Inbox: Looking at two-way prospects on Top 30 lists

I was surprised to learn it has been a month between Pipeline Inboxes for me, but I'm back. I've been inundated with a lot of questions this week about why Brewers third baseman Andrew Fischer isn't on our Top 100 Prospects list, but Jonathan Mayo answered that in last week's Inbox.

My take: I love Fischer's power (Minor League-leading 44 homers), worry about the strikeout rate (34 percent) and think he winds up at first base. He's a bubble Top 100 guy and I can see the case for him, but he just misses for me.

I did have to laugh when I saw someone tweet that we were excluding Fischer because of an anti-Brewers bias: "No one wants to think the Brewers have another great talent coming up." We rank Milwaukee as having the best prospect (Jesús Made) and third-best farm system, so I don't think we're trying to slight the Brewers.

On to some non-Fischer topics ...

The Rangers have two legitimate two-way prospects in Seong-Jun Kim and Josh Owens. How many other teams have two-way prospects on their Top 30 Prospects lists? -- Dwayne H., DeSoto, Texas

The Rangers have twice as many two-way prospects on their Top 30 list as the other 29 organizations combined have on theirs. Kim and Owens are both infielders/right-handers, as is Shotaro Morii of the Athletics. Conrad Cason fits the same profile and has ranked on our Red Sox Top 30 in the past, but he got squeezed off this summer as he has barely played while recovering from Tommy John surgery and dealing with a hamstring strain and elbow stiffness.

Playing both ways is hard, both in terms of aptitude and the toll it takes. Shohei Ohtani makes it look far easier than it is because he's literally the most gifted player in baseball history. Brendan McKay was the most talented two-way player to come out of college baseball since Hall of Famer Dave Winfield, but he couldn't stay healthy after the Rays made him the fourth overall pick in the 2017 Draft.

Kim and Owens have played well on both sides of the ball this summer, though they have spent just two weeks in Single-A to this point. Morii has struggled at that level, batting .227/.325/.369 with a 29 percent strikeout rate in 63 games and a 15.26 ERA in 15 1/3 innings.

Sometimes teams have to promise to let guys play both ways to get them signed, but I'd have them focus on hitting or pitching as soon as possible. Teams were split on whether Jared Grindlinger had a brighter future as an outfielder or left-handed pitcher, and the Angels made him a full-time position player after signing him for $5,886,800 as the 12th overall pick in the 2026 Draft. It might be fun to watch Grindlinger try to make it as a two-way player, but he'll have a greater chance of success by not diversifying.

I remember reading a while back that you thought Owen Ayers needed to improve his overall catching in order to move up. You had indicated that you wanted to see how he did in Double-A. Have you seen enough of him in Double-A and Triple-A to think he can catch for the Cubs next year? -- Steve W., Colonia, N.J.

While I was impressed with Ayers while watching him win the Arizona Fall League Breakout Player of the Year award last year, I still wasn't sure what to make of him. Almost everyone hits well in the AFL, he was a 24-year-old former 19th-round pick who hadn't played above Single-A and I saw him box more balls than he should behind the plate.

So yes, I needed to see more -- and I'm now a believer. Ayers has advanced from Single-A to Triple-A this year, slashing .298/.413/.552 with 25 homers in 114 games with good under-the-hood data as well. He has cleaned up his receiving, his arm strength grades as plus-plus and the Cubs always have liked his framing ability.

Ayers could catch for Chicago next year, though it's unclear how much of an opportunity there will be. The Cubs have one of the best catching tandems in the Majors with Carson Kelly and Miguel Amaya, and they'll likely try to bring Kelly back if both sides don't agree to his $7.5 million mutual option. The switch-hitting Ayers still could claim a big league role as a player who could see time behind the plate, get at-bats at DH, spell first baseman Michael Busch against tough left-handers and sporadically fill in on the outfield corners.

The outlook for the Angels farm system looks brighter than it has in years. Their system checked in at No. 17 in our midseason rankings, their peak since we began rating all 30 organizations in 2020. In 13 previous rankings, the Angels averaged 27th and never climbed higher than 21st in mid-2020.

The Angels feature shortstop Arjun Nimmala and right-hander Tyler Bremner on our current Top 100, with Hayden Alvarez a strong candidate to join the list when we replace four prospects before the end of the season. A well-rounded center fielder who's starting to grow into more power, he has batted .290/.392/.460 with 12 homers and 50 steals in 116 games between two Class A levels at age 19.

The ultra-projectable Grindlinger isn't too far off the Top 100 either. Slawinski was one of the best prep left-handers in the 2025 Draft and dominated in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League with a league-best 82 strikeouts and 4.82 K/BB ratio in 54 innings. Right-hander Jordan has a 33 percent strikeout rate between two Class-A levels at age 20, thanks mainly to a power sinker that averages 95 mph and touches 98.

Also keep an eye on the two players the Angels drafted immediately behind Grindlinger. Second baseman Jarren Advinicula (second round) was one of the best contact hitters in the Draft, while corner infielder Gavin Grahovac (third) offered some of the best power potential.