Another month of the 2026 season is in the books, and as the weather has warmed up, so have the bats in the Minor Leagues.
The 30 hitters below, our selection for hottest hitter in May for each organization, have been swinging the bat better than most. There are a total of five Top 100 prospects selected and two prospects are making it for the second month in a row, getting highlighted in our look at the hottest hitters in the Minors at the end of April.
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AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST
Blue Jays: Juan Sanchez, 3B/SS (No. 6)
Toronto got aggressive with the 18-year-old infielder by pushing him to Single-A Dunedin in late April (bypassing the Florida Complex League completely in the process), and there were some early speed bumps with a .396 OPS through his 11 games in April. He caught fire around mid-May, however, and added to that run with a two-homer game Tuesday at home against Daytona. Over his last 12 games, the right-handed slugger is hitting .367/.426/.633, pushing his season OPS from .467 to .688 in the process.
Orioles: Wehiwa Aloy, SS (No. 5)
The 2025 SEC Player of the Year and Golden Spikes Award winner, Aloy got off to a more pedestrian start to his first full season of pro ball with High-A Frederick, posting a .714 OPS in April. Then things clicked for him in May, to the tune of a .329/.402/.624 line with six homers over 22 games. He’s now slugging .518 with an OPS of .866 and a 119 wRC+ for the season.
Rays: Theo Gillen, OF (No. 1/MLB No. 42)
The 2024 first-rounder got off to a tremendous start at High-A Bowling Green in April and didn't slow down in May, albeit he was productive in different ways. After slugging .695 in the season’s first month, Gillen had “just” a .527 SLG over 23 games in the second but he produced a higher average (.330) and OBP (.432) as pitchers knew they couldn’t beat him over the heart of the plate. He’s hit nine homers and stolen 18 bags on the season, making him one of only four Minor Leaguers to reach those marks in both categories alongside Eric Hartman, Pedro Ramírez and JD Dix.
Red Sox: Henry Godbout, SS/2B (No. 9)
One of the best contact hitters in the college class, Godbout has continued to impress with the bat as a pro since the Red Sox took him in the supplemental second round last July. The Virginia product is showing more power in the Minors and slashed .286/.439/.540 with four homers in 17 games in High-A in May to improve his season batting line to .277/.410/.492.
Yankees: Jace Avina, OF (No. 19)
Acquired from the Brewers as part of a November 2023 trade for Jake Bauers, Avina fits the right-field profile with plus raw power and solid arm strength. After batting just .198 with a 37 percent strikeout rate in April, he went on a .339/.429/.679 tear last month with eight homers in 26 games. He now leads the Double-A Eastern League with 30 extra-base hits and ranks second with 14 homers.
AMERICAN LEAGUE CENTRAL
Guardians: Luke Hill, 3B/2B (No. 30)
Hill has wielded a hot bat ever since turning pro as a fourth-round pick out of Mississippi last July. Known for his quality swing decisions, he batted .342/.500/.808 with eight homers in 22 games in May after going deep just three times in his first 31 pro contests. He now ranks third in the High-A Midwest League in slugging (.597) and OPS (1.033).
Royals: Yandel Ricardo, SS (No. 9)
It’s telling when a player goes 1-for-23 over a seven-game stretch and still has undeniably an impressive month. That’s what happened for Ricardo with Single-A Columbia, where he ran hot from May 2-13 (.325/.372/.675) and picked up a full head of steam of late (.455/.520/.864, two homers in eight games since May 24). The switch-hitting shortstop has already doubled his career home run high with four through 45 games for the Fireflies and is gaining plenty of momentum in his age-19 season.
Tigers: Thayron Liranzo, C/1B (No. 5)
Liranzo suffered a right oblique strain in Spring Training and didn’t join the Double-A Erie roster until April 28. But he’s shown signs of making up for lost time since especially in the power department. His seven homers over 22 games in May were tied for fourth-most in the Eastern League over that span and were also four more than he hit any single month last year at the same level. Acquired from the Dodgers in 2024, Liranzo hasn’t found offensive consistency in the Tigers system, in part because of injuries, over the last two years, but the slugging potential earned him a place on the 40-man roster last November.
Twins: Hendry Mendez, OF (No. 12)
Mendez was our Twins "hot hitter" in April because in addition to him doing his usual hitting for solid average and getting on base, he was doing more damage (.519 SLG for the month). The slug has gone down a little, but everything else is up, as the outfielder hit .344 with a .449 OBP last month, and most of it came after he was bumped up to Triple-A for the first time. He has a .915 OPS and 140 wRC+ for the year.
White Sox: Jacob Gonzalez, INF (No. 23)
The 15th overall pick in the 2023 Draft after starring in college at Mississippi, Gonzalez batted just .232/.310/.335 in his first three pro seasons as the White Sox tried to get him to become more aggressive at the plate. He has done so in 2026, improving his exit velocities and quality of contact, and he slashed .344/.438/.771 in 24 Triple-A games in May while leading the Minors with 11 homers and 36 RBI for the month. He topped the International League in homers (19), slugging (.668) and OPS (1.087) before Chicago called him up on Sunday.
AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST
Angels: Denzer Guzman, SS (No. 7)
Things started to click in 2025 for Guzman, and he was rewarded with his first big league callup. Back in Triple-A and playing all year at 22, he really settled in last month, hitting .382/.447/.655 with six homers. (He hit another one on Tuesday to give him 11 for the season.) He currently leads the Pacific Coast League with 53 RBIs and is in the top 10 in average, slugging and OPS.
Astros: Jason Schiavone, C/1B (unranked on Astros Top 30)
Schiavone has raised his profile significantly since signing as an 11th-round pick out of James Madison in 2004, producing some of the highest exit velocities (up to 116 mph) and walk rates (23 percent) in the Minors this season. He ranks second in the Minors in homers (19), slugging (.669) and OPS (1.110) after a scorching May in which he hit .297/.462/.703 with 10 homers and seven steals in 26 games in High-A.
A’s: Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, SS/2B (No. 10)
The A’s third-round pick in 2024 sure seems to like life in Triple-A since he got there on May 12. He’s gone off there, and it’s not just because Las Vegas is a nice place to hit, finishing last month with a combined .339/.377/.512 line with 14 extra-base hits, 20 RBIs and six steals over 27 games. The 23-year-old infielder now has an OPS of .855 for the season while seeing time at three spots.
Mariners: Felnin Celesten, SS (No. 7/MLB No. 100)
Celesten’s torrid May helped him land back on the Top 100. After a solid April, the 20-year-old shortstop has slashed .352/.460/.538 and went a perfect 7-for-7 in stolen base attempts over 25 games for High-A Everett. He leads the Northwest League with his .322 average for the year and is second in OPS, with his .907 mark topping all Mariners farmhands.
Rangers: Malcolm Moore, C (No. 18)
Moore missed all of May 2025 recovering from a broken finger caused by a foul tip, an injury that contributed to a dismal season. The 2024 first-rounder from Stanford enjoyed this May much more, batting .386/.469/.599 with six homers in 21 games in High-A. Now that he's fully healthy, he's generating higher exit velocities and driving balls in the air more frequently.
NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST
Braves: Tate Southisene, 2B/SS (No. 3)
It can take a high school draftee a beat to adjust to full-season ball in their first full year, but Southisene seems right at home with Single-A Augusta. Maybe it was the 15 games the Braves gave their 2025 first-rounder at the level last year to get his feet wet, but he posted a .936 OPS in April. He upped that production even further last month, hitting .326/.427/.533 with 10 extra-base hits and 16 steals over 24 games. He currently leads the Carolina League with 35 steals (second in all of the Minors) while also sitting in the top 10 in home runs, OBP, SLG and OPS.
Marlins: Cam Cannarella, OF (No. 7)
The Marlins were delighted to nab Cannarella with the 43rd overall pick in the 2025 Draft because the former Clemson star possessed some of the best bat-to-ball skills in last year's college crop, not to mention plus speed and center-field defense. A non-displaced fracture of his right wrist in mid-April sidelined him for five weeks, but he returned to slash .404/.439/.577 with two homers in 12 games in May. He's hitting .392/.442/.568 overall this season.
Mets: Ryan Clifford, 1B/OF (No. 3)
Clifford’s status as a three-true-outcome king continues apace at Triple-A Syracuse, and while he’s struck out more on the season overall, there have been some positive signs of late in all directions. From May 20-31, he hit six homers over an 11-game span and struck out only 22.9 percent of the time during that run. He now sits tied for fourth in the International League with 13 homers on the season, and his .249 ISO is second-best among 18 qualified players aged 22 or younger at Triple-A.
Nationals: Yohandy Morales, 1B/3B (No. 28)
There were many solid Mays in the Nats system, so apologies to Seaver King, Abimelec Ortiz and Devin Fitz-Gerald (among many others). But Morales’ slugfest with Triple-A Rochester was too good to ignore as he hit .361/.431/.691 with eight homers over 24 games last month. This was the fireworks show many expected could come from the former University of Miami standout, but that he’d only shown in flashes before 2026. Morales’ 13 homers on the season are only three behind his career high of 15 set last year between Double-A and Triple-A.
Phillies: Griffin Burkholder, OF (No. 11)
The Phillies have been bullish about Burkholder’s athleticism and physicality ever since they went over-slot to sign him in the second round of the 2024 Draft, but injuries had really hampered his ability to develop over his first year-plus. After shaking off a slow start to the 2026 season, perhaps he’s starting to show just what he’s capable of, with a .352/.440/.606 line that includes nine doubles and three homers in 18 games. Another month like that and perhaps the Phillies will challenge the 20-year-old outfielder with a bump up to High-A Jersey Shore.
