Inbox: Comparing No. 2 Draft prospect Emerson to Willits

Next week just might be the busiest on the MLB Pipeline calendar. It starts with our latest update to the Top 100 Prospects list, continues with Futures Game roster announcements and scouting reports and concludes with an updated and expanded Draft Top 250 plus our later projections for the first 40 picks in the Draft. While you wait for all of that cool stuff, let's answer some of your questions.

If Grady Emerson and Eli Willits were in the same Draft class, who would you pick first? -- Joe B., Matawan, N.J.

Willits currently ranks No. 4 on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 and the Nationals have zero regrets about taking him with the top pick last July. He's slashing .290/.412/.525 with 11 homers and 35 steals in 59 games between Single-A and High-A and he's still just 18 years old, only 2 1/2 months older than Emerson. They actually were in the same 2026 Draft class until Willits reclassified.

Ranked second on our Draft Top 200 and the Gatorade National Player of the Year, Emerson is a strong candidate to go No. 1 overall to the White Sox next month. I'd give him a slight edge over Willits as a prospect and would take Emerson if they were both in the same Draft.

Emerson is a little taller (6-foot-3 versus 6-foot-1) and will be more physical, though Willits is not having any trouble impacting the ball in his first pull pro season. Willits is a little quicker, while Emerson's arm is a tick stronger. They'll both be quality shortstops but Emerson's superior offensive upside would make the difference for me.

Dodgers outfielder Zyhir Hope, No. 17 on the Top 100 Prospects list, immediately comes to mind. Los Angeles is in World-Series-championship-or-bust mode and has five outfield prospects ranked on the Top 100, headlined by Josue De Paula at No. 8 (and he's probably untouchable).

If the Tigers put Tarik Skubal on the market, the Dodgers could put together as attractive a package as anyone. In fact, they could include Hope and another outfielder such as Eduardo Quintero (No. 34), Mike Sirota (No. 38 for now, flying up the re-rank next week) and Charles Davalan (No. 92).

The Mariners are another team with World Series aspirations and president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto loves to deal, so I could envision him parting with outfielder Lazaro Montes (No. 27) or second baseman/outfielder Michael Arroyo (No. 43). The Guardians are fighting for their seventh American League Central title in 11 seasons and have an endless supply of switch-hitting bat-over-power infielders, so shortstop Angel Genao (No. 42) could be on the move.

Blah Bla also asked another question where he said he's a Rockies fan who selfishly hopes Georgia Tech outfielder Drew Burress drops to them at No. 10 and wondered about the odds of that happening. So let's throw that in here as well.

As I detailed in the May 15 Pipeline Inbox, the Giants may covet UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky and conceivably could pledge to pay him millions more than the three clubs ahead of them in the Draft, but there's nothing they can do to force the White Sox, Rays and Twins to pass and I don't think all three will. Similarly, while it's still quite unclear what will happen after the top six-rated prospects come off the board, Burress feels like a strong No. 7 and I don't think he'll get through the Orioles, Athletics and Braves at 7-8-9.

So that leaves UC Santa Barbara right-hander Jackson Flora, the clear top pitcher in the Draft. I don't believe he'll drop to the Athletics at No. 8, but there are some rumblings that the Giants prefer Florida high school shortstop Jacob Lombard at No. 4, the Pirates may not want an arm at No. 5 and the Royals could go in a number of directions at No. 6. The Orioles almost certainly won't select a pitcher at No. 7, so that's the scenario where the A's could land Flora.

Where do you fall on the Andrew Fischer debate? Most Top 100 Prospects lists exclude him because of his contact issues, but his stats have been video game-like thus far even with the swing-and-miss. I'm a believer in the bat and think he'll excel as a pro. What are your thoughts on his bat? The bigger question to me is will he stick at third base? -- Eric K., Chicago

Some teams believed that Fischer had the best offensive metrics of any college player in the 2025 Draft, during which the Brewers selected him 20th overall. He's hitting .292/.435/.689 between High-A and Double-A, leading the Minors in OPS (1.124) and ranking second in slugging, third in wRC+ (172) and fourth in homers (23). He's also striking out in a third of his plate appearances and his under-the-hood numbers fall at both ends of the spectrum.

Fischer excels at pulling pitches (58 percent) and launching them in the air (53 percent), and the only full-season batting qualifier who is better in both aspects is White Sox third baseman/shortstop Caleb Bonemer. He hits balls exceptionally hard and has solid chase rates (23 percent), but his swing-and-miss (38 percent) and in-zone-miss (27 percent) rates fall among the worst in the Minors. It's kind of a more extreme Kyle Schwarber profile, but there's also a big difference between High-A/Double-A and the big leagues.

My thoughts? I'm conflicted. Fischer has plenty of offensive upside but also swings and misses at an alarming rate, especially considering he doesn't chase excessively. He's not quite a Top 100 Prospect for me, but he's also not far off.

Fischer lacks the quickness or range to play third base, especially for a team that emphasizes defense as much as Milwaukee. So his bat will drive almost all of his value and there's such a wide gap between his possible outcomes.