Our 2025 MLB Pipeline Poll kicked off with a look at Rookie of the Year favorites. In Part II, we take a deeper dive into what executives across all 30 MLB organizations think about the top prospects in the game.

Who do executives think is the best overall prospect in the game? The top hitter or pitcher? Poised for a breakout? Let¡¯s take a look at the results.

Who is baseball¡¯s No. 1 prospect?

Also received votes: Samuel Basallo, C/1B, Orioles; Max Clark, OF, Tigers; Nick Kurtz, 1B, A¡¯s; Andrew Painter, RHP, Phillies; Noah Schultz, LHP, White Sox; Cam Smith, 3B, Astros

The overall top prospect question was added to the survey this year because aren¡¯t we all curious who teams think should top the list? And we were a little surprised by the resounding results. Roman Anthony ran away with this one, garnering close to half of all the votes. Perhaps it shouldn¡¯t be that surprising given that he tied for the lead for American League Rookie of the Year voting in Part I of the poll.

Dylan Crews, currently No. 1 on our Top 100 list, finished second, a good amount ahead of any other prospect mentioned. Jackson Jobe is the only pitcher who landed on the ¡°leaderboard,¡± though the Phillies¡¯ Andrew Painter and White Sox lefty Noah Schultz did get some attention. This, of course, is without considering the prospect everyone is waiting excitedly to sign¡­

Where would you rank Roki Sasaki on a Top 100 list?

This question was left open-ended -- respondents could write whatever they wanted -- but a huge amount would immediately place Sasaki at the top of any prospect rankings. And a vast majority -- nearly 73 percent -- would have him somewhere in the top 10. Some participants specified that he¡¯d be the No. 1 pitcher, but in the top three of the list, one laid out a top four: Crews, Jobe, Anthony, Sasaki. Several just said ¡°Top 10¡± and there were a small handful who had the Japanese right-hander a bit lower. All had him in the top 30, though.

Who is baseball¡¯s best hitting prospect?

Also received votes: Samuel Basallo, C/1B, Orioles; Travis Bazzana, 2B, Guardians; Jasson Dom¨ªnguez, OF, Yankees; Bryce Eldridge, 1B, Giants; Nick Kurtz, 1B, A¡¯s; Coby Mayo, 3B/1B, Orioles; Dalton Rushing, C, Dodgers; Matt Shaw, 3B, Cubs; Cam Smith, 3B, Astros; JJ Wetherholt, SS/2B, Cardinals

Leaving this question kind of open-ended can lead to different conclusions. Does it mean best overall offensive performer? Or does it mean best pure hitter? Perhaps in years to come, we¡¯ll specify, especially because in Part III, participants answer who they think has the best hit tool. Anthony again leads this list by a healthy margin, followed again by Crews -- the only player who received multiple votes for this question a year ago (the other five graduated from prospect status).

Who is baseball¡¯s best pitching prospect?

Also received votes: Travis Sykora, RHP, Nationals; Thomas White, LHP, Marlins

Last year¡¯s survey provided an obvious favorite in Paul Skenes, who got nearly 60 percent of the votes en route to winning NL Rookie of the Year honors. Jackson Jobe got multiple votes a year ago, but this year vaults to the top of the list. Chase Burns, the top pitcher taken in last year¡¯s Draft (No. 2 overall) is a little bit of a surprise at No. 2, and one has to wonder that if Andrew Painter had been back from Tommy John surgery sooner, he would have crept closer to the top, though his strong Arizona Fall League clearly helped him garner some votes. Schultz and Mathews, MLB Pipeline¡¯s 2024 pitching prospect of the year, are the two southpaws who received multiple votes.

Who is the best defensive prospect?

