IBC

From BP's MLU: https://www.baseballprospectus.com/pros ... mos-quero/

Jeferson Quero, C, Milwaukee Brewers (Triple-A Nashville): 2-4, HR, 2 BB, 3 R, 3 RBI.
Quero is a long(ish)time fave of the prospect team (present company included), so it was nice to see him play most of a full season in the International League after he missed most of 2024 with a serious right shoulder injury. Jeffery Paternostro wrote a thorough ten pack on him last month, within which he noted a few ongoing post-injury concerns but also acknowledged the upside that persists.


And another regarding the AFL: https://www.baseballprospectus.com/pros ... l-arizona/

Hyun-Seok Jang, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers
Jang checks off two criteria for demanding my attention: (1) I would like to see if he’s healthy, and (2) he’s on a list that publishes while the league is still running. Jang still fits the mold of “Interesting Next 10 Dodgers pitching prospect.” He throws very hard, has two bat-missing breaking ball options, and walked seven per nine in Low-A before getting hurt. All very Dodgers. Jang is a long way away from the majors, and he was on the older side for the Cal League, but this is premium stuff, and hey, he’s like six years younger than Kyle Hurt and River Ryan, who will also be in this tier somewhere. If he’s throwing well in the Phoenix metroplex, you can at least give him the leg up over them for being presently healthy.

From BA's Org. Player of the Year series: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories ... -the-year/

Brody Hopkins played both ways as a college junior, but his professional position has been pitcher ever since the Mariners drafted him in the sixth round in 2023.

The righthander shined at Low-A for Seattle before the Mariners traded him to the Rays as part of the July 2024 Randy Arozarena deal. Hopkins kept succeeding at High-A last season and at Double-A Montgomery this season.

His 2.72 ERA and 141 strikeouts both ranked fourth in the Southern League. He pitched in the Futures Game. He fired five shutout innings in his first playoff start.

“He just showed a lot of growth as a starting pitcher,” Rays assistant GM Kevin Ibach said. “He was a guy who was a position player in college for a long time and has limited innings on the mound as a professional … So I think going to Montgomery this year, in a smaller league, you’re facing a lot of the same competition over and over again, he was able to post every fifth day and make adjustments along the way—because the stuff is certainly there.”

Hopkins has a strong pitch mix. The Rays are encouraged by his increasing pitchability, durability and results at Double-A.

He logged 25 starts and 116 innings this season and missed bats, though his walk rate of 12% was fifth-worst among Double-A pitchers with at least 100 innings.

“He can really spin the baseball,” Ibach said. “But I think it’s just being able to get ahead with his fastball or the cutter.

“Strike one has always been what we’ve been preaching to him, and I think he’s done a good job throughout the year of really adapting to that mentality and really trying to get ahead of hitters.’’

The Rays were well aware they were getting a superior athlete, still likely one of the best in their organization. What they learned in 2024 was the extent of his competitiveness.

“He really wants to win, really is hard on himself, and expects big things out of himself,” Ibach said. “So you couple that athleticism with that mentality, and I think you have a really, really good starting pitching prospect on your hands.”

From BA's Org. Player of the Year series: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories ... -the-year/

First baseman Jonathon Long embodied consistency in his first season at Triple-A Iowa.

The Cubs drafted Long in the ninth round out of Long Beach State in 2023. He reached Double-A last year and upped the ante as a 23-year-old this season by leading the International League in hits, batting .308/.407/.482 and setting career highs with 20 home runs and 91 RBIs.

Cubs farm director Jason Kanzler pointed to three traits Long possesses that enhance his floor: his high walk rate, low strikeout rate and an ability to hit the ball hard, often in the air.

“Those three things give him a really good shot to be a very productive player,” Kanzler said. “And that’s not even including the things that aren’t really talked about with him, which is that he is a very good first baseman defensively.”

While his consistency became a staple of his performance this year, Long’s June performance was his only extended blip in production. His .606 OPS that month came with just two extra-base hits but with 11 walks and 14 strikeouts in 25 games.

Reflecting on his June, Long said he emerged stronger from the struggles and learned how to fail in order to succeed.

“Obviously, you’re not going to dominate the whole season,” Long said. “You’re going to go through peaks and valleys, and that was the first real time that things were just not going my way.

“You still have to show up to the ballpark every day, and take every day as a new day, a new opportunity, and keep pushing through even when you can’t see that light at the end of the tunnel.”

Long’s struggles helped him focus his mindset: “This is my time to struggle. It’s not going to happen forever.”

The Cubs have shown they will give regular at-bats to young position players, including Michael Busch, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Matt Shaw. Others, such as Kevin Alcantara, Moises Ballesteros and Owen Caissie have made their MLB debuts the past two seasons.

“At the end of the day, I need to make sure I do my job and take care of what I need to in order to prepare for whatever role they want,” Long said, “whether that’s next year, in a couple of years.”

