A Full Breakdown of the Glendale Desert Dogs for the Arizona Fall League

durstockd
Sep 15, 2025
23 min read

Updated: Oct 7, 2025

The Arizona Fall League rosters have been released this week with a lot of intriguing prospects on each team. There are six teams full of prospects from teams that will play starting October 6th. I’ll be writing an article and making Twitter posts about each team’s roster. This will cover the prospects who are on the Glendale Desert Dogs this fall. The team will consist of players from the Braves, Cardinals, Dodgers, and White Sox organizations too.

Toronto Blue Jays:

Alex Amalfi RHP: An interesting story Amalfi went undrafted in the 2022 draft after playing at Division III UMass Boston for three seasons including the 2020 season. He was promoted to Toronto’s AA the New Hampshire Fisher Cats’ this season and pitched 81.2 innings with 10 starts. After a good season last high in high A Vancouver he had a shaky one in AA upping his BB% by more than 3%. With no Statcast going off his spring training outings he has a very good fastball that comes from a lower arm slot but his offspeed pitches leave a lot to be desired. His slider, curveball, and changeup didn’t grade out very well especially compared to his MLB ready fastball. I’m sure the Blue Jays want to see more swing and misses in his outings this fall.

Angel Bastardo RHP: Another interesting addition Bastardo was the Blue Jays rule 5 draft pick from Boston this season but had Tommy John surgery last June and hasn’t pitched since. Because Bastardo hasn’t been on the Blue Jays active roster he’ll have to make their Opening Day team next year for them to keep him. Boston had been developing him as a starter before the surgery but I as do Fangraphs believe he’ll likely settle into a reliever role. He’s known for a great changeup that dies as it gets closer to the plate to go along with a fastball that sits about 96 mph. He struggles to throw his slider and curveball for strikes and will likely rarely throw them when transitioned to a reliever. His main problem has been command as he doesn’t have a season above the complex league with a BB% under 10%. He has a very high upside especially if moved to the bullpen and will be fun to watch this fall. If he can perform here and next spring I’m sure the Jays will be happy to have him in the back of their bullpen.

Kai Peterson LHP: Peterson is a very interesting pitcher, he’s a left handed reliever who throws with a sidearm slot and is basically a one pitch guy. He throws his 93 mph sinker about 80% of the time but gets a lot of swing and misses on it. He also has a slider, curveball, and changeup that don’t really get any whiffs. His command though is a problem as he only has a 26.8% CSW this season and has been recently promoted to AA. He could potentially be a solid lefty specialist in the bigs but will have to at least be able to throw his slider for a strike to reach that level. I’m sure the Blue Jays are looking for him to work on his command throughout the fall.

Yondrei Rojas RHP: After starting this season on the injured list Rojas pitched his first game in relief for the Jays’ A+ team and was so good over 23.2 innings he has recently been promoted to AA where in 11 innings he has a 0.82 ERA. He’s striking out 32.8% of players this season the most of his career and walking 7.5% his lowest in a season since 2023. Even though Rojas is only 5’10” 180 lbs his fastball sits in the mid 90s. He also has an upper 80s cutter, slider, and changeup. The stuff is definitely there for Rojas and with the walk rate dropping this season I’m excited to get Statcast information on him this spring as he could develop into a top reliever prospect for the Jays.

Chay Yeager RHP: Drafted out of Pasco-Hernando State College a JUCO in Florida as a two way player, Yeager switched to a full time pitcher in his first professional season and has risen from A+ to AA this season. He was really good in the A+ bullpen with a 1.77 ERA in 35.2 IP and had a 31.9% K% with a 9.6% BB% all really good for A+ but since being moved 4.15 ERA and a 5.21 FIP in 17.1 IP, his K% has dropped to 23.6% facing AA hitters. This season he dropped his four pitch mix down to only two: a fastball that sits in the mid 90s and a gyro slider that has been working well. He’s definitely lost a bit of command as he’s moved up to AA and has already given up four homers in AA compared to one in A+. The Blue Jays are likely looking to see Yeager get more swing and misses this fall and reverting back to what he had been doing in A+.

