The first two years of Spring Breakout have provided several memorable matchups. Baseball's best hitting prospect (Jackson Holliday) faced baseball's best pitching prospect (Paul Skenes) in 2024, resulting in a 102-mph fastball and a strikeout on a 92-mph slider. Four of the game's dozen top-rated prospects faced off in a Red Sox-Rays game last March -- and Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell, Carson Williams and Marcelo Mayer all homered.
More fun is on the way this spring with 16 Spring Breakout games scheduled from March 19-22. Every team will play at least one game spotlighting its best prospects in a Spring Training ballpark, while the Brewers and Phillies will play two apiece because of the odd number of teams (15 each) in the Cactus and Grapefruit Leagues. Here are some of the highlights.
More on Spring Breakout
- Everything you need to know
- Check out rosters for this year's Spring Breakout
- Players with the top tools
- Best prospect matchups
- Ranking the top 10 rosters
- Spring Breakout expanding to tournament in '27
- Best moments in Spring Breakout history
- All-Spring Breakout Teams: 2024 | 2025
- Watch games & highlights
- Complete coverage: 2024 | 2025 | 2026
Individual matchups
(Top 100 Prospects rankings in parentheses)
Tigers fans can't be too disappointed No. 2 overall prospect Kevin McGonigle won't play in this one -- he's busy trying to play his way onto Detroit's Opening Day roster. But this is still a meeting of two of the most high-profile players in the Minors. Baseball's top prospect and MLB Pipeline's 2025 Hitting Prospect of the Year, Griffin has the best all-around tools of any player in any farm system. Clark is plenty toolsy, too, though, and comes into 2026 looking to build on his best season so far.
We not only could get the No. 1 prospect facing off against No. 2, but also No. 3 taking on No. 4. Both De Vries (part of the Mason Miller blockbuster trade with the Padres in July) and Made are advanced teenage shortstops with five-tool upside.
Another possible battle of offensive-minded shortstops. Wetherholt might have been the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 Draft had he not suffered a hamstring injury during his junior season at West Virginia, and Willits did go No. 1 in 2025.
Still a couple months shy of his 21st birthday, De Paula is the Dodgers' most advanced young hitter since Corey Seager. Montgomery, meanwhile, brings above-average power to the White Sox lineup. The 2024 first-rounder was a key cog in the trade that sent Garrett Crochet to Boston that December, and he had 50 extra-base hits in his debut season last year.
Made vs. De Vries isn't the only battle of precocious international stalwarts. Duno won Florida State League Most Valuable Player and top prospect accolades after leading the Single-A circuit in homers (18), on-base percentage (.430), slugging (.518) and OPS (.948) at age 19. Hernández, the youngest of 800-plus players on Spring Breakout rosters at age 17, was the consensus best position player available in the 2026 international signing period.
Team matchups
(2026 preseason farm system rankings in parentheses)
Mariners (8th) at Brewers (1st), March 20
This game could feature another tantalizing hitter/pitcher battle, with lefty Kade Anderson (the No. 3 overall choice in last year's Draft) opposing Made and company. The Mariners are tied for the MLB lead with six Top 100 Prospects, led by shortstop Colt Emerson (No. 9), Anderson (No. 21), right-hander Ryan Sloan (No. 33) and outfielder Lazaro Montes (No. 43) -- with all of them on the roster for this game. The Brewers counter with five, four of them shortstops: Made (No. 3), Luis Peña (No. 26), Jett Williams (No. 51) and Cooper Pratt (No. 64). All of those players, as well as 13 of Milwaukee's top 15 prospects, are Spring Breakout participants.
Tigers (5th) at Pirates (3rd), March 20
There's a lot more to this matchup than just Griffin vs. Clark. The Tigers' roster also features shortstop Bryce Rainer (No. 35) and slugging outfielder Cris Rodriguez (Detroit's No. 8 prospect). Pirates fans will cherish the chance to get a look at 19-year-old right-hander Seth Hernandez (No. 29), who's yet to throw a pitch in professional competition.
Rays (10th) at Mets (7th), March 19
The Rays will be led by shortstop Carson Williams (No. 63) and outfielder Theo Gillen (No. 76), and the 14th overall pick from last year's Draft, Daniel Pierce (TB No. 5) stands to make his unofficial pro debut in this one. The Mets will be without their top three prospects -- right-handers Nolan McLean (No. 6) and Jonah Tong (No. 48) and outfielder Carson Benge (No. 16) -- and yet still have one of the most intriguing rosters of the event, with outfielder/second baseman A.J. Ewing (No. 97) leading the way and 18-year-old shortstop Elian Peña (NYM No. 9) playing on a stage of this size for the first time.
Nationals (17th) at Cardinals (4th), March 19
The Nationals have an infield to watch, with shortstops Willits (No. 13) and Seaver King (WSH No. 7) and infielder Gavin Fien (WSH No. 5) all on the roster. Including Wetherholt, the Cardinals' roster includes five Top 100 prospects -- the others being Liam Doyle (STL No. 2/MLB No. 34), Rainiel Rodriguez (STL No. 3/MLB No. 37), Joshua Báez (STL No. 4/MLB No. 87) and Leo Bernal (STL No. 6/MLB No. 98).