Also received votes: Edwin Arroyo, SS, Reds; Max Clark, OF, Tigers; Justin Crawford, OF, Phillies; Elijah Green, OF, Nationals; Druw Jones, OF, D-backs; Marcelo Mayer, SS, Red Sox; Noah Miller, SS, Twins; Sebastian Walcott, SS, Rangers

For two years in a row, Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong topped this list, but now that he¡¯s graduated from prospect status, it opened the door ¡­ and Carson Williams walked through it. Defensive metrics have come a long way in helping evaluate a question like this and Williams showed off his glovework all year at Double-A, in the AFL and then with Team USA in the Premier12 Tournament. If you need any evidence that teams value strong defense up the middle, just see how many of these players play shortstop, center field (or could) or set up behind the plate.

Who is the most underrated prospect?

A total of 34 different players were mentioned here, and no one got more than 6.4 percent of the vote. Here are the nine players who received multiple votes:

Luke Keaschall, 2B/OF, Twins: 6.4%
Aidan Miller, SS, Phillies: 6.4%
Colt Emerson, SS, Mariners: 6.4%
Franklin Arias, SS/2B, Red Sox: 4.3%
Kristian Campbell, 2B/OF/SS, Red Sox: 4.3%
Justin Crawford, OF, Phillies: 4.3%
Demetrio Crisantes, INF, D-backs: 4.3%
Bryce Eldridge, 1B, Giants: 4.3%
Cam Smith, 3B, Astros: 4.3%

Emerson and Crawford both got multiple votes a year ago as well, with Emerson actually topping the vote tally in 2024.

Who will be the breakout prospect of the year?

Also received votes: Cam Caminiti, LHP, Braves; Felnin Celesten, SS, Mariners; Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP/LHP, Mariners; Bryce Eldridge, 1B, Giants; Angel Genao, INF, Guardians; Konnor Griffin, SS/OF, Pirates; Thomas Harrington, RHP, Pirates; Cade Horton, RHP, Cubs; Druw Jones, OF, D-backs; Spencer Jones, OF, Yankees; George Lombard Jr., SS, Yankees; Jesus Made, SS/3B, Brewers; Brice Matthews, SS/3B, Astros; Chase Meidroth, INF, Red Sox; Aidan Miller, SS, Phillies; Lazaro Montes, OF, Mariners; Colson Montgomery, SS, White Sox; Keeler Morfe, RHP, Orioles; Tre¡¯ Morgan, 1B/OF, Rays; Arjun Nimmala, SS, Blue Jays; Braylon Payne, OF, Brewers; Aidan Smith, OF, Rays; Cam Smith, 3B, Astros; Sal Stewart, 2B Reds; Grant Taylor, RHP, White Sox; Miguel Ullola, RHP, Astros; Ralphy Velasquez, 1B, Guardians; JJ Wetherholt, 2B, Cardinals

It¡¯s clear ¡°breakout¡± can be defined in a number of ways, one of the reasons we received so many different names. A player like Zyhir Hope, who led the voting, is a super high-ceiling player with exciting tools. He hasn¡¯t put it all together yet, but there¡¯s some expectation that it could all start clicking during the 2025 season. Jac Caglianone and Nick Kurtz are the 2024 draftees who received multiple votes while players like Franklin Arias and Leodalis De Vries may have broken out some in 2024 by playing full-season ball, but could really vault up rankings this year. Andrew Painter is obviously well thought of, but seeing him pitch in regular-season ball further removed from surgery could raise his profile, and he¡¯s one of many who received votes who could break out by reaching, and excelling, in the big leagues.

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Which pitching prospect is the best future closer?

