With Week 1 of the 2025 Arizona Fall League in the books, it’s time to look back at the biggest standouts at the plate and on the mound from the start of the campaign.
Although rain from Hurricanes Priscilla and Raymond forced the cancellation of several games, plenty of players were quite productive over the three to four games their respective teams were able to get in.
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In particular, Cubs catcher Owen Ayers (Mesa) and Orioles left-hander Luis De León (Peoria) took home the first weekly honors as the Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively.
Ayers has been the top hitter for the Solar Sox early on and is one of five AFL players to total three extra-base hits last week. The switch-hitting backstop went 5-for-11 with two doubles, a homer, four RBIs and two walks -- good for a 1.447 OPS. Five of his nine batted balls have been hard-hit (95 mph or harder), with a max of 110.6 mph, the fourth-hardest hit ball on the circuit, as measured by Statcast. Defensively, he threw out six of 14 potential basestealers (42.9 percent).
The 2024 19th-rounder out of Marshall has spent each of his first two professional seasons with Single-A Myrtle Beach, where he posted a .238/.341/.420 slash line with six homers and seven steals in 65 games this year. Ayers has a rather pull-heavy approach at the plate, enabling him to tap into his power better, although his three extra-base hits so far in the AFL have been spread around to all three fields.
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De León, Baltimore's No. 21 prospect, was dominant in his lone start for the Javelinas. The southpaw is tied for the AFL lead with seven strikeouts as he scattered one hit, two walks and allowed an unearned run across four innings. He racked up 11 whiffs on 31 swings (35.5 percent), and only one of the six batted balls he surrendered was hard-hit.
The 22-year-old Dominican Republic native pitched at High-A Aberdeen and Double-A Chesapeake during the regular season -- plus a brief rehab stint with Single-A Delmarva. Overall, he posted a 3.30 ERA with 107 strikeouts in 87 1/3 innings. He was particularly effective during his time at Double-A where he posted a 1.69 ERA and 24 K's in 16 frames for the Baysox. At 6-foot-3, De León has an intriguing three-pitch mix that's led by a sinking fastball that topped out at 98.5 mph.