Top overall prospect a consensus pick, but execs split on top pitcher

In Part I of the MLB Pipeline Executive Poll, we took a look at the industry’s picks for Rookie of the Year in each league. This next installment will dig deeper into what front offices think about top prospects. The survey, filled out by more than 40 execs across nearly every organization, asked about who they felt was the best prospect in baseball, the best pitching prospect and much more.

Who is baseball’s No. 1 prospect?

This one was a runaway. Konnor Griffin got twice as much support as last year’s survey leader, Roman Anthony. And Kevin McGonigle, a favorite to win AL Rookie of the Year Award honors, was the only other prospect to receive multiple votes. It’s understandable why, with Griffin playing across three levels in his first full season of pro ball and finishing with a combined .941 OPS to go along with 21 homers and 65 steals, all while playing a much better shortstop than many expected. Our 2025 MLB Pipeline Hitting Prospect of the Year has been so good so fast that he’s going to get a very long look this spring, and enough people think he’ll earn an Opening Day roster spot that some voted for him in the Rookie of the Year survey.

As for the others who received votes, Emerson and Jenkins could very well spend considerable time in the big leagues in 2026 and graduate off prospect lists, while Made was our choice on this week’s MLB Pipeline Podcast to be the No. 1 prospect in baseball at this time next year.

Who is baseball’s top pitching prospect?

Also received votes: Travis Sykora, RHP, Nationals; Payton Tolle, LHP, Red Sox; Jonah Tong, RHP, Mets; Jaxon Wiggins, RHP, Cubs

In the Rookie of the Year votes for both leagues, it was interesting to see so many respondents picking a hitter with no big league experience over pitchers who debuted under the spotlight of a playoff push and the postseason itself in 2025. In this survey question, those two arms finished in the top three. Nolan McLean was the Mets’ best starter down the stretch in 2025 and most expect him to pick up where he left off this year. His AL counterpart from the ROY polling, Trey Yesavage, was a postseason hero who pitched meaningful World Series innings. But he actually finished third here, with the Pirates’ Bubba Chandler getting more support. Keep in mind, this isn’t about who will have the best 2026, but who is the better long-term prospect. While Chandler’s results in the Minors last year were a bit inconsistent, his combination of stuff and athleticism never waned, and he also looked very good at the end of his big league debut.

Among the other four on the leaderboard, two are from the 2025 Draft and have yet to throw a professional pitch. Kade Anderson is the college lefty the Mariners took No. 3 overall and Seth Hernandez was the top high school arm in the class who went No. 6. Executives clearly think Andrew Painter is due to bounce back after an inconsistent 2025, his first year back post-Tommy John, and Thomas White is generally considered to be the best lefty prospect in the game.

Who is the best defensive prospect?

Also received votes: Homer Bush Jr., OF, Rays; Starlyn Caba, SS, Marlins; Max Clark, OF, Tigers; Justin Crawford, OF, Phillies; Luis Lara, OF, Brewers; Daniel Pierce, SS, Rays; Luis Peña, SS, Brewers; Cooper Pratt, SS, Brewers; Zane Zielinski, INF, Giants

All of this is subjective, of course, but none more so than this category because there still isn’t as much data on defensive performance as there is for hitting or pitching. It was still a little bit surprising to see Griffin top this list as well, though, beating out guys like Carson Williams and Starlyn Caba, who finished 1-2 in the survey a year ago. The working theory is that Griffin got this much support because he was so much better than expected at short, so his abilities stood out. He was initially slated to split time between the infield and center field but ended up playing just 15 games on the grass as he proved to everyone he can stay on the dirt at the premium position.

Who is the most underrated prospect?

As usual, this question brought in a wide variety of names, 29 to be exact, as “underrated” can be defined in a number of ways: Guys who aren’t on the Top 100 but could or should be, guys on the Top 100 who should be higher, or maybe even just players who aren’t appreciated enough. Ten received multiple votes:

Kane Kepley, OF, Cubs: 7.3%
Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, D-backs: 7.3%
Carson Benge, OF, Mets: 4.9%
Carter Jensen, C, Royals: 4.9%
Dylan Beavers, OF, Orioles: 4.9%
Elmer Rodríguez, RHP, Yankees: 4.9%
Jonathon Long, 1B, Cubs: 4.9%
Kruz Schoolcraft, LHP, Padres: 4.9%
Michael Arroyo, 2B, Mariners: 4.9%
Tyler Bremner, RHP, Angels: 4.9%

Also received votes: Josue Briceño, 1B/C, Tigers; Slade Caldwell, OF, D-backs; Jurrangelo Cijntje, SWP, Mariners; Ethan Conrad, OF, Cubs; Justin Crawford, OF, Phillies; Leo De Vries, SS, A’s; Connelly Early, LHP, Red Sox; Theo Gillen, OF, Rays; Justin Gonzales, OF, Red Sox; Zyhir Hope, OF, Dodgers; Spencer Jones, OF, Yankees; Joe Mack, C, Marlins; Arjun Nimmala, SS, Blue Jays; Daniel Pierce, SS, Rays; JR Ritchie, RHP, Braves; Rainiel Rodriguez, C, Cardinals; Ryan Sloan, RHP, Mariners; Sal Stewart, INF, Reds; Jaxon Wiggins, RHP, Cubs

Interestingly, there isn’t a single repeat from last year’s multivote underrated list who got multiple mentions this time around.

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Who will be the breakout prospect of the year?