Edward Duran C: Originally signed to the Marlins, Duran was traded to the Blue Jays in the 2022 trade that sent Zach Pop and Anthony Bass to the Jays for Duran and Jordan Groshans. Duran’s mostly known for his defense and has transitioned to the modern one knee down stance this season improving his framing while keeping his strong arm. Throughout the minors he’s shown good contact skills and a knowledge of the zone with high walk rates and low strikeout rates but this season Duran has changed his approach and sold out more for power. After only two home runs in his entire career he has hit eight this season to add onto 20 other XBHs. This has led to an increased strikeout rate and decreased walk rate. He still only has an 87.9 mph average ev in A this season but improved his hard hit rate from only 22.3% in 2024 to 36.1% this season. If he can continue playing above average defense and improving at the plate Duran could be a solid big league catcher but is likely still years away as he was only recently promoted to A+. With the Blue Jays needing to make a decision on him this year since he’ll be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft they likely want to get him even more at bats in the fall.

Josh Kasevich SS: The best prospect the Jays are sending to Arizona according to both Fangraphs and Pipeline, Kasevich a 2022 2nd round pick has been battling a stress reaction in his back throughout the season and has only played in 31 games this season. He was only recently promoted back to AAA where he ended 2024. Kasevich has consistently hit at every level average wise but rarely hits for power. Weirdly he has MLB ready exit velocities and hard hit rates but doesn’t put the ball in the air. Last season throughout AA and AAA he only had a 24.2% fly ball rate. Kasevich has been stuck hitting low line drives that either get into the gap or are for singles. If he makes a small swing change to pull the ball more in the air to go along with his elite contact he will become a top prospect. His only other problem is he has below average range and athleticism at short and likely is going to be switched to second or more of a utility player in the future. With Kasevich only playing 18 games above A this season and an increase in flyball% the Jays likely want to keep his at bats coming this fall.

Atlanta Braves:

Drue Hackenberg RHP: A 2023 2nd round pick out of Virginia Tech Hackenberg was projected to go anywhere after the 5th round but the Braves saw him as an intriguing prospect and took him early. In his first full season in 2024 he jumped from A+ all the way to AAA making a combined 25 starts for a 3.07 ERA. After starting the season in AA and getting off to a disappointing start Hackenberg was put on the injured list and called back up at the end of July missing more than a two months with three starts in the FCL in between. Since coming back he’s been a bit better at limiting damage only allowing more than four runs once in nine starts. His problem this season has been his loss of control. He’s jumped from a still not great 11.3% walk rate last season up to 16.7% in AA this season. He’s not improving command wise either as in his last four starts he’s walked five batters in each game. Unlike last season where he was getting strikeouts this season his strikeout rate dropped by almost 9%. He has a bunch of pitches that if he can throw for strikes make him a great potential end of the rotation guy but right now he’s not throwing them for a strike. The Braves likely want to see more from Hackenberg this fall especially on the command and whiff front.

Jacob Kroeger LHP: A very interesting arm, Kroeger is in his first full season after being drafted in the 10th round of last year's draft. He’s already moved from A to A+ being used as a starter and swingman for both teams. At an advanced age for the low minors (25) and he dominated the A level this season through 29 innings there he had 2.30 FIP and 35.7% strikeout rate. Once moved up to A+ though he settled into more of a starter role and had some great games but also some below average ones. He still has a 2.03 ERA but his FIP is 3.33 and his strikeout rate dropped to 19%. He has a five pitch mix that likely won’t overpower hitters at the next level as he’ll likely settle back into the bullpen in the future and be a solid lefty specialist. The Braves likely want to see how Kroeger does against more advanced hitters this fall because he’ll likely be an option for their bullpen late next season.

LJ McDonough RHP: An undrafted reliever with very shaky command, McDonough was promoted from A+ to AA this season and has struggled to stay consistent. After a solid 15 innings for A+ he’s really struggled in AA with a 4.94 ERA. Lately he’s been very inconsistent, giving up three or more runs in three of his last seven appearances the last month. He’s struggled to get whiffs like he has at lower levels. With this offseason McDonough becomes Rule 5 Draft eligible the Braves likely want to see if they can get anything out of him this fall.