NATIONAL LEAGUE CENTRAL
Brewers: Brady Ebel, SS (No. 13)
Last year’s 32nd overall pick got off to a quiet start with Single-A Wilson hitting .167/.340/.218 in April while being held down by a .224 BABIP. May was a much different story. Not only did he hit .326/.471/.511 over 25 games in the season’s second month, but he also walked more times (23) than he struck out (22) and swiped 14 bags in 15 attempts. Still 18 until July 25, the left-handed-hitting shortstop had many supporters within the org during the down times early in ‘26. That confidence is paying off as his first full season expands.
Cardinals: Joshua Báez, OF (No. 3/MLB No. 67)
The swing-and-miss that defined Báez’s early career has snuck back into his game in his first taste of Triple-A Memphis, but as he reminded the industry in May, he can still translate his incredible raw power into game slug with the best of them. Since May 1, the right-handed-hitting outfielder owns a .297/.366/.658 line in 26 games for Triple-A Memphis. His 10 homers rank second-most in Triple-A over that span, while his 73 total bases place third at the Minors’ top level. In fact, 22 of his 33 hits have gone for extra bases over that time.
Cubs: Josiah Hartshorn, OF (No. 8)
The Cubs had high expectations for Hartshorn after giving the California prepster a sixth-round-record $2 million bonus last July, and he's exceeding them so far. He's making terrific swing decisions and a lot of hard contact, which translated into a .304/.424/.544 batting line with four homers and 17 walks in 23 games last month. He's so advanced that Chicago promoted him to High-A at age 19 last Tuesday and he went 10-for-32 with three homers in his first seven contests at that level, boosting his season line to .293/.431/.512.
Pirates: Murf Gray, 3B (No. 17)
He started out as a college guy in Single-A, and raked there (making our April hot hitters story). The promotion up to High-A hasn't been a problem, and he’s not just producing in hitting-friendly Greensboro. Across two levels in May, Gray posted a .333/.414/.677 line with 10 homers in 25 games. Both his 1.031 OPS and 166 wRC+ top all Pirates Minor Leaguers and he has a robust combined .341/.421/.611 line for the year, pointing to the possibility that the 2025 Competitive Balance Round B pick needs to be challenged with a move to Double-A Altoona soon.
Reds: Alfredo Duno, C (No. 1/MLB No. 25)
The Reds’ top prospect, and the No. 2 catching prospect in baseball, didn’t hit like it over the first month of the season. But after the 20-year-old backstop had just a .709 OPS in his first month in the High-A Midwest League, he got locked in. In 22 May contests, Duno hit .338/.475/.713 with eight homers. He’s now tied for second in the Midwest League with 11 home runs and he’s top 10 in SLG (.550) and OPS (.970).
NATIONAL LEAGUE WEST
D-backs: JD Dix, 2B (No. 6)
Put it this way – at the end of May 3, Dix was slugging .279 for the season. Entering Wednesday, that number is up to .487. In between those dates, the 20-year-old switch-hitter produced a .319/.467/.736 line with seven homers, one triple, seven doubles and 11 steals in 18 games for Single-A Visalia. Coming into 2026, there looked to be enough juice in the bat for average power for the Wisconsin native, and in his second year, he’s showing that there could be even more than that long-term.
Dodgers: Chase Harlan, 3B (No. 16)
The Dodgers paid Harlan a well over-slot $1,747,500 bonus as a third-rounder from a Pennsylvania high school in 2024 because of his huge raw power. He's tapping into it more and more now that he's chasing fewer pitches and making better in-zone contact, rocking Single-A pitchers for a .388/.481/.694 batting line and five homers in 22 games in May. He ranks third in the California League in both on-base percentage (.455) and OPS (.995) and fifth in batting (.329).
Giants: Jonah Cox, OF (No. 25)
Acquired from the Athletics in a February 2024 trade for Ross Stripling, Cox has become one of the top performers in the Minor Leagues this season after improving his right-handed stroke and swing decisions. The son of former big league catcher Darron Cox, he leads the Minors in batting (.400) and stands fourth in OPS (1.097) after hitting .402/.430/.641 with 12 steals in 24 Double-A games last month. Promoted to San Francisco on May 31, he doubled in his first big league at-bat.
Padres: Jase Bowen, OF (No. 23)
The Padres called up Bowen for his MLB debut on Tuesday in an acknowledgment of what was becoming clear at Triple-A El Paso – the offseason Minor League signing had become one of the org’s best outfield options. Bowen hit .300/.390/.600 with six homers and six steals in 23 games with the Chihuahuas in May, putting up numbers that were very similar to those he produced over the same sample size in April. Bowen can get aggressive at the plate, and that’s something the 25-year-old will be challenged by against MLB arms. But he had earned the right to be so challenged in San Diego’s push to stay afloat in the NL West race.
Rockies: Roldy Brito, 2B/OF (No. 3/MLB No. 80)
Brito is showing that his stellar debut with Single-A Fresno last summer is no mirage. He’s now fourth in the California League with his .333 average while getting on base at a .376 clip and slugging .514 for the year. Those numbers were bolstered by a blistering .368/.402/.544 May, one of several prospects on the Rockies Top 30 who are coming off red-hot months.