From BA's Org. Player of the Year series: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories ... -the-year/

Josue De Paula and Zyhir Hope played side by side at High-A Great Lakes and went to the Futures Game together. Mike Sirota put up a 1.068 OPS in 59 games at a pair of Class A stops but missed more than half the season with a knee injury.

But the outfielder who shined brightest from start to finish this season was 20-year-old center fielder Eduardo Quintero. He stood out by steadily refining the skills that prompted the Dodgers to sign him out of Venezuela in 2023 and move him from his amateur position of catcher to the outfield.

“Internally we had him very high. I think he exceeded expectations,” Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes said. “They loved the dude (in player development). Every challenge, every tweak they’ve given him he’s taken it and made the adjustment.”

Indeed.

At Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, Quintero slashed .306/.426/.533 and led the California League with 14 home runs, 73 runs scored and a .960 OPS at the time he was promoted to High-A. At Great Lakes, he still maintained an OPS over .800 as one of the youngest players in the league.

In 113 games he totaled 19 homers and 47 stolen bases while drawing 88 walks.

“He’s shown good bat-to-ball, pretty good decision-making, really young for the level,” Gomes said. “Shows power when you need it. Can hit balls to all fields. There’s no one standout 80-grade tool. It’s a bunch of really good components plus good makeup to bet on.”

If those were all things the Dodgers expected from Quintero, he has also filled in some blanks with his ability to handle center field.

“In general, it’s a rare commodity,” Gomes said. “So that is always a question—where is he going to end up defensively? I don’t think he’s a slam dunk center fielder. But I think it’s a high probability that he’s going to play a good center field.”

From BP's End of Year Heat Check: https://www.baseballprospectus.com/pros ... 25-review/

Jonathon Long, 1B, Chicago Cubs (Triple-A): .305/.404/.479, 20 HR, 2 SB.
We left Long off of our Cubs’ list last year despite his excellent second half in Double-A where he slashed .340/.455/.528 for Tennessee. It was a short sample size of success for a player who lacked a defensive home and really didn’t appear to fit into Chicago’s long-term plans. His 2025 campaign was even better, a reduction in strikeouts and an uptick in power both leading to career-best numbers. Even with the bat looking like it is major-league ready, Long’s path to Wrigley is hardly assured. With the emergence of Michael Busch as a legitimate middle-of-the-order run producer, and Matt Shaw seemingly locking down the third-base job with his strong second half, there isn’t much room on the major-league roster for Long. Not Rule-5 eligible until after the 2026 season, it’s likely he stays in Iowa next year to provide depth, unlee instead he’ shipped out via trade this offseason to a team in need of an offensive upgrade at a corner.

Nolan McLean, RHP, New York Mets (Double-A, Triple-A): 2.45 ERA, 113.2 IP, 50 BB, 127 K. (Friday Focus)
The Mets’ pitching development flexed their muscle this summer, giving us two of minor-league baseball’s best success stories in McLean and Jonah Tong. Ranked 74th by us coming into the season, he dominated his way up the ladder, becoming the major-league club’s best starter down the stretch. The arsenal was tweaked over the course of the year, shifting to a heavier use of the sinker to generate weak ground balls and punishing righties with his spin breakers. With just 48 innings of work at the big league-level, McLean will remain prospect eligible going into 2026, where he’s almost a lock to be the top arm on the 101.

Eduardo Quintero, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers (Low-A, High-A): .293/.415/.508, 19 HR, 47 SB. (Ten Pack)
When Michael Sirota went down with a knee injury at Great Lakes in late July, the Dodgers just replaced him with another top-50 outfield prospect in Quintero. There he joined Zyhir Hope and Josue DePaula to form arguably the best outfield in minor-league baseball. The production in the Midwest League was fine, but the power did dip against the more advanced pitching. Quintero is likely to return to High-A next spring; his early season play will be a litmus test to whether his 2025 power surge was more a function of the hitter-friendly Cal League, or if he’s truly on track to be a future slugging corner outfielder.

From BA: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories ... ptember-2/

2. Rays righthander Brody Hopkins missed bats with the best Southern League starters this season, but his 12% walk rate for Montgomery was fifth-worst among Double-A pitchers with at least 100 innings. The Rays believe in his athleticism and competitiveness, while envisioning better days ahead as the 23-year-old sharpens his control. “He can really spin the baseball,” Rays assistant GM Kevin Ibach said. “But I think it’s just being able to get ahead with his fastball or the cutter. Strike one has always been what we’ve been preaching to him, and I think he’s done a good job throughout the year of really adapting to that mentality and really trying to get ahead of hitters.’’

8. Low-A Rancho Cucamonga center fielder Eduardo Quintero has been a favorite of Dodgers player development because he makes every adjustment asked of him. The results were on full display this season as the 20-year-old led the California League in OPS on his way to High-A. “He’s shown good bat-to-ball, pretty good decision-making, really young for the level,” Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes said. “Shows power when you need it. Can hit balls to all fields. There’s no one standout 80-grade tool. It’s a bunch of really good components plus good makeup to bet on.”