Now, it makes sense. The reason why first, second, and third base are largely devoid of prospects is because they're all hiding out at shortstop. It's where the most talented players start out, and at least in recent years, teams have been reluctant to move them off it, not wanting to concede anything developmentally until the last possible moment.
And so we see this imbalance. While sorting prospects by position makes sense in theory, it leads to my top seven here also being my top seven overall. I'm not even joking.
To account for this, I've gone 25 deep here as compared to 10 deep at all the other infield positions. I'm still not convinced it's enough. Some shortstop prospects who will appear in virtually every top 100 list, including maybe my own, had to be left out. Maybe I'll go 30 deep here next year, who knows?
Note: These rankings are intended mainly for Dynasty use, emphasizing long-term value over a quick payoff, but to say proximity holds no weight wouldn't be entirely accurate either. Not all of these players will contribute in 2026 — most, in fact, will not — but among prospects, they're the names Fantasy Baseballers most need to know.
Age (on opening day):Â 19
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A, High-A, Double-A
Minor league stats:Â .333 BA (484 AB), 21 HR, 65 SB, .941 OPS, 50 BB, 122 K
Tall and muscular, Griffin is the sort of prospect who you could easily picture in a facemask and shoulder pads, like he's too athletic for the sport he chose, which obviously speaks well of his upside. That he was refined enough to deliver on that upside across three levels as a 19-year-old caught the entire baseball world by surprise. I don't make Mike Trout comparisons lightly — and Griffin isn't a disciplined enough hitter for it to be an apples-to-apples one — but the way he outclasses everyone on the field with him is reminiscent of Trout.
Age (on opening day):Â 21
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A, High-A, Double-A
Minor league stats:Â .305 BA (331 AB), 19 HR, 10 SB, .991 OPS, 59 BB, 46 K
Whether Griffin or McGonigle belongs at No. 1 is the latest installment in the age-old debate of ability vs. skill, and while I usually come down on the skill side of the ledger, the ability gap is the bigger one in this case. McGonigle is great, though, collecting more walks than strikeouts at every minor league stop while sporting a swing that's already optimized for power. He might deliver multiple seasons like the one Geraldo Perdomo had in 2025.
Age (on opening day):Â 18
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A, High-A, Double-A
Minor league stats:Â .285 BA (453 AB), 6 HR, 47 SB, .792 OPS, 67 BB, 108 K
Made already delivers exit velocities better than the average major leaguer, and he's still months away from turning 19. Along with his advanced plate discipline and tenacity for stealing bases, you can see why so many are bullish on his future, even as he works to improve the angle that the ball takes off his bat. While shortstop remains in play, third base may be his ultimate destination, and you could dream on a Jose Ramirez outcome there.
Age (on opening day):Â 23
Where he played in 2025:Â Double-A, Triple-A
Minor league stats:Â .306 BA (408 AB), 17 HR, 23 SB, .931 OPS, 72 BB, 73 K
The line between McGonigle and Wetherholt is thinner than the press releases would have you believe, with contact hitting being the standout skill for both. Wetherholt's swing is geared more for line drives at present, undercutting his power potential, but he's already mastered Triple-A and seemed poised to step in at either second or third base in September. It didn't happen then, but it probably will this spring.
Age (on opening day):Â 19
Where he played in 2025:Â High-A, Double-A
Minor league stats: .255 BA (455 AB), 15 HR, 11 SB, .806 OPS, 66 BB, 107 K
You could take the Padres‘ willingness to part with De Vries in the Mason Miller deal as a warning that he's not all his hurried promotions made him out to be (Ethan Salas, anyone?). But the Athletics took it a step further in August, bumping him up to Double-A as an 18-year-old, and saw him slash .281/.359/.551 in 21 games there. So perhaps he really is that special, in which case there's no limit, really, to how productive he could be.