Luke Sinnard RHP: The most intriguing arm the Braves are sending to Arizona, Sinnard only started playing baseball his senior year of high school and started his freshman year at Western Kentucky before transferring to Indiana where he broke out and was drafted by the Braves in the 3rd. During his Indiana season he ended up blowing his arm out and missed all of the 2024 season so 2025 is his first season in pro ball. Standing at 6’8” he throws a mean fastball that sits in the mid 90s and he has two breaking balls (a slider and curveball) that break really well off of it. He started the season in A ball where he was dominant with a 0.92 ERA and 33.3% strikeout rate but after being promoted to A+ he’s allowing more hard contact and getting less strikeouts. On the positive side his walk rate has gone down between levels which has likely been Sinnard’s main focus this season. He has the stuff to be a Major League level starter and will just have to grow and learn into more of a pitcher. Since he’s only pitched 16 starts this season after Tommy John and this is only his fourth season pitching ever the Braves want him to get as many innings as possible so he’ll continue to develop.

Cory Wall RHP: Another reliever who was promoted to AA this season, Wall started the season pitching really well in A+ after spending almost all of the 2024 season there and was recently promoted to AA at the start of August. In his seven games in AA he’s throwing less strikes and walking batters more. He has some decent stuff with a fastball in the mid 90s and a slider with decent movement but doesn’t seem to have much upside as some of the other arms in the Braves system. With him already being 25 the Braves just want to see more from Wall before next season.

Nacho Alvarez Jr. 3B: After being called up to the big leagues this season Alvarez has battled multiple injuries throughout this season. To start the season Alvarez was on the 60-day injured list with a wrist injury then dealt with an oblique strain and side soreness after being called up. The Braves believe Alvarez should get more at bats after his injury riddled rookie season even though he’s currently on the MLB roster. Alvarez is a very patient hitter who doesn’t swing much and makes a good amount of contact. He hasn’t shown a ton of power or hard hit ability. Last season he had only a 35.1% hard hit rate in AAA and this year it’s dropped to 22% at both the MLB level and AAA level. He also recently switched to 3B after playing most of his minor league career at SS. He seems likely to be a solid utility infielder who will work long counts and move guys over.

Jim Jarvis SS: Traded at the deadline from the Tigers for Rafeal Montero, Jarvis is mostly known for his bat but ever since coming into the Braves organization his bat has been coming alive and he just recently was promoted to AAA. He’s been hitting the ball harder and running more often while increasing his strikeouts to become a different hitter than he’s been in his professional career. He’s also a super platoon player from the left side hitting under .200 every season against left handed pitching. I’m guessing the Braves want to see if Jarvis can continue this throughout the end of the AAA and into the fall because he has a real shot to take over the starting SS job for the Braves next season if they don’t bring anyone in. This is a super intriguing player to watch in the fall and hopefully keeps raking.

Patrick Clohisy OF: An 11th round pick in last year draft out of St. Louis University Clohisy entered his first full season of pro ball this year in A+ and hit pretty well. Not only did he have a 111 wRC+ but he stole 60 bases. After his promotion he’s whiffing and walking less but he’s hit for more power and his wRC+ is the same at 111. By the end of this season he could be a top 30 prospect in the Braves system. Clohisy has great speed, an above average outfield glove, and has shown a decent bat. If he can keep hitting this fall he could start next season in AAA potentially.

St. Louis Cardinals:

Tyler Bradt RHP: The 2023 16th round pick out of East Carolina, Bradt has been very impressive this season. Starting the season in A+ Peoria Bradt had a 3.18 ERA and 23.9% strikeout rate in 45.1 IP. Since being promoted to AA Springfield though his ERA has dropped to 1.56. The main revelation for Bradt is his BB% has dropped from 17.6% in A+ to 10.3% in AA. He’s striking more batters out and walking them way less by throwing more strikes. He throws a mid 90s fastball with two solid secondary pitches, a sweeper with 11 inches of horizontal break that he added last season and a very solid changeup too. With that very solid pitch mix Bradt can get outs at the higher levels if he’s able to throw strikes and I’m sure the Cardinals want to see if he can continue doing so this fall.

