Here are the O's 2026 Top 30 prospects
This browser does not support the video element.
Things look a little bit different down on the farm for the Orioles these days. After years of drafting early and loading up on bats, many of those hitters have graduated and/or been traded for other pieces. The shift is apparent because at the top of the new Orioles Top 30 are a trio of Top 100 ...
Oh wait, more bats.
OK, so the very top of the list should look familiar. The top two, Samuel Basallo and Dylan Beavers, should graduate off the list soon, if all goes well and they are contributing to a turnaround in Baltimore. Newcomer Nate George has ascended quickly up the rankings, and could keep the hitting domination at No. 1 going for a while longer, with the O’s not having a pitcher in that top spot since 2016.
Beyond that, there is some pitching on the rise, a development area that hasn’t been as fruitful for the organization in recent years. There are two pitchers in the top five, lefty Luis De Leon and right-hander Trey Gibson, both of whom could help the big league team this year, and a string of seven straight arms from 11-17. There are a total of 10 pitchers in the top 20 now, a relative boon for the system.
Here’s a look at the Orioles' top prospects:
1. Samuel Basallo, C/1B (MLB No. 8)
2. Dylan Beavers, OF (MLB No. 69)
3. Nate George, OF (MLB No. 93)
4. Luis De Leon, LHP
5. Trey Gibson, RHP
Complete Top 30 list »
Biggest jump/fall
Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the 2025 preseason list to the 2026 preseason list:
Jump: Nate George, OF (2025: NR | 2026: 3)
A 16th-round pick in 2024 as a multisport athlete from the Illinois high school ranks, George didn’t begin his pro career until 2025, and even those who were aware of him figured it might take a while for him to turn potential into production. Instead, he hit .337 with an OPS of .896 and 50 steals over 87 games that took him from the Rookie-level Florida Complex League all the way up to High-A.
This browser does not support the video element.
Fall: Keeler Morfe, RHP (2025: 9 | 2026: NR)
Morfe exploded on the prospect scene in 2024, but it didn’t last long. Perhaps we got a little too excited about him pitching his way from the Dominican Summer League up to full-season ball in ‘24 with 100-mph heat, though we did worry about command and workload. He missed two and a half months of the 2025 season with a sprained right ring finger, and when he was on the mound, he walked 32 in 21 2/3 innings. He doesn’t turn 20 until June, so there’s time for him to turn things around.
Best tools
Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools – 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is plus and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.
Hit: 55 - Samuel Basallo (Dylan Beavers, Nate George, Ike Irish, Jose Luis Acevedo)
Power: 65 - Samuel Basallo
Run: 80 - Enrique Bradfield Jr.
Arm: 70 - Samuel Basallo
Defense: 70 - Enrique Bradfield Jr.
Fastball: 70 - Esteban Mejia
Curveball: 60 - Tyson Neighbors
Slider: 60 - Luis De Leon (Trey Gibson, Esteban Mejia, Boston Bateman, Juaron Watts-Brown, Tyson Neighbors, Anthony Nunez)
Changeup: 60 - Joseph Dzierwa (Anthony Nunez)
Control: 55 - Anthony Nunez
How they were built
Draft: 14 | International: 9 | Trade: 6 | NDFA: 1
Breakdown by ETA
2026: 10 | 2027: 6 | 2028: 9 | 2029: 2 | 2030: 1 | 2031: 2
Breakdown by position
C: 4 | 2B: 1 | SS: 5 | OF: 6 | RHP: 10 | LHP: 4