Age (on opening day): 20
Where he played in 2025:Â High-A, Double-A, Triple-A
Minor league stats: .285 BA (506 AB), 16 HR, 14 SB, .842 OPS, 71 BB, 105 K
Investing in Emerson at cost over the past couple years has required some measure of faith since, for as evident as his hit tool and plate discipline were, his power was almost entirely theoretical. That changed in 2025, when a quieter setup and two-handed finish led to a .311/.404/.510 slash line over his final 76 games, along with a sharp reduction in ground ball rate. Already, there's talk of him making the Mariners' opening day roster, and a Corey Seager-like outcome remains on the table.
7. Sebastian Walcott, Rangers
Age (on opening day):Â 20
Where he played in 2025:Â Double-A
Minor league stats: .255 BA (474 AB), 13 HR, 32 SB, .741 OPS, 70 BB, 108 K
Sorting out Nos. 3-7 at this position is a hair-splitting exercise, and some will place Walcott first among them because his power projection surpasses the others. But his hit tool also represents the clearest liability for any of them. Striking out less than 20 percent of the time at Double-A, particularly at his age, is a good sign, but he also slugged just .386 there. Believe the upside, but recognize that he's still a work in progress.
Age (on opening day):Â 21
Where he played in 2025:Â Double-A, Triple-A
Minor league stats:Â .264 BA (432 AB), 14 HR, 59 SB, .825 OPS, 82 BB, 123 K
Miller's prospect stock was on life support around midseason, looking like a casualty of the improved breaking balls that came with his move up to Double-A. But everything clicked into place in late July, seeing him slash .357/.489/.601 over his final 38 games, which included a move up to Triple-A. With that, his stock is as high as it's ever been, featuring a broad skill set that would easily position him as the Phillies' shortstop of the near future if not for Trea Turner.
Age (on opening day):Â 18
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A
Minor league stats:Â .300 BA (50 AB), 1 3B, 1 2B, 2 SB, 7 BB, 12 K
The first pick of the 2025 draft stands out most for his polish, as evidenced by him holding his own for 15 games as a 17-year-old in a full-season league — a genuinely remarkable achievement. That polish makes it easy to imagine Willits developing more power than he has at present, and the other tools already earn high marks. The dream scenario is something like Trea Turner (two mentions in a row!), and the floor is abnormally high for a player his age.
Age (on opening day):Â 20
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A
Minor league stats:Â .288 BA (125 AB), 5 HR, 9 SB, .831 OPS, 20 BB, 33 K
The difficulty in assessing Rainer now, more than a year after he was selected 11th overall, is that he's appeared in only 35 games as a professional, having been limited in 2025 by a dislocated shoulder. But those 35 games showed him to be exactly the player we thought — one who combines premium exit velocities with a keen batting eye for a true middle-of-the-order projection. His size (6-feet-3), hitting profile, and left-handedness all make for a plausible Gunnar Henderson comp (in a best-case scenario, of course).
Age (on opening day):Â 19
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A, High-A
Minor league stats:Â .270 BA (374 AB), 9 HR, 44 SB, .757 OPS, 34 BB, 68 K
A hot start and a big jump in exit velocity took Pena from being an also-ran in the Brewers system to a prospect rivaling Jesus Made. The power is still fledgling because he's content to let the ball travel deep into the zone rather than getting the bat head out in front, and his .168 batting average in 25 games at High-A shows he has other hurdles to clear as well. He's likely ticketed for second base, where he'd profile similarly to the 2025 version of Brice Turang, standing out most for his speed but with a bat that still plays.
Age (on opening day):Â 19
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A
Minor league stats:Â .239 BA (71 AB), 2 HR, 4 2B, .737 OPS, 12 BB, 33 K
Considering his baseball bloodlines (with father Matt and brother Jackson both being well known) and high draft status (fourth overall pick in 2025), Holliday is a surprisingly polarizing prospect. Advocates point to his chiseled frame and easy power. Detractors think he'll struggle against modern fastballs up in the zone because of his high setup and uppercut swing. While the detractors won the first round (his first 18 professional games saw him strike out 39 percent of the time), most every 18-year-old is in need of swing adjustments. Give it time.