DJ Carpenter RHP: The former 2022 14th round pick out of Oregon State pitched four games in the Cardinals organization after the draft but has missed the last two years with injuries. He came back and pitched this season in High-A and hasn’t looked great out of the bullpen with a 5.35 ERA and 4.49 FIP. He’s really struggled with command with a 16.9% walk rate this season. He’s also given up more than a hit an inning. Before his injury he was a high strikeout pitcher with a good five pitch mix. I’m interested to see some Statcast numbers on him this fall.

Randel Clemente RHP: A super underrated arm in the Cardinals system Clemente has gone from the complex league at the start of last season up to AA this season. His calling card is a gyro slider that at times looks unhittable. It had a 50% chase rate and over 50% whiff rate in A this season and last season. He also throws multiple fastballs: a cutter that got a 53.1% whiff rate, a four seam fastball that sits at 96 mph, and a sinker that Clemente struggles to throw for a strike. He’s a big strikeout pitcher but struggles with command especially since being promoted to AA where he has a 26.6% walk rate and only a 26.5% CSW% in 13.0 IP. If Clemente can get his command even a bit better he’ll be a nasty bullpen arm in the Cardinals system but after walking more than a batter an inning last season and struggling in AA he’ll need to have a good end to the season and fall to make the Cardinals 40-man roster this offseason.

Chen-Wei Lin RHP: The best prospect the Cardinals are sending to Arizona, Lin was also just recently promoted to AA and has not pitched well in his first three starts. Lin has some of the best stuff in the Cardinals system with a five pitch mix but he’s really struggled to find the zone with any of them. In 2024 with 22 starts in Palm Beach A-ball he was able to keep his command under control with only a 7.8% walk rate but this season throughout A, A+, and AA he has a 17.7% walk rate. The stuff still makes him a top prospect with a fastball that touches 100 mph with good armside run. He also has a sinker that’s been able to get some weak contact. His best secondary is his changeup that sits around 88 mph and drops off late but he struggles to command it. This season he scrapped his curveball that wasn’t getting any chase for a splitter which looks to be pretty good. Lastly he has a slider which is his worst pitch. After dealing with injuries this season Lin has only started 16 games and pitched 70 less innings this season than in 2024 so the Cardinals are likely trying to get him as many innings as possible this fall.

Darlin Saladin RHP: The least impressive arm the Cardinals are sending to Arizona, Saladin put up good numbers last year between A and A+ but has been unimpressive this season in A+ Peoria. Saladin has been in and out of the rotation making 13 starts and 13 bullpen outings for 94.2 IP. Saladin isn’t going to put up flame throwing numbers since his fastball sits at 93 mph but with a good rising shape it gets a good amount of whiffs. He also has a sinker that gets a lot of weaker contact. His secondaries are alright but haven’t gotten a ton of whiffs. He throws a slider that gets some chase and a changeup that he’s able to locate decently well. This season he’s had his lowest strikeout rate since being in pro ball and highest walk rate since he was in the DSL in 2022. Since being moved to the bullpen he has looked a bit better as a multiple inning reliever and I would think that's how the Cardinals continue to use him this fall.

Graysen Tarlow C: A 19th round pick in 2023, Tarlow was recently promoted to AA after a 122 wRC+ in A+ through 139 PAs. Tarlow is a contact and disciplined oriented hitter who only swings 40% of the time and is good at fouling off pitches. He’s mostly been a backup catcher throughout his career, he’s only played in 53 games this season despite being on the roster for every game. He doesn’t hit for much power only having 5 XBH this season but he’s constantly on base with a .399 OBP. Not a major prospect but could have some productive at bats this fall.

Travis Honeyman OF: The 2023 3rd round pick is in his 1st full pro season and moved up to A+. He’s mostly a contact hitter with above average contact% and good whiff% at all levels. Honeyman has dealt with a lot of injuries only playing 20 games in 2024 and 82 this season. Still every time he’s been healthy he’s hit above average in every league, this season he has a 114 wRC+ at A+. He doesn’t bring a ton of power with his average exit velocity at 87 mph but if he can keep his contact skills he has the potential to be a solid bench outfielder. He isn’t the best in the outfield especially at centerfield where he’s mostly playing this season but he hasn’t gotten a ton of chances to play there with all the injuries. Honeyman will look to get even more time in center and at the plate this fall.

