Drafting 10 young players on the rise in '25
Few things in baseball are more exciting than watching everything click for a talented young player.
It can take time and require patience. But when it all comes together, it¡¯s thrilling. After all, this is the future becoming the present before your eyes.
With that in mind, we asked five MLB.com writers and researchers to each draft two young players ¨C one position player and one pitcher ¨C they believe will be on the rise in 2025. And we gave them the following parameters:
- In age-25 season or younger in 2025
- Has already made MLB debut (so no Roki Sasaki here)
- Has gotten limited MLB playing time to this point (No seasons of 400-plus plate appearances, 100 innings pitched or 50 pitching appearances)
Here are the selections:
POSITION PLAYERS
1. Junior Caminero, 3B, Rays
2025 age: 21 | Career PA: 213
Caminero was the easy No. 1 pick after how exciting he was to watch in the LIDOM playoffs this winter. In 22 postseason games for Albert Pujols¡¯ Leones del Escogido team, Caminero hit .417 with a .738 slugging percentage, driving in 20 runs and hitting four home runs. That included his massive, dramatic go-ahead homer in the ninth inning of Game 7 of the championship series, at 454 feet and 114.2 mph off the bat.
We saw the excitement that his bat generates during his time in the Majors in 2024 as well. He had an average bat speed of 77.2 mph and a hard-hit rate of 45.7%, both of which would have ranked among some of the most fearsome hitters had he qualified with more playing time. He is going to be so much fun to watch for many years to come.
¨C Sarah Langs
2. James Wood, OF, Nationals
2025 age: 22 | Career PA: 336
In his 2024 debut, Wood showed off the tools that made him MLB Pipeline¡¯s No. 3 overall prospect at the time of his July 1 callup. The speedy, 6-foot-7 outfielder posted a .264/.354/.427 slash line with nine home runs and 14 steals in 79 games, most of them before his 22nd birthday on Sept. 17.
Wood¡¯s 92.8 mph average exit velocity was near the top of MLB, tied with the Orioles¡¯ Gunnar Henderson and ahead of Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. (92.7 mph). He walked at an impressive 11.6% clip, rarely chased pitches out of the zone and was a threat on the basepaths as well. If Wood can cut down on strikeouts, hit the ball in the air a bit more and improve his range in the outfield, his ceiling for 2025 and beyond is downright scary.
¨C Theo DeRosa
3. Dylan Crews, OF, Nationals
2025 age: 23 | Career PA: 132
After a standard college career at LSU, Crews was heavily hyped when the Nats drafted him second overall in 2023. And his brief debut with Washington last season offered glimpses of his potential in multiple aspects of the game. Crews collected eight multi-hit games -- including two three-hit games -- across 31 games and 132 plate appearances in the bigs. Though his overall 2024 numbers don't stand out -- .218 average; three homers; .641 OPS -- the ingredients are there for a star to emerge.
Crews had a 44.7% hard-hit rate, which would be well above the 36.5% league average. He also showed good plate discipline and made contact on pitches in the zone 86.3% of the time, which also was better than league average. Add elite sprint speed (MLB's 93rd percentile) and a strong throwing arm (83rd percentile) and it's exciting to think about what might happen as Crews gains more MLB experience.
¨C Jason Foster
4. Tyler Soderstrom, 1B, A's
2025 age: 23 | Career PA: 351
Soderstrom was on the fast track to the Majors but stalled a couple years ago when his success in Triple-A didn¡¯t quite translate in Oakland. Injuries have also played their part in the delay. But he was the A¡¯s top prospect for three solid seasons, and that wasn¡¯t for nothing.
In 61 games with the A¡¯s last season, Soderstrom hit .233 (.743 OPS) with 10 doubles and nine homers. But the underlying metrics showed a marked improvement from his rough first attempt in 2023 when he hit just .160/.232/.240 in 45 games. His barrel rate rose by 8.6 points (6.0% in 2023, 14.6% in ¡¯24) and his hard-hit rate another 9.8 (39.8% in 2023, 49.6% in ¡¯24). Perhaps most importantly, his strikeout rate also dropped from 31.2% to 24.9%. General manager David Forst has confirmed that the first base job belongs to Soderstrom, so there may not be a better time for him to put everything together.
¨C Shanthi Sepe-Chepuru
5. Kyle Manzardo, 1B/DH, Guardians
2025 age: 24 | Career PA: 156
The Guardians are placing a lot of faith in Mazardo following Cleveland¡¯s offseason trade of Josh Naylor. Manzardo, who was acquired in a 2023 trade with the Rays for Aaron Civale, is now projected as an everyday bat and will likely see time at both first base and designated hitter with Carlos Santana.