Like with underrated, “breakout” could be interpreted in many different ways, which is why this one brought in 30 different players in response. Seven received multiple votes:

Kruz Schoolcraft, LHP, Padres: 14.0%
Edward Florentino, OF, Pirates: 7.0%
Sal Stewart, INF, Reds: 7.0%
Bryce Rainer, SS, Tigers: 4.7%
Charlie Condon, 1B, Rockies: 4.7%
Jamie Arnold, LHP, A’s: 4.7%
Josuar Gonzalez, SS, Giants: 4.7%

Also received votes: Carson Benge, OF, Mets; Juneiker Caceres, OF, Guardians; Cam Collier, 1B/3B, Reds; Ethan Conrad, OF, Cubs; Colt Emerson, SS/3B, Mariners; Jackson Ferris, LHP, Dodgers; Nathan Flewelling, C, Rays; Angel Genao, SS, Guardians; Josiah Hartshorn, OF, Cubs; Ben Hess, RHP, Yankees; Kane Kepley, OF, Cubs; Luis Lara, OF, Brewers; George Lombard Jr., SS, Yankees; Braden Montgomery, OF, White Sox; Marcus Phillips, RHP, Red Sox; Elmer Rodríguez, RHP, Yankees; Ryan Sloan, RHP, Mariners; Mitch Voit, 2B, Mets; Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, D-backs; JJ Wetherholt, INF, Cardinals; Jaxon Wiggins, RHP, Cubs; Eli Willits, SS, Nationals; Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Red Sox

Schoolcraft earned attention in both underrated and breakout, so he could remove himself from contention for the former if he fulfills the latter. Florentino’s breakout really started in 2025 when he rushed onto the Top 100, but he could really catapult himself toward the top of the list if he keeps it going in 2026.

Which pitching prospect is the best future closer?

Liam Doyle, LHP, Cardinals: 29.3%
Jarlin Susana, RHP, Nationals: 19.5%
Noah Schultz, LHP, White Sox: 7.3%
Travis Sykora, RHP, Nationals: 7.3%
Brandon Sproat, RHP, Mets: 4.9%
Carlos Lagrange, RHP, Yankees: 4.9%

Also received votes: Jurrangelo Cijntje, SWP, Mariners; Ryan Johnson, RHP, Angels; Gage Jump, LHP, A’s; Nolan McLean, RHP, Mets; Luis Perales, RHP, Nationals; Elmer Rodríguez, RHP, Yankees; Thomas White, LHP, Marlins; Jaxon Wiggins, RHP, Cubs; Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Red Sox; Gage Wood, RHP, Phillies; Trey Yesavage, RHP, Blue Jays

Jacob Misiorowski topped this list for two consecutive years, but his graduation from prospect status left the door open. Susana had tied the Miz a year ago, but he’s in second place this time, yielding to Cardinals’ 2025 first-rounder Doyle. That might be a bit disquieting to Cardinals Nation, given that the team took him No. 5 overall, but his combination of unorthodox delivery and effort had some scouts concerned. St. Louis should hope this follows the Max Scherzer storyline, since many evaluators thought the future Hall of Famer would end up in a bullpen because of his violent delivery in college. There were 17 total pitchers mentioned and Doyle’s share of the votes is close to what Misiorowski got in 2024.

Who is the best Minor League prospect you’ve seen over the last decade?

We tweaked this question and the next one a little bit to ask evaluators to pick players from the past 10 years, rather than all-time, to get a different look. Of the 17 players mentioned, this group got multiple votes:

Paul Skenes, RHP: 28.2%
Bobby Witt Jr., SS: 12.8%
Konnor Griffin, SS: 10.3%
Fernando Tatis Jr., SS:, 7.7%
Julio Rodríguez, OF: 5.1%
Roman Anthony, OF: 5.1%
Ronald Acuña Jr., OF: 5.1%

Also received votes: Jackson Chourio, OF; Elly De La Cruz, SS; Wander Franco, SS; Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 3B; Gunnar Henderson, SS; Cade Horton, RHP; Nick Kurtz, 1B; Kevin McGonigle, SS; Luis Robert, OF; Juan Soto, OF

Skenes is the only arm to make the list and he tops it easily. What makes this fascinating is that he was in the Minors for about 10 minutes … OK, it was 34 total innings. He made just seven starts at Triple-A in 2024 before getting called up to begin his Rookie of the Year campaign which was, if you asked Pirates fans, seven starts too many. Griffin is the only current prospect to make the list. This list of seven has brought home a whole lot of hardware -- from Rookies of the Year (Skenes, Rodríguez, Acuña Jr.) to a Cy Young (Skenes) to numerous Silver Slugger Awards and All-Star appearances. Witt and Rodríguez went on to earn their team’s PPI picks in future Drafts too.

Who is the best amateur prospect you’ve seen over the last decade?

Paul Skenes, RHP: 45.9%
Bobby Witt Jr., SS: 16.2%
Konnor Griffin, SS: 8.1%
Max Clark, OF: 5.4%
Adley Rutschman, C: 5.4%

Also received votes: Chase Burns, RHP; Dylan Crews, OF; Wander Franco, SS; Jackson Holliday, SS; Nick Kurtz, 1B; Hagen Smith, LHP; Thomas White, LHP

The reframing of this question removes players like Bryce Harper and Stephen Strasburg, who received multiple votes a year ago. Skenes and Witt actually finished tied for first in 2025 with 11.9 percent of the vote, so the jettisoning of the older players really helped Skenes’ total. A dozen players received at least one vote in this one.