THE CARRYING TOOL AND I'M VERY OPTIMISTIC HERE ABOUT HIS ABILITY TO HIT WHEN HE GETS STATESIDE BASED ON HIS ELITE UNDERLYING DATA.

8. GABRIEL DAVALILLO - #17 RANKED INTERNATIONAL PROSPECT IN MLB.COM'S 2025 CLASS - LOOKS LIKE A POWER HITTING BACKSTOP WITH EXCELLENT K DATA. MORE WALKS THAN K'S AND THE 6.7 SWSTR% IS PLUS. THERE LOOK TO BE SEVERAL HIGH DSL PERFORMERS IN THIS CHECKLIST - IT'S ALMOST LIKE A LOTTERY TO SEE WHICH ONE PANS OUT IN 2-3 YEARS.

7. ELORKY RODRIGUEZ - SOLID PROFESSIONAL DEBUT IN THE DSL AND #29 RANKED INTERNATIONAL PROSPECT ON MLB.COM'S 2025 CLASS - EXCELLENT UNDERLYING DATA WITH THE EXCEPTION OF GB/FB BEING A BIT HIGH. HE KIND OF FITS INTO A UTL MOLD DEFENSIVELY AND GOT THE MAJORITY OF HIS REPS AT 2B AND CF IN 2025. FROM WHAT I'VE READ HE DOESN'T POSSESS ANY PLUS PLUS TOOLS BUT HE'S A SOLID PLAYER. IT'S ALWAYS A COIN FLIP AS TO HOW THESE DSL DOMINATORS WILL PERFORM AFTER COMING STATESIDE.

6. ANDREW SALAS - SALAS WAS THE YOUNGEST PLAYER IN THE MILB TO PLAY A FULL SEASON IN LOW A. WHILE HIS PRODUCTION NUMBERS DON'T JUMP OUT AT YOU, HE'S GOT SOME QUALITY UNDERLYING DATA. HE'S GOT PLUS SPEED AND ATHLETICISM WITH AN ADVANCED APPROACH FOR HIS AGE (16.6% BB RATE). I LISTED HIM AS A UTILITY AS HE PLAYED 373 INNINGS IN CF AND SPLIT THE REST OF HIS DEF REPS AT SS/2B. IT'S HARD TO READ YOUNG PROSPECTS WHO ARE CHALLENGED SIGNIFICANTLY AGE/LEVEL WISE - THE MARLINS ARE ALSO PRETTY BAD AT DEVELOPING HITTERS SO THERE COULD BE SOME RISK HERE IF HIS CARDS ARE EXPENSIVE ON RELEASE - WHICH I THINK THEY WILL BE.

5. ELIAN PENA - #3 RANKED PROSPECT IN MLB.COM'S 2025 INTERNATIONAL CLASS. HAD A GREAT SEASON IN THE DSL AND CHECKED ALL OF THE BOXES STATS WISE. SCOUTING REPORT SAYS 5 TOOL PLAYER WITH GREAT MAKEUP. ALL UNDERLYING DATA LOOKS REALLY GOOD - IF I WAS BEING NITPICKY I'D SAY THE SWSTR% COULD USE A BIT OF WORK. I DON'T PUT A LOT OF STOCK IN DSL STATS SO I'M ANXIOUS TO SEE HOW HE HANDLES STATESIDE BALL IN 2026. QUICK REMINDER - I DON'T GO ABOVE 2.5 FOR DSL ONLY PLAYERS - BUT HE'LL BE ONE OF THE TOP CHASES ON RELEASE DAY.

4. CRIS RODRIGUEZ - #4 RANKED PROSPECT IN MLB.COM'S 2025 INTERNATIONAL CLASS. 6'3" PHYSICAL OF'ER WITH HIGH POWER CEILING. PERFORMED VERY WELL IN DSL AT AGE 17 AND WILL MOST LIKELY MAKE HIS STATESIDE DEBUT IN 2026. HE'LL MOST LIKELY GROOM INTO A CORNER OF POSITION AS HE MATURES AND HE'LL NEED TO PROVE HE CAN KEEP HIS SWING AND MISS DOWN AS HE MOVES UP IN THE SYSTEM. HE'S LOOKING LIKE A HIGH RISK/HIGH CEILING PLAYER RIGHT NOW. I ALSO NEVER RANK PLAYERS WITH DSL ONLY STATS HIGHER THAN 2.5 DUE TO THE AMOUNT OF FALLOFF THAT OCCURS WHEN THEY COME STATESIDE.

3. JOSUAR GONZALEZ - GONZALEZ MIGHT BE THE TOP CHASE IN THIS RELEASE AND IS THE #1 RANKED INTERNATIONAL PROSPECT ON MLB.COM'S 2025 CLASS THAT IS UNDER 23 YEARS OLD. HE'S GOT PLUS ATHLETICISM AND SHOWED OFF SOME REALLY GOOD UNDERLYING DATA IN THE DSL THIS SEASON. GONZALEZ COULD DEVELOP INTO AN ABOVE AVERAGE SS WITH THE ABILITY TO HIT FOR AVERAGE, POWER, AND STEAL BASES OR HE COULD FADE OFF INTO THE NETHER LIKE OTHER TOP RANKING INTERNATIONAL PROSPECTS (VAQUERO, ARIAS). I FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE WITH GONZALEZ BECAUSE HIS UNDERLYING DATA IS MUCH BETTER THAN ALL OF THE BUST PROSPECTS FROM YEARS PRIOR.

2. NATE GEORGE - GEORGE DOMINATED THE CPX LEAGUE AND LOW A IN 2025. HE WAS RECENTLY PROMOTED TO A+ WHERE HE IS STRUGGLING A BIT BUT THAT'S TO BE EXPECTED AT HIS CURRENT AGE OF 19.2. GEORGE IS VERY ATHLETIC AND HAS IMPACT, IN GAME SPEED. HE'S SHOWN THE ABILITY TO HIT FOR AVERAGE AND POWER OUTPUT WILL MOST LIKELY DETERMINE HIS CEILING IN THE FUTURE. I'M A BIT WORRIED ABOUT HIS HIGH GB/FB RATES RIGHT NOW BUT THEY COULD GET BETTER AS HE IMPROVES HIS APPROACH IN THE FUTURE. DEPENDING ON WHERE HIS PRICES SETTLE, HE COULD BE A BIG SLEEPER IN THIS RELEASE.

1. RAINIEL RODRIGUEZ - HE REMINDS ME OF FRANCISCO ALVAREZ WITH LESS ARM BEHIND THE PLATE. RODRIGUEZ HAS SHOWN OFF SOME BIG JUICE AND EXCELLENT CONTACT RATES ACROSS 3 LEVELS IN HIS EARLY CAREER. HE POSTED SOME OF HIS BEST K DATA TO DATE AFTER BEING PROMOTED TO LOW A WHICH IS RARE FOR YOUNG PROSPECTS. PRIOR TO HIS 19TH BIRTHDAY, HE'S ALREADY RACKED UP 27 HR'S IN HIS PRO CAREER. AT THIS POINT HE'S LOOKING LIKE A FUTURE IMPACT BAT BUT HIS SKILLS BEHIND THE PLATE WILL NEED TO CATCH UP. HE COULD MAKE A PUSH FOR HIGHEST RELEASE DAY PRICE BASED ON HIS CURRENT POWER OUTPUT AND AGE.