The long wait to play ball again (officially) came to a close as the 2025 season got underway with a lot of big hits and some speedy baserunning at the Minors' highest level.
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FRIDAY'S TOP PERFORMERS:
Dalton Rushing, C/OF, Oklahoma City (LAD No. 2/MLB No. 30)
Rushing launched 26 home runs in 2024, including two in the penultimate game of the season. The 2022 second-rounder picked up where he left off on Triple-A Opening Day with a 390-foot home run in his second at-bat. He added a 106.1 mph single in the eighth inning for the hardest-hit ball from either team of the game. Gameday
Kyle Teel, C, Charlotte (CWS No. 2/MLB No. 32) and Colson Montgomery, SS, Charlotte (CWS No. 4/MLB No. 39)
The top two White Sox position prospects slugged their way through a powerful Opening Night for the Triple-A Knights. Teel and Montgomery both went deep, combining for four RBIs and three runs scored. The centerpiece of the offseason deal that sent Garrett Crochet to the Red Sox, the outing marked Teel's first official game as a member of the White Sox organization. Full story | Gameday
Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, St. Paul (MIN No. 2/MLB No. 37)
Rodriguez filled up the stat sheet for the Triple-A Saints, tallying three hits and driving two runs. The 22-year-old kicked off the scoring with a 113 mph double and added a pair of a singles and a walk to his ledger. Rodriguez made seven late-season appearances for St. Paul to cap an injury-shortened 2024 campaign. Gameday
Owen Caissie, OF, Iowa (CHC No. 3/MLB No. 53)
Caissie flexed his muscles in a big way during the I-Cubs' Opening Night contest. After going deep 17 times in 127 games for the Triple-A squad in 2024, the 22-year-old kicked off the new season with his first long ball, a 426 foot jack. Caissie slashed .278/.375/.472 and drove in 75 runs last season, his first at the highest level of the Minors. Gameday
Justin Crawford, OF, Lehigh Valley (PHI No. 3/MLB No. 63)
A 2022 first-round pick, Crawford has been consistent at the plate during his first two full seasons of pro ball. After batting .313 across High-A and Double-A last year, the 21-year-old headed to the International League out of camp. He quickly notched his first Triple-A hits, going 2-for-4 with a walk in the season opener. Gameday
Chandler Simpson, OF, Durham (TB No. 7)
Known for elite speed which garnered Simpson an MiLB-leading 104 stolen bases in 2024, the 24-year-old showed off his prowess at the plate to open the season. In his first career Triple-A game, Simpson collected three hits for Durham. He is coming off a solid stint at Double-A during which he batted .351 in 78 games over the latter half of the season. Gameday
Juan Brito, INF/OF, Columbus (CLE No. 10)
Nobody bats 1.000 for the entire season, but Brito kept the dream alive for at least a pair of plate appearances in 2025. The switch-hitting 23-year-old peppered a double his first time up, before plating a run with a second consecutive line drive. His seventh-inning sacrifice fly tied the game for Triple-A Columbus and his run-scoring infield single a frame later served as a cherry on top of his three-hit, three-RBI outing -- the ninth time in his MiLB career he racked up three of each.
WHAT TO WATCH SATURDAY:
Quinn Mathews makes his season debut
Memphis Redbirds (STL) vs. Louisville Bats (CIN) -- 2:05 p.m. ET
What does the reigning MiLB Pitching Prospect of the Year have up his sleeve for an encore? Well, MLB's No. 45 prospect posted a bunch of goose eggs during Grapefruit League play, spinning six scoreless frames while donning Cardinals red. Starting staff spots were scarce out of the gate for St. Louis, so Mathews returned to Triple-A Memphis to open 2025 after running into a rough four-start patch at the end of last season. The Louisville lineup should feature multiple hitters with big league experience, an early test for one of the game¡¯s elite southpaw prospects.
Four Top 100 prospects pack the lineups
Durham Bulls (TB) vs. Norfolk Tides (BAL) ¨C 6:35 p.m. ET
The only thing better than getting to see Tampa Bay's Carson Williams (MLB No. 9), Baltimore's Samuel Basallo (MLB No. 13) and others from the Rays and Orioles¡¯ Triple-A farm clubs is getting to do so for FREE. Chandler Simpson (TB No. 7) may not be a Top 100 prospect (yet), but he did follow up winning the 2024 MiLB batting crown by notching three hits in the season opener. (He even stole 104 bases -- yes, 104! -- to boot last year.) Tune in to see these future American League East rivals clash.
Lawlar, Kurtz collide in Las Vegas
Reno Aces (AZ) vs. Las Vegas Aviators (ATH) ¨C 10:05 p.m. ET
Yes, the ball is flying in Vegas even in March, as evidenced by this 458-foot shot by Colby Thomas (ATH No. 3) on Opening Night. So let¡¯s get excited about the D-backs' Jordan Lawlar (MLB No. 11) and the A's Nick Kurtz (MLB No. 38) digging in and swinging for the downs. Kurtz collected his first Triple-A knock -- a double -- in his Aviators debut, while Lawlar brought a career Triple-A slash line of .362/.438/.603 into the series.