If you like to watch rookies and other young players on the verge of breaking out in Major League Baseball, it’s a good time to be a fan.
With Opening Day upon us, let’s take a quick look at 10 players (rookies and others) who are on the verge of making a big name for themselves in MLB.
RHP Shane Baz, Baltimore Orioles
His last name is pronounced like the Wizard of Oz, but pay attention to this man behind the curtain! A onetime top 10-15 prospect with the Rays, Baz needed Tommy John surgery four years ago and has taken longer to develop. At 26 in 2025, his first full major league season went OK (4.87 ERA, 176 strikeouts in 166 1/3 innings). His 97 mph four-seam fastball is complemented by an effective knuckle-curve. He’s got top-of-the-rotation stuff, but can slide in among Kyle Bradish and Trevor Rogers to give the O’s a sneaky good front end.
SS Kevin McGonigle, Detroit Tigers
Opposing fans will be shouting “McGonigle!” with raised fists once he makes his way around the AL Central once. He would be the top prospect in MLB were it not for Konnor Griffin of the Pirates. McGonigle just turned 21 in August, but he already has a career slash line of .308/.410/.512 with 25 home runs, 51 doubles, 135 runs scored and 40 stolen bases in 183 minor-league games. His left-handed stroke produces power and contact — he’s got a career walk-to-strikeout ratio of 123-84. He might be best used at second base in the long run but many scouts have said he’ll stick at shortstop and be effective. Look for him on Opening Day at Petco Park.
2B JJ Wetherholt, St. Louis Cardinals
Let the rebuild begin! Wetherholt played shortstop at West Virginia but will take second base as a rookie (makes sense with Masyn Winn at short), and could also be a third baseman someday. A consensus top 5 prospect, he has a career minor-league slash of .304/.418/.487 with 19 homers, 29 doubles and 25 steals in 138 games. His BB-K stats: 88-88. Oh, yeah. He hit 10 homers in 47 games at Triple-A, so he’s hiding some power in his 5-foot-9, 190-pound left-handed swing. He turns 24 in September.
DH/C Moises Ballesteros, Chicago Cubs
The Cubs plan to use Ballesteros as their primary DH, a big assignment for a 22-year-old rookie — even a top-50 overall prospect. Ballesteros hit well in a 20-game call-up in ’25 after producing .316/.385/.473 with 13 homers in 114 games at Triple-A. Listed at 5-foot-8 with a stocky build, Ballesteros is said to use a short path to the ball on his swing. Shaped more like a fan or sportswriter than a player, this guy has folk hero written all over him.
RHP Carlos Lagrange, New York Yankees
With a last name pronounced “Le-GRON-hay,” the 22-year-old righty was the talk of Yankees camp. He reached 103.1 mph on his four-seamer along with throwing “knee-buckling” secondary pitches via an imposing 6-foot-7, 250-pound frame. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Lagrange, who has zero experience higher than Double-A, made the decision difficult to send him to minor-league camp. Lagrange has 301 career strikeouts (and 125 walks) in 215 2/3 innings as a starter in the minors, so he’ll have to sharpen his command. Clubs always need arms down the stretch, so he’s a likely promotion at some point.
1B Sal Stewart, Cincinnati Reds
Reds manager Terry Francona started using Stewart as the cleanup hitter toward the end of spring training, preferring him following Elly De La Cruz in the batting order. Stewart, a top 20 overall prospect, had a 15.6 K% in Triple-A in 2025, and generally makes better contact than Eugenio Suárez. Hitting fourth and playing first base everyday is a lot for any 22-year-old to handle, but Stewart obviously made a strong impression in his September call-up and continues to do so in camp. If he ends up playing every day, playing home games at Great American Ball Park, Stewart could finish with 30 home runs or more.
SS Colson Montgomery, Chicago White Sox
Montgomery’s major league career got off to a fast start in ’25. He hit .239/.311/.529 with 21 homers in his first 255 at-bats. He also played outstanding defense at short. None of it was a complete surprise, given that Montgomery was a first-round pick in 2021, and a top 11-12 consensus prospect in 2024 who gave off Corey Seager vibes. But he was overmatched during two stints at Triple-A in ’24-25 and analysts cooled on him. Montgomery struggled so much a season ago, the Sox sent him to the Arizona Complex League mid-season to improve his swing with coach Ryan Fuller. The changes worked, and a few weeks later, he was in the majors. Given his size and Chicago’s minor league depth at shortstop, Montgomery might be a third baseman in the long run.
RHP Bubba Chandler, Pittsburgh Pirates
Many analysts considered Chandler the top pitching prospect still in the minor leagues, but the Pirates recently announced that he made the Opening Day roster. Using only his 99 mph fastball and changeup, analyst Keith Law wrote in The Athletic, makes Chandler a mid-rotation starter right now. His ceiling is much higher, perhaps not that of teammate Paul Skenes, but still pretty high. Prepare for some inconsistency but also fun moments of domination in ’26. His third best pitch is probably a curve. His given name is Roy Ruben Chandler.
OF Emmanuel Rodriguez, Minnesota Twins
Injuries have slowed his ascent, but he’s shown glimpses of being a charismatic riot for fans to watch hit, run and play defense. He’s slashing .254/.424/.488 with 50 home runs, 46 doubles, 17 triples and 59 stolen bases through his first 981 at-bats in the minors. Now 23 years old, he’s got just 409 plate appearances above Single-A, and with the Twins in some kind of organizational transition, they re-assigned him to minor league camp. They can’t even find at-bats for Alan Roden right now. They’ll have to find time for Rodriguez soon, and chances are he’ll never go back once he reaches the majors.
SS Konnor Griffin, Pittsburgh Pirates
Even though he’s still just 19 years old, the Bucs seemed open to promoting Griffin out of Spring Training. MLB’s top overall prospect didn’t show quite enough, hitting four homers but batting .171 with 13 strikeouts in 46 plate appearances overall. He likely needs just a little more time in the high minors. In his first minor-league season, Griffin batted .333/.415/.527 with 21 homers, 23 doubles, 65 stolen bases and 50 walks in 122 games, including 21 at Class AA. Hardcore prospect watchers know about Griffin being on the rise, but with him drawing comparisons (fair or not) to Mike Trout and Robin Yount, the rest of the world is about to meet the sport’s next big deal.