Miguel Ugueto OF: Acquired from the Boston Red Sox in the minor league Rule 5 Draft, Ugueto has had a disappointing start to his Cardinals career. He’s been injured throughout the year and only played 49 games in AA and 59 total this season. Throughout those 49 games he has a 66 wRC+ with a .254/.277/.341 slash line. He just hasn’t been hitting well enough to play at the AA level and hasn’t had a season with an above 100 wRC+ since 2022 where he only played 23 games. He makes a lot of contact as he has a low strikeout and whiff rates but has a crazy low 2.9% walk rate this season. He does hit LHP well with a .361/.418/.443 slash line this season but won’t be able to be promoted higher if he isn’t able to make harder contact.

Los Angeles Dodgers:

Justin Chambers LHP: Acquired in January 2024 from the Brewers in exchange for Bryan Hudson Chambers has been struggling with injuries since joining the Dodgers organization. Last season he was recovering from Tommy John Surgery and was only able to pitch 3.2 innings in the Complex League while this year he’s moved up to A ball but still has only pitched 35 innings this year. He doesn’t have the most overpowering stuff right now but after just turning 20 the 6’2” 212 lbs lefty still can grow into his body. He’s still been pretty solid throughout this season, he’s pitched 20 innings out of the bullpen in A ball this season to a 2.70 ERA and 3.10 FIP. He has a 29.3% strikeout rate but his walk rate is 11%. He’s struggled with walks in his limited innings in the Complex League too. It’ll be great to get some Statcast data this fall to see how much his pitches have improved.

Hyun-Seok Jang RHP: The South Korean prospect was signed by the Dodgers in 2023 for $900,000. The 21 year old is really explosive with some really good secondaries but he isn’t able to throw them for strikes consistently which has made hitters sit on his fastball that has dropped in velocity and only sits at 94 mph now. He’s allowed some harder contact but mostly his problem has come from walks. Through an injury riddled season this year Jang has made 13 starts and pitched 40.2 innings where he’s walked 18.3% of batters. He does have a strong strikeout rate at 30.9% but he’s been unable to find the zone and less hitters are chasing his pitches. His CSW% has dropped from 3.7% last season to only 26.1% this year and his swinging strike percentage has dropped 8% to only 12%. I’m guessing the Dodgers are wanting to get him as many innings as possible this fall and hopefully work on him throughout the offseason because with these numbers Jang won’t be able to continue to start much longer.

Alex Makarewich RHP: The Dodgers have something with Makarewich. The 2-pitch reliever has some nasty stuff with a fastball that touches 100 mph and a curveball that sits in the high 80s with nasty movement. Makarewich's problem is he has no control of either pitch. This is something that has gone back to his college years at Northwestern State and has been seen at every level for the Dodgers. This season after 13 innings in low A he was promoted to A+ where he has a 31.6% strikeout rate but a 27% walk rate! He has 49 walks this season in 44 innings. The stuff can carry Makarewich far and maybe even to the majors but he’ll never be a consistent bullpen arm with this level of control. His walks have been getting better, in his last 18 innings since July 10th he’s only walked 11 with 7 outings without a walk. If he can tap into that in Arizona and continue it into next year he can climb through the minors quickly.

Payton Martin RHP: Not a very overpowering arm but the former 17th round pick has a very solid arsenal. He has a five pitch mix starting with a fastball that sides in the mid 90s. He also has a bunch of breaking balls including an upper 70s curveball and upper 80s cutter that induce weak contact and a slider that’s been his best swing and miss pitch. He also throws a changeup at times that’s probably his worst pitch. His fastball has cost him the most though as it hasn’t been explosive enough to get whiffs. He also allows too many homers with 10 in 18 appearances this year in high A. He has solid command, only walking 8.6% of batters this year in A+. Not a very high potential arm but one that can move quickly with more weak contact.