Age (on opening day):Â 19
Where he played in 2025:Â did not play — draft year
The eighth pick in the 2025 draft has yet to make his professional debut, which leaves me completely at the mercy of the scouting reports, but they have nothing but positive things to say about Parker's bat. He's already adept at elevating the ball and is particularly effective against fastballs, which points to him being a plus for both batting average and home runs.
Age (on opening day):Â 22
Where he played in 2025:Â High-A
Minor league stats:Â .242 BA (99 AB), 1 HR, 7 SB, .674 OPS, 17 BB, 27 K
Arquette stands 6-feet-5, which comes with the usual pros and cons — i.e., a swing that's leveraged for power but a strike zone that has some holes. He was widely considered the top collegiate bat in the 2025 draft, though, and is disciplined enough to keep the batting average from being too much of a liability. You shouldn't be surprised if he winds up at third base long-term, where his power will absolutely play.
Age (on opening day):Â 23
Where he played in 2025:Â High-A, Double-A
Minor league stats: .289 BA (454 AB), 20 HR, 25 SB, .844 OPS, 50 BB, 90 K
Power was thought to be the trait holding Culpepper back when the Twins made him the 21st pick in the 2024 draft, so him socking 20 homers in just 113 games — with a near even distribution between High-A and Double-A, no less — should paint him in a more favorable light. He continued to make contact at a high rate and has proven to be a capable base-stealer as well, so I would encourage people not to cling to their priors when assessing him for 2026 and beyond.
Age (on opening day): 20
Where he played in 2025:Â High-A, Double-A
Minor league stats: .235 BA (473 AB), 9 HR, 35 SB, .748 OPS, 87 BB, 146 K
Most rank lists will slot Lombard higher than this, but I'm more of the seeing-is-believing type. Maybe if he had spent more of 2025 at High-A, where he batted .329 with 23 walks in 24 games, I'd feel differently, and it's possible he's been promoted too aggressively to gain a real foothold. Lombard combines superlative plate discipline with the sort of athleticism that comes from being the son of a former college football recruit (not to mention a major leaguer), but he'll need a power breakthrough soon to keep getting that benefit of the doubt.
Age (on opening day):Â 19
Where he played in 2025:Â Rookie, Low-A
Minor league stats: .314 BA (357 AB), 14 HR, 11 SB, .911 OPS, 48 BB, 109 K
Morales captured the imagination of prospect hounds as an 18-year-old tearing up the Dominican Summer League in 2024, but it was 2025, his first season stateside, that validated his prospect credentials. He's already optimized his swing for power, which is rare for a hitter so young, hitting towering fly balls to his pull side. He'll need to cut down on the whiffs, but the fact he got better as the year went on — hitting .351 with a .993 OPS over his final 62 games, even with a move up to Low-A — shows he's on a good trajectory.
Age (on opening day):Â 22
Where he played in 2025:Â Double-A, Triple-A
Minor league stats:Â .261 BA (486 AB), 17 HR, 34 SB, .828 OPS, 76 BB, 131 K
Back from the wrist injury that wrecked his 2024, Williams slashed .281/.390/.477 at Double-A, once again looking like a prototypical leadoff man with his penchant for getting on base and then swiping an extra one. His insistence on wringing every ounce of power out of his 5-foot-7 frame presents some batting average risk, and over the long haul, his power may manifest more as doubles and triples than home runs.
Age (on opening day):Â 18
Where he played in 2025:Â Dominican Summer League
Minor league stats:Â .288 BA (191 AB), 4 HR, 33 SB, .859 OPS, 37 BB, 36 K
Now known by most outlets as Josuar Gonzalez, the 18-year-old was regarded as the top international prospect not named Roki Sasaki in 2025, and lo and behold, he actually delivered on the hype right away, walking more than he struck out while going bonkers on the base paths and demonstrating the sort of exit velocities that should translate to power. Because he's also a switch-hitter and plus defender, the Francisco Lindor comp that you'll so often see seems apt, and while he still needs to prove himself outside of the Dominican Summer League, I'm bullish.