Jacob Misiorowski, RHP, Brewers: 15.2%
Jarlin Susana, RHP, Nationals: 15.2%
Chase Burns, RHP, Reds: 13.0%
Kumar Rocker, RHP, Rangers: 10.9%
Brandon Sproat, RHP, Mets: 4.3%
Bubba Chandler, RHP, Pirates: 4.3%
Jackson Jobe, RHP, Tigers: 4.3%

Also received votes: Alexander Alberto, RHP, Rays; Braxton Ashcraft, RHP, Pirates; Hunter Barco, LHP, Pirates; Reggie Crawford, LHP, Giants; Tink Hence, RHP, Cardinals; Brant Hurter, LHP, Tigers; George Klassen, RHP, Angels; Zach Maxwell, RHP, Reds; Luis Mey, RHP, Reds; Andrew Painter, RHP, Phillies; Alejandro Rosario, RHP, Rangers; Noah Schultz, LHP, White Sox; Ricky Tiedemann, LHP, Blue Jays; Andrew Walters, RHP, Guardians; Jaxon Wiggins, RHP, Cubs

This is the second straight year Jacob Misiorowski led the polling here, and it will be interesting to see how long the Brewers let him keep starting -- the plan at the start of this season, it seems, after using him out of the 'pen at the end of 2024. This year, he had company at the top, with Susana another example of a power-armed right-hander who misses a ton of bats and struggles enough with command to wonder about an eventual move. It¡¯s interesting to see Chase Burns, who got a bunch of best pitching prospect votes, also get some future closer attention.

Who is the best Minor League prospect you¡¯ve ever seen?

Bryce Harper, OF: 15.0%
Mike Trout, OF: 7.5%
Alex Rodriguez, SS: 5.0%
Bobby Witt Jr., SS: 5.0%
Dylan Bundy, RHP: 5.0%
Elly De La Cruz, SS: 5.0%
Manny Machado, SS: 5.0%

Also received votes: Ronald Acu?a Jr., OF; Adrian Beltr¨¦, 3B; Byron Buxton, OF; Kristian Campbell, 2B/OF/SS; Junior Caminero, SS/3B; Dylan Cease, RHP; Jackson Chourio, OF; Caden Dana, RHP; Cliff Floyd, OF; Vladimir Guerrero Jr, 3B; F¨¦lix Hern¨¢ndez, RHP; Clayton Kershaw, LHP; Tim Lincecum, RHP; Francisco Lindor, SS; George Lombard Jr, SS; Buster Posey, C; Hanley Ramirez, SS; Manny Ramirez, OF; Julio Rodr¨ªguez, OF; Paul Skenes, RHP; Spencer Strider, RHP

This one tends to be very subjective as we¡¯ve asked executives to weigh in on what they¡¯ve personally seen. That, along with how old (and how long they¡¯ve been in the business) the participant is, makes the pendulum swing on this one. Last year, Mike Trout led the polling. This time around it¡¯s Harper.

Who is the best amateur prospect you¡¯ve ever seen?

Paul Skenes, RHP: 11.9%
Bobby Witt Jr., SS: 11.9%
Bryce Harper, OF: 9.5%
Buster Posey, C: 7.1%
Stephen Strasburg, RHP: 7.1%
Jackson Holliday, SS: 4.8%
Joe Mauer, C: 4.8%
Adley Rutschman, C: 4.8%

Also received votes: CJ Abrams, SS; Brady Aiken, LHP; Javier B¨¢ez, SS; Jeff Bagwell, 3B; Chase Burns, RHP; Byron Buxton, OF; Jasson Dom¨ªnguez, OF; JD Drew, OF; Jos¨¦ Fern¨¢ndez, RHP; Prince Fielder, 1B; Ethan Holliday, SS; Royce Lewis, SS; Francisco Lindor, SS; Casey Mize, RHP; Trot Nixon, OF; Rick Porcello, RHP

Similar to the best Minor Leaguer ever, this is dependent on who replied and who they saw. Paul Skenes and Bobby Witt Jr. come from two of the past six Drafts; Jackson Holliday and Adley Rutschman getting multiple votes adds to a little recency bias as well. It also gives the Orioles two players with multiple votes, while the Nationals also have two reps from the Strasburg-Harper back-to-back No. 1 overall pick days. Rutschman and Witt went 1-2 in the 2019 Draft.