2024 18th-round pick Banks continues to raise profile in AFL

Outfielder Teo Banks, an 18th-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft who has yet to play above High-A Wilmington, has become one of the Arizona Fall League's most consistent hitters with the Salt River Rafters.

The 23-year-old Banks is second in the AFL with 26 hits and ranks third with a .366 batting average. Through 21 games, the right-handed hitter is slashing .366/.413/.620 with a 1.033 OPS, 16 RBIs and five stolen bases.

And Banks didn’t need much time to make an impact in his AFL debut.

Banks opened his Fall League season on Oct. 3 by going 3-for-5 with two RBIs and a stolen base in Salt River's 9-4 victory over the Glendale Desert Dogs. 

Banks has continued to produce since, with nine of his 26 hits going for extra bases, including four home runs and four doubles along with one triple. His early success included a 3-for-5 showing with a double and a stolen base against Mesa on Oct. 15.

Against Peoria on Oct. 20, Banks also made the most of a pair of sliders on the outer half of the plate. He launched a three-run homer in the fourth inning with an exit velocity of 105.4 mph, and he added a 105.6 mph solo shot in the seventh. His second and third blasts in the Fall League highlighted a 2-for-3 performance with a walk and four RBIs in an 11-10 loss.

Banks’ fourth homer came Saturday, when he jumped on an 81.9 mph first-pitch slider over the middle of the plate in the fifth inning for a two-run shot that left his bat at 102.9 mph. Banks finished 3-for-3 with three RBIs in Salt River's 11-2, six-inning victory over Surprise. 

The offensive surge has been reflected in Banks’ quality of contact. During the second week of the Fall League, Banks was recognized as one of the AFL’s top performers after going 7-for-17 with one home run, one double, two RBIs and two stolen bases. 

Banks also recorded a 40% hard-hit rate and a maximum exit velocity of 109.5 mph.

The showing in Arizona follows a season of considerable improvement for Banks at Wilmington.

After moving up from Single-A Fredericksburg on June 7, 2025, Banks struggled to find consistency with the Blue Rocks. In 55 games, he batted .123 (15-for-122) with one home run, nine RBIs and a .366 OPS.

Returning to Wilmington in 2026, Banks raised his batting average to .251, posting a .333 on-base percentage and a .708 OPS over 92 games. He finished with 14 doubles, six home runs, 38 RBIs and 21 stolen bases, improving his production while continuing to contribute on the basepaths.

Banks had shown his ability to drive the ball during his college career at Tulane. In his final season with the Green Wave, he owned a .265/.380/.543 slash line with a .923 OPS, 14 home runs, 19 doubles, two triples and 51 runs in 62 games. 

There is still baseball left to play in Arizona, too. All six AFL teams will advance to the postseason beginning Nov. 12, with the top two seeds receiving first-round byes. The semifinals are scheduled for Nov. 13, followed by the championship on Nov. 14.

For Banks, the remaining games will offer another opportunity to build on a strong fall before turning his attention to 2027, when he will look to take the next step in Washington's system.