Age (on opening day):Â 18
Where he played in 2025:Â Dominican Summer League
Minor league stats:Â .292 BA (178 AB), 9 HR, 21 SB, .949 OPS, 36 BB, 36 K
Pena and Josuar Gonzalez were neck-and-neck in the international prospect rankings heading into 2025, and judging by their respective debuts in the Dominican Summer League, I'm having a hard time disentangling them here. Gonzalez has opened up a lead according to most rank lists, but I think that's because Pena got off to a slower start and doesn't have as clear of a shortstop trajectory. He might turn out to be the better power hitter of the two, though.
Age (on opening day): 20
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A, High-A
Minor league stats:Â .281 BA (385 AB), 12 HR, 29 SB, .874 OPS, 75 BB, 101 K
A second-round pick in 2024, Bonemer's professional debut went even better than expected as he showed a knack for getting on base and pulling the ball in the air. The latter bolstered an already robust power projection, and if you watch the tape, you'll see that some of those pull-side home runs were absolute missiles. Questions remain about his ability to handle breaking balls, but by everything we can measure from his stint in A-ball, he passes with flying colors.
Age (on opening day):Â 20
Where he played in 2025:Â Low-A, High-A, Double-A
Minor league stats:Â .278 BA (479 AB), 8 HR, 12 SB, .723 OPS, 38 BB, 53 K
As with George Lombard, the fervor over Arias reflects a growing tendency to prioritize secondary indicators over primary ones. While reaching Double-A as a 19-year-old is great, slugging over .400 is better. Part of the appeal for these guys is that they're surefire shortstops and not simply masquerading as such, which matters more for real life than for Fantasy, but they're also relative blank slates with at least one standout tool. For Arias, it's the 10 percent strikeout rate against pitchers far more advanced than he.
Age (on opening day):Â 20
Where he played in 2025:Â Rookie, Low-A
Minor league stats:Â .311 BA (315 AB), 9 HR, 27 SB, .862 OPS, 29 BB, 102 K
A high-octane player with a max-effort swing and tenacity on the base paths, Lewis exudes athleticism but will need to tone down the try-hard to harness it fully — an age-old struggle for players like him. Of his many loud attributes, the contact quality screams the loudest and is perhaps the most cherished in the modern game, but his pitch selection and spray angle both need some work.
Age (on opening day):Â 18
Where he played in 2025:Â did not play — draft year
The Reds are apparently so enamored with Lewis that they drafted his right-handed-hitting counterpart with the ninth overall pick just a year later. If anything, Hall is even more athletic, with Baseball America classifying his speed as a true 80 grade, but the contact isn't as loud. Both are among the more volatile prospects, in need of much refinement as hitters, with speed being Hall's carrying tool and power being Lewis'.
Age (on opening day):Â 19
Where he played in 2025:Â Rookie, Low-A
Minor league stats: .269 BA (346 AB), 12 HR, 21 SB, .797 OPS, 50 BB, 70 K
Among the dozen or so shortstops that could occupy this 25th spot — from Arjun Nimmala to Cooper Pratt to Billy Carlson and Kayson Cunningham — Level has most captured my heart, reiterating his superlative plate discipline and surprising pop in his first year stateside and even advancing to full-season ball as an 18-year-old. Add his natural quickness and strong arm, and the whole package reminds me of the switching-hitting shortstops that dominated the early aughts — guys like Jimmy Rollins, Rafael Furcal, and Carlos Guillen.
Age (on opening day):Â 22
Where he played in 2025:Â Triple-A, majors
Minor league stats: .213 BA (389 AB), 23 HR, 22 SB, .765 OPS, 56 BB, 154 K
Major league stats: .172 BA (99 AB), 5 HR, 2 SB, .573 OPS, 6 BB, 44 K
I've always tried to rank Williams lower than the consensus, but judging by his first taste of the majors, I may be just as guilty of overselling him. He ran into a few homers but was plagued by crippling contact issues, and his defense wasn't even the tour de force we were promised. The ever-frugal Rays figure to give him a long leash, which is why he deserves to place among prospects still, but his chances of becoming an impact Fantasy player are dwindling.
