These 6 prospects could make the biggest leaps onto the Top 100 list

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A new year means new MLB Pipeline Prospect rankings are coming. We'll start with positional top 10s next week, a prelude to our new Top 100 Prospects list, which will be revealed during an MLB Network broadcast on Jan. 23. Organization Top 30s follow after that, scheduled for early March.

In 2025, five players who didn't crack the top 10 on preseason Top 30s eventually climbed onto the Top 100: White Sox shortstop/third baseman Caleb Bonemer, Pirates outfielder/first baseman Edward Florentino, Yankees right-hander Carlos Lagrange, Dodgers outfielder Mike Sirota and Red Sox left-hander Payton Tolle. That got me to wondering .... Which prospects sitting outside the top 10 on our current end-of-season Top 30s could make the jump into the Top 100 this year?

Here are six candidates:

Josh Adamczewski, OF, Brewers
An example of Milwaukee's prowess at finding talents in the later rounds of the Draft, Adamczewski signed for $252,500 as an Indiana high schooler selected in the 15th round in 2023. Back problems limited him to 71 games last year, but he slashed .320/.420/.490 between three stops before performing well in the Arizona Fall League. He's a well-rounded hitter with solid power potential, and he looks comfortable in left field after spending much of his early pro career at second base.

Joshua Baez, OF, Cardinals
Baez featured some of the best raw power in the 2021 high school class, which earned him an over-slot $2.25 million bonus as a second-rounder. After a left wrist injury derailed him in his first full pro season and swing-and-miss issues plagued him in his next two, he adopted a more upright stance and tighter right-handed swing in 2025 and batted .287/.384/.500 with 20 homers and 54 steals in 117 games between High-A and Double-A. The pop is real, he's showing the ability to tap into it and his plus arm strength adds to his right-field profile.

Luis De León, LHP, Orioles
Signed for just $30,000 out of the Dominican Republic at the end of the 2021 international signing period, De León has blossomed into one of Baltimore's best pitching prospects. He elicits a lot of groundballs with his mid-90s sinker, misses bats with a mid-80s slider and shows some feel for an upper-80s changeup with fade. He logged a 3.30 ERA, .203 opponent average and 107 strikeouts in 87 1/3 innings while advancing from Single-A to Double-A, then was one of the top pitchers in the AFL.

Parker Messick, LHP, Guardians
Messick had one of the best changeups and some of the best polish in the 2022 college crop, and he has lived up to that reputation since signing for $1.3 million as a second-rounder out of Florida State. His fading mid-80s cambio helped him post a 2.72 ERA and a 38/6 K/BB ratio in 39 2/3 innings during seven late-season starts in the Majors. It also allows the rest of his pitches, highlighted by a low-90s fastball and mid-80s slider, to work more effectively.

Brendan Summerhill, OF, Rays
One of the better all-around players in the 2025 college class, Summerhill lasted longer than expected and signed for $1,997,500 as the 42nd overall pick. The Arizona product has a sweet left-handed stroke and an advanced approach at the plate that translated into a .343/.459/.556 line last spring. He also has solid speed and a chance to stick in center field.

Esmerlyn Valdez, OF/1B, Pirates
Another bargain international signing, Valdez turned pro for $130,000 out of the Dominican Republic in 2021. He led the Single-A Florida State League with 22 homers in 2024 and the AFL with eight this year, sandwiched around a .286/.376/.520 season with 26 blasts in 123 games between High-A and Double-A. He has legitimate plus power and growing sense of the strike zone, and he plays a decent right field.