Jakob Wright LHP: The 4th round pick for the Dodgers last year Wright made is organizational debut this year in low A but has missed months with an undisclosed injury and has only started 9 games for 19.2 innings this year. Wright doesn’t have much experience as he had a surgery his freshman year in college and only pitched 18.2 innings and then had a breakout season last year at Cal Poly with 88 innings and a 2.97 ERA before being drafted. He has a good arsenal with a fastball that jumped from sitting 92 mph to 96-97 this spring and it has good armside movement and great spin. He also has a low 80s slider that gets a good amount of swing and miss. He also adds a mid 80s cutter and a curveball that gets some weak contact. He has recently started to throw a changeup that hasn’t gotten great results so far. I’m excited to see his Statcast pitches this fall and hopefully he’ll get a couple starts to add to his decent season.

Logan Wagner 2B/3B: A prospect with big raw power Wagner has dealt with injuries since being drafted in 2022. His first pro season he broke his right hamate bone and last season after a breakout 38 games in low A he broke his left hamate bone. This year was finally his first whole non-injured season at high A and he looked pretty good at the plate with a .216/.345/.380 slash line and a 112 wRC+. He’s shown great pull side power and a good knowledge of the strike zone with 14.6% walk rate this season. He’s not great defensively and has played every infield position the past two years but will likely settle into either the corner infield or try the corner outfield. His power and ability to walk could carry him through the minors but he’ll need to make a bit more contact.

Josue De Paula OF: Probably the best prospect to head to Arizona De Paula was just recently promoted to AA so he could keep getting at bats and will continue to get even more this fall. Before getting called up De Paula had a .263/.406/.421 slash line with a 143 wRC+ in high A. He has big raw power that he hasn’t shown it off a ton in games. He also has shown elite plate discipline with a 19% walk rate this season. He’s able to work long counts and waits for his pitch. He’s also a threat on the bases with 32 steals this season. His top prospect ranking isn’t about what he’s currently doing but mostly what his projection is. The 20 year old still has a lot to grow especially into his swing but he’s an elite level prospect that can become a Silver Slugger type of hitter. He needs more work in the outfield though. He has a big arm but doesn’t always look comfortable playing out there. The Dodgers want him to continue getting at bats after De Paula missed a few weeks in early August and hasn’t got a hit since being promoted. He’ll be really fun to watch this fall against older arms.

Kendall George CF: The former 2023 1st round pick has been super impressive in his first year in high A. In 514 plate appearances George has a .295/.409/.370 slash line and a 131 wRC+ with more walks than strikeouts. He also showed off his speed with 100 stolen bases! He was able to make more contact this season and rarely swings and misses. He has the potential to be a great centerfield defender like most speedy players do but he hasn’t shown great routes so far. He’s a very fun prospect who’ll be fun to watch this fall.

Chicago White Sox:

Tyler Davis RHP: After being picked up from the Pioneer league (an Independent league) last season Davis moved all the way up to AAA. This season he has pitched only in AA and has looked good out of the bullpen. He has a 3.17 ERA and 2.62 FIP while striking out 28.2% of batters. Davis has a good four pitch mix starting with a good fastball that sits at 95 mph with 18.9 IVB. His secondaries start with a solid slider that sits at 89 mph with a good changeup and curveball to match. He has struggled a bit with command walking 11.9% of batters this year and has struggled with them since college. He’s an intriguing arm that could be up in the White Sox bullpen and will get some good innings this fall.

Carson Jacobs RHP: After going undrafted out of North Dakota State Jacobs is a really fun arm out of the bullpen. Standing at 6’9” Jacobs uses all of it for a big fastball that goes right by hitters. He also adds a curveball that has great depth and some arm side bend. There still is no Statcast for him and I’m really excited to see his pitches in Arizona. His pitches have big whiff potential with over 32% strikeout rate the past two seasons. The one thing that Jacobs continues to struggle with is command and he’s really wild. With each of the last two seasons being above a 15% walk rate. If he can even get that down a bit Jacobs can climb quickly and with the White Sox using him mainly in the 8th or 9th it looks like they’re setting him up to be a backend bullpen guy. Jacobs had a 1.96 ERA and 39 strikeouts in his last 23 innings in high A and was recently promoted to AA. I’m sure the Sox want to see him get as many innings as possible to help his control.

