Orioles Prospect Report - May 2025

[Orioles]

From the May 2 BA article 10 Arizona Complex League Prospects To Watch In 2025:


Joswa Lugo, SS, Angels

Lugo announced his presence with authority on the backfields this spring, including a thundercrack of an opposite-field home run in the waning days of camp. The blast served as a reminder of the kind of thump he showed in the DSL, where he swatted 11 doubles, three triples and five home runs while adding 18 stolen bags for good measure. Lugo is likely to move off shortstop, but he has the tools to be an offensive force.


Humberto Cruz, RHP, Padres

Cruz was part of a San Diego international haul that also included teenage toolshed Leo De Vries. The righthander signed out of Mexico for $750,000, the second-highest outlay paid to an international pitcher in 2024. Cruz earned that money thanks to a mid-90s fastball and a potentially plus changeup. He also throws a slider that could get to solid-average, and he mixes the package together with high doses of pitchability. Cruz got into two ACL games last summer and will begin his season there after he finishes rehabbing a minor injury.


From the May 2 BA article 10 Florida Complex League Prospects To Watch In 2025:


Yairo Padilla, SS, Cardinals

The reviews on Padilla this spring were mixed. He looked a bit less advanced at the plate, though evaluators in the DSL last summer suggested his offensive game might be more of a long-term play that would require patience and a few coats of polish to his approach. Defensively, there’s little doubt Padilla can stick at shortstop. He’s a smooth, athletic player with quickness to both sides and 60-grade arm strength. If he makes strides with the bat, Padilla’s stock could soar.


Dalvinson Reyes, RHP, Red Sox

Reyes is a massive righthander with big stuff but the need for plenty of patience. He dominated in a brief turn in the DSL before being shut down with general fatigue and placed into a conditioning program. The righthander brought his fastball up to 94 mph in his pro debut, and his two offspeed pitches—a slider and a changeup—each showed the potential to be above-average weapons with plenty of refinement. Reyes’ smooth delivery should allow him to throw plenty of high-quality strikes, as well.

[Orioles]

From the May 5 BA Prospect Hot Sheet:


1. Leo De Vries, SS, Padres

Team: High-A Fort Wayne (Midwest)
Age: 18
Why He’s Here: .533/.667/.867 (8-for-15), 6 R, 2 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBIs, 6 BB, 0 SO, 1-for-1 SB

The Scoop: The kid is all right. Wait, scratch that. The kid is more than all right. He’s spectacular. In fact, he’s exactly the type of player who might one day reign as the best prospect in the sport. De Vries is the youngest player in the Midwest League by nearly a year, and he’s annihilating the competition. He’s already had a cycle and two home runs, and this past week, he went 22 plate appearances without striking out. In fact, he swung and missed just four times all series. At the close of Fort Wayne’s week against Dayton, De Vries was leading the Midwest League in slugging (.593) and OPS. Not bad for anyone, but eye-popping for an 18-year-old. (JN)

[Orioles]

From the May 5 BA article Marlins’ Robby Snelling Sees Stuff Tick Up:


Robby Snelling was once a coveted 6-foot-3, 235-pound linebacker prospect, coveted by colleges from Penn State to UCLA.

“I loved hitting,” said Snelling, who also played quarterback.

But Snelling also had another talent. He also was a star lefthander who once struck out 20 batters in a seven-inning game for McQueen High in Reno, Nev.

The Padres drafted Snelling 39th overall in 2022 and signed him for $3 million. Two years later, the Marlins acquired Snelling in the trade that sent closer Tanner Scott to San Diego.

So far, that trade looks promising for the Marlins. The 21-year-old Snelling made five April starts for Double-A Pensacola. He pitched to a 2.42 ERA with 33 strikeouts and seven walks in 26 innings..

“His stuff is ticking up,” Pensacola pitching coach Jerad Eickhoff said. “His breaking ball is sharper, and he’s made an adjustment to his changeup.”

Snelling’s fastball sat 94-95 mph and touched 97.

As for his curve, Snelling credits the mentorship of Padres righthander Joe Musgrove helping him with that pitch when they were both in the same organization.

“(Musgrove) was my locker mate in the spring of 2024,” Snelling said. “He asked me to play catch on the first day, and I learned a lot from him.”

Snelling’s curve now has increased spin and more movement. He also added a slider, and the goal is to increase the velocity on that pitch so that it tracks more like his fastball.

So far it’s all working, but Snelling said he is not worried about a potential promotion to Triple-A.

“That’s not my choice,” Snelling said. “I just want to stack good starts.”

[Orioles]

From BA's May 7th Top 100 Prospects:

7. Leodalis De Vries
San Diego Padres | SS

Ht: 6'2" | Wt: 183 | B-T: S-R
Age: 18
BA Grade/Risk 65/High.

The Skinny: De Vries skipped Rookie-ball entirely after signing last January and dazzled in a season spent at Low-A Lake Elsinore. Injuries to his shoulder were about the only things that stopped his progress. Now fully healthy, he’s taken his game up a notch and looks like the best hitter in the pitcher-friendly Midwest League.