Manzardo -- ranked as MLB Pipeline¡¯s No. 59 prospect entering 2024 -- made his debut last season and held his own, posting a .703 OPS and 98 wRC+ across 156 plate appearances. There¡¯s plenty of reason to believe Manzardo has the offensive profile to settle in as a middle-of-the-order bat in Cleveland. Owner of a career .932 OPS in the Minors, Manzardo has a diverse offensive skillset that has led to above-average power, bat-to-ball skills and plate discipline. The 2024 ZIPS projections peg Manzardo for a 121 wRC+ and 18 home runs in 126 games.
¨C Brent Maguire
PITCHERS
1. Jackson Jobe, RHP, Tigers
2025 age: 22 | Career IP: 4 (plus 1 ? in the playoffs)
There¡¯s a reason that Jobe made the Tigers¡¯ postseason roster despite just four Major League innings pitched entering October. We had known for a while that he had great stuff. He can hit 99-plus mph with his fastball, as we saw in the postseason when he threw his fastest MLB pitch yet, at 99.6 mph to induce a flyout. Jobe¡¯s slider is great, too, particularly in the spin department, and he is adding a curveball this spring. While his brief MLB stint in 2024 was out of the bullpen, he is a starter and is currently competing for a spot in the Tigers¡¯ rotation.
It won¡¯t be long before we get to hear Tigers play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti yet again invoke ¡°Doctor, Doctor¡± during an electric Jobe outing, making reference to the doctor who performed the first Tommy John surgery who shares the last name ¡ª but no heritage ¡ª with the Tigers¡¯ hurler.
¨C Sarah Langs
2. DJ Herz, LHP, Nationals
2025 age: 24 | Career IP: 88 2/3
His 4-9 record and 4.16 ERA from 2024 might not look special, but Herz showed plenty of promise in his debut season. Just look at the left-hander¡¯s third career start, last June 15: six innings, one hit, no runs and THIRTEEN strikeouts. Herz finished the year with 106 strikeouts in just 88 2/3 innings, pitching to a strong expected ERA of 3.26. His four-seamer and a changeup targeted at right-handed batters are both excellent offerings.
What might impede a breakout season in 2025 is the fact Herz will have to compete with Michael Soroka, Mitchell Parker and others for a spot in the Nats¡¯ rotation. But the young lefty certainly has the stuff to win a starting job, and he could excel from there.
¨C Theo DeRosa
3. Kumar Rocker, RHP, Rangers
2025 age: 25 | Career IP: 11 2/3
Rocker is another player whose college success seemed to indicate MLB success, but his journey to the big leagues has been bumpy. After shoulder surgery in 2021 and Tommy John surgery in 2023, Rocker finally made his MLB debut for Texas late last season -- and he looked pretty good at times.
The Rangers' No. 2 prospect made three starts in the bigs, pitching to a 3.86 ERA in 11 2/3 innings. Though he did have a WHIP of 1.54, he also had a K/9 rate of 10.8, which showed that the talent and stuff are clearly there. He has a mid-90s fastball and a put-away mid-80s slider that generated a 50% whiff rate against MLB hitters. That'll play any day, though Rocker will have to earn a spot in the Rangers¡¯ rotation to begin the season.
As he continues to hone his skills at the big-league level, he could again become the dominant pitcher he was at Vanderbilt.
¨C Jason Foster
4. Hayden Birdsong, RHP, Giants
2025 age: 23 | Career IP: 72
Birdsong did get knocked around a little bit in his first 16 MLB starts; he ranked in the 1st percentile of qualifying pitchers in average exit velocity, hard-hit rate and walk rate and posted a 4.75 ERA. Maybe not ideal, but there were some really eye-popping moments sprinkled throughout the typical rookie shenanigans.
First of all, six games into his big league career, he had 27 whiffs against the Rockies on July 21, the second-most for an individual pitching performance in 2024 and the most for a rookie in a single game since pitch tracking began in 2008. He had 12 strikeouts, which is all well and good for one day¡¯s work, but that guy showed up again a couple of months later when he struck out 11 Cardinals in just 4 1/3 IP. The stuff is definitely there, and the Giants have made a lot more out of a lot less; it can¡¯t hurt that Justin Verlander¡¯s on board, either.
¨C Shanthi Sepe-Chepuru
5. Ryan Weathers, LHP, Marlins
2025 age: 25 | Career IP: 242 2/3
Weathers was in the midst of a breakout first full season with the Marlins in 2024 when a left index finger strain sidelined him for most of the summer. Weathers returned to make three starts in late September but finished the year with just 86 2/3 innings. When he was on the mound, though, Weathers was quite good, running a 3.63 ERA and a solid 15.3% strikeout-minus-walk rate.
Weathers, who was drafted seventh overall by the Padres in the 2018 Draft, was sent to Miami in a 2023 Deadline deal for Garrett Cooper. It¡¯s looking like a savvy pickup for a Marlins organization that has developed quite a few talented young pitchers in recent years. If Weathers can bump his strikeout rate up a tad in 2025 and maintain his strike-throwing abilities, he could be Miami¡¯s latest pitching success story.
¨C Brent Maguire