Connor McCullough RHP: Another undrafted signing in 2022 McCullough has struggled with injuries the last two seasons. In 2024 he was only able to pitch 13.1 innings. This season he’s made a few rehab starts and made 8 starts since coming back to AA at the start of August. He has some solid stuff and a fastball he’s able to command really well and a nasty curveball. He’s been able to strike out more than 23% of batters at every level and shown good command with a 6% walk rate this season. When he plays he’s been able to limit hard contact and keep guys off the bases. This is a really big end to the season for McCullough since he’s Rule 5 Draft eligible this season. Hopefully he can stay healthy.

Hagen Smith LHP: One of the best starting pitchers headed to Arizona, Smith was drafted 5th overall to the White Sox in 2024 and has made 20 starts in his first full pro ball season in AA. He’s had an alright first year with a 3.57 ERA and 3.69 FIP while striking out 33.9% of batters. What he’s struggled with has been his command walking 17.6%. This is something that goes back to his first two years at Arkansas but in his junior year and his three starts in high-A last season he had dropped his walks dramatically. His stuff has also taken a step back this season. His fastball that topped out at 100 mph in college now sits between 92-95 and tops out at 97 mph. He also hasn’t been able to command it well at all, usually missing his spot and throwing it out of the zone. His slider which was his big strikeout pitch also lost some velocity and hitters haven’t been chasing as much. He also has a changeup that he hasn’t been able to throw for strikes. He’s been dealing with elbow soreness this season and been changing his delivery to slow it down and hopefully cause less injury. With his soreness the White Sox have held him back this season and he’s missed more than a month throughout June and has not thrown more than 85 pitches since that injury. Smith will look to get more innings this season to work on his delivery and command.

Sam Antonacci IF: After being drafted in the 5th round last season, Antonacci has been amazing in his first full pro ball season. After starting the season at High-A where he slashed .279/.425/.412 with a 154 wRC+ he was promoted to AA where he continued his strong season with a slash of .292/.435/.381 and a 152 wRC+. He’s not going to bring a lot of power with only five homers this season but he has shown an elite knowledge of the zone and a great contact ability. He works long counts and has only whiffed at 5.2% of pitches this year. Even without homer run hitting power he still has 32 XBH this year and hits the ball in the gap often allowing him to use his speed to stretch hits. He also has added 48 steals to his stat line. He will likely jump into the White Sox top prospect lists this offseason and has the ability to climb fast throughout the minors. He is still trying to find a place on defense and has experience at every infield position this year.

Ryan Galanie 1B: The former Southern Conference player of the year at Wofford, Galanie spent most of this season in AA. After starting the season in High-A and putting up a slash line of .315/.356/.565 with a 163 wRC+ in his first 21 games Galanie was promoted to AA where he numbers slipped a bit to .266/.320/.386 with a 107 wRC+. The same drop happened last year when he went from a 189 wRC+ in Low A and dropped down to a 111 wRC+ in High A. He has solid power and has above average contact skills. He only strikes out 15% of the time but he needs to walk more with only a 7.1% walk rate. He’s already 25 and will need to have another hot start to move up to AAA and potentially the majors next year. Not a super high potential bat but a player that has a chance to make the bigs.

Braden Montgomery OF: The 2024 12th overall pick who was acquired from the Red Sox last offseason for Garrett Crochet. Montgomery was one of my favorite swings in the draft last season, he’s a switch hitter with big power but some shaky contact skills that has elite bat speed. In his first professional season this year he’s already climbed from Low A up to AA. He’s been hitting well at every level with a .270/.360/.444 slash line and 136 wRC+ this season. His biggest problem is his below average contact skills. This season he has a 69.8% contact rate and he’s not just chasing he’s missing pitches in the zone, he has a below average Z-Contact% at each level with a 73.4% in AA. I’m not sure how much Montgomery will play as he missed the end of his last season in college with a fractured right ankle and was put on the injured list September 8th of this year with a small fracture in his right foot. Hopefully he can make his way back and show his power in Arizona.