21. Carson Williams
Tampa Bay Rays | SS

Ht: 6'1" | Wt: 180 | B-T: R-R
Age: 21
BA Grade/Risk 60/High.

The Skinny: Without a doubt, Williams’ glove will get him to the big leagues. Now, it’s a matter of whether he’ll hit once he gets there. The infield wizard has plenty of power in his bat—he hit 20 doubles and 20 homers last year in the Southern League—but Triple-A breaking balls have proved vexing in the early part of the season.

78. Robby Snelling
Miami Marlins | RHP

Ht: 6'3" | Wt: 210 | B-T: R-L
Age: 21
BA Grade/Risk 55/High.

The Skinny: After a season to forget in 2024, Robby Snelling has returned to form and is showing the best swing-and-miss stuff of his career. The 2023 Minor League Pitcher Of The Year looks back on track after his velocity ticked back up to start the season.

87. Alfredo Duno
Cincinnati Reds | C

Ht: 6'2" | Wt: 210 | B-T: R-R
Age: 19
BA Grade/Risk 60/Extreme.

The Skinny: Despite poor luck at the plate to begin the season, Duno has shown power and limited his strikeout rate. He has a shot to stick behind the plate thanks to his plus throwing arm.

93. Caleb Bonemer
Chicago White Sox | SS

Ht: 6'1" | Wt: 195 | B-T: R-R
Age: 19
BA Grade/Risk 55/High.

The Skinny: Over the first few weeks of the season, Bonemer has shown power, solid plate skills and the ability to stick in the infield. It’s been a long time since the White Sox have had a talented prep hitter with Bonemer’s upside.

[Orioles]

From the May 9 BA article 10 MLB Prospects With Standout Contact, Chase & Exit Velocity Data Early In 2025:


Caleb Bonemer, SS, White Sox

At points in the summer of 2023, Bonemer looked like a potential first-round pick in 2024. That didn’t come to fruition, however, as Bonemer dropped to the second round. The infielder didn’t debut following the draft, giving us our first look at him this spring.

That debut look as been excellent, as Bonemer is hitting .275/.404/.462 while showing power, getting on-base and limiting strikeouts. Under the hood, it looks even better, as Bonemer is displaying a nice blend of skills. His 14.2% in-zone miss rate is excellent, and he’s limited his exposure to whiffs outside the zone with a 22.6% chase rate, which is an above-average mark. Where Bonemer stands out is in his exit velocity data, with a 105.4 mph 90th percentile exit velocity in his professional debut.

Beyond his raw power, Bonemer has a knack for finding the barrel, with an average launch angle on his hard-hit batted ball events of 14.3 degrees. This has led to an outstanding barrel rate so far of 19.7%. This combination of skills gives Bonemer the look of one of the top breakouts names of 2025.

[Orioles]

From the May 13 BA MLB Prospects Wire:

Angels’ Joswa Lugo Goes Deep For First Time In ACL Play

Arizona Complex League Angels shortstop Joswa Lugo went 1-for-4 and connected for his first home run in a domestic minor league game on May 12. The 18-year-old has been swinging a hot bat in Rookie ball, going 13-for-30 (.433) with three doubles, a homer and just four strikeouts through his first seven games. Lugo signed out of the Dominican Republic last year and stood out in the Dominican Summer League in his pro debut.

Mets Promote Trio Of Pitching Prospects To High-A

High-A Brooklyn begins a six-game home series against Winston-Salem on Tuesday, May 13. The Cyclones will have three new righthanders—Nate Dohm, Raimon Gomez and Matt Allan—at their disposal when facing the Dash. All three were promoted from Low-A St. Lucie. The Mets drafted Dohm in the third round last year out of Mississippi State. Making his pro debut this spring, he posted a 3.18 ERA in 28.1 innings, striking out 34 and walking 10 while allowing one home run. Gomez and Allan are back this season after rehabbing from elbow surgery. Gomez had Tommy John surgery in early 2023 and has gained notice this year for throwing a 104.5 mph fastball in a game for St. Lucie. He has struck out 20 in 13 innings, while making appearances of no more than 49 pitches or three innings. Allan was a touted prep pitching prospect in the 2019 draft who fell to the third round and had not pitched in an official minor league game since August of his draft year. Allan, still just 24, has had three major elbow surgeries since 2021, the latest being a Tommy John revision surgery in early 2023.

[Orioles]

From the May 14 BA article Elite Trio Of Shortstop Prospects Taking Minors By Storm:


Leo De Vries

Scoot down a level to the Midwest League, and you’ll find De Vries, who signed in January 2024 and immediately proved advanced enough to skip over both the Dominican Summer and Arizona Complex leagues. He debuted in the Low-A just days before his 17th birthday and went punch for punch against the advanced pitching until a shoulder injury paused his season through to the Arizona Fall League.

All told, De Vries finished his opening pro season with an .803 OPS across 75 California League games. His numbers weren’t as loud in the AFL, but he became the youngest player to hit a home run in the league since Bryce Harper went deep as an 18-year-old in the league in 2010.

It would have been easy to expect De Vries to scuffle out of the gate this year, not only because he was the youngest player in the Midwest League, but also because the circuit’s early-season weather has long had a reputation for muting the outputs of talented hitters.

Not so.

Through the first 27 games, De Vries has taken ownership of the league. His .519 slugging percentage is second only to Dodgers prospect Josue De Paula, and his OPS, RBIs and total bases all rank among the league’s top 10.

The gem of De Vries’ season came on April 22 when he hit for the cycle and added a second home run for good measure. He’s failed to collect a hit or a walk in just four games this season.

“Once he makes contact, like the ball, the ball jumps more than most,” a second scout said, before noting that De Vries could stand to tighten his swing decisions a little bit before he’s ready to handle his first crack at the upper levels.

“He’s got all the tools and ability. I just think he’s he’s an 18-year-old who makes rushed decisions, and there’s some eagerness to every part of this game. But there’s nothing that I saw in that series that didn’t make me think like, ‘Man, this kid high-probability 6, probably even decent probability of being a 7 (on the 20-80 scouting scale). I mean, he’s probably one of the best prospects I’ve ever seen.”

[Orioles]

From the May 14 BP Minor League Update:


Henry Bolte, OF, Sacramento Athletics (Double-A Midland): 4-5, 2 R, 2B, 3B, 4 RBI, SB.

There’s a lot to like in the profile for Bolte, uber-athletic with raw power and playing in Double-A as a 20-year old. They’re the type of tools that would have him at the top of prospect lists if not for some extreme swing-and-miss issues. The strikeout rate climbed to nearly 40% last summer but is down significantly in 2025, currently hovering in the upper-20s. If the discipline and pitch recognition gains are real, Bolte’s prospect status is going to skyrocket.


From BA's May 14 MLB Prospect Wire:


Yairo Padilla Goes Wild In Doubleheader

Last year, Cardinals shortstop Yairo Padilla established himself in the Dominican Summer League as a prospect with immense upside. Then, in his first spring stateside, it looked like his path to the big leagues might be a slower burn. He began the Florida Complex League with two hits in his first 19 at-bats. On Tuesday alone, he racked up five hits. The output included two triples, his first two extra-base hits of the year. He drove in four runs as well and also worked a walk. All told, Padilla’s big day raised his batting average from .105 to .269.

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From the May 15 BA article 8 Top 100 Pitchers With Intriguing Pitch Mix Data So Far In 2025:


Robby Snelling, LHP, Marlins

Our 2023 Minor League Pitcher Of The Year endured a difficult go-round in his second full professional season last year, as everything seemed to tick downward. After a trade to the Marlins at the 2024 trade, Snelling continued to struggle. However, following a full offseason with Miami, Snelling has returned to prominence to begin 2025. All of his stuff is better than ever, and the results so far have followed.

Snelling mixes four pitches in a four-seam fastball, curveball, changeup and newly-added slider. The fastball is up 1-2 mph on average with a spin rate that’s increased by 200 rpm. These added traits have led to not only more ride on the pitch but also a flatter plane of approach to the plate. His whiff rate on the pitch has taken a noticeable jump from 22% in 2024 to 27% in 2025.

His curveball has also added spin and some velocity, leading to improved results, as he’s generated more swings and chases. His changeup has taken a step forward, too, as he’s killing more lift on the pitch while creating more vertical and velocity separation. His whiff rate against the changeup has nearly tripled this season, giving him a true third pitch and a way to pacify righthanded hitters.

His slider is still only used around 12% of the time, but it has become a more significant piece of his arsenal. The pitch sits 84-86 mph with true gyro shape. While it has not generated a ton of whiffs, it is another option and a bridge pitch between his fastball and slider.

With good command, an improving arsenal and a new fourth pitch, Snelling is back on track for a midrotation spot in the coming years.

[Orioles]

From the May 19 BA Prospects Hot Sheet:


9. Henry Bolte, OF, Athletics

Team: Double-A Midland (Texas)
Age: 21
Why He’s Here: .458/.523/.833 (11-for-24), 5 R, 2 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR, 8 RBIs, 4 BB, 6 SO, 2-for-2 SB

The Scoop: It’s been a breakout first month of 2025 for Bolte, as he’s significantly cut his strikeout rate this season. The significant jump in contact has been a welcomed development for Bolte, who’s blessed with power and speed. Last week, he started the series off against El Paso with multi-hit games in the first four games. His best came on Tuesday, as he went 4-for-5 and finished a home run short of hitting for the cycle. Bolte is an exciting, tooled-up player who’s coming into his own in 2025. (GP)


Helium

Stharlin Torres, RHP, Reds

The domestic complex leagues are in full swing, and the annual pop-up prospects are starting to make themselves known. Early word from the desert is that the Reds have a stable of fireballers flying under the radar. One pitcher who fits that description in Torres, who fronts a three-pitch mix with a riding fastball that sits in the 94-97 mph range. He backs it with a changeup and a slider. So far, the 18-year-old Torres has punched out 13 hitters and issued just one walk over seven innings. He fanned 51 against 13 walks a year ago in the Dominican Summer League. (JN)