Top MLB prospects: Oct. 31

MLB’s player drafts are unlike any other sport. Draftees usually spend years in the minor leagues before a chance with their big league ball club. This can make drafting players a crap shoot with a decent amount of luck involved, but some teams are seeing early rewards from the first round this year.

While the jury is still out on all of these players, there is no harm in starting your professional career with a lot of success.

1B Nick Kurtz

Kurtz was drafted fourth overall by the Athletics and tore up college baseball with an excellent combination of contact, plate discipline and power. He has continued this torrid stretch in the minor leagues, progressing all the way to AA baseball in just a few short months.

Kurtz also participated in the Arizona Fall League this summer, a six-team league made up of top prospects from every MLB organization. In three games there, Kurtz hit .333 with an on-base-plus-slugging (OPS) of over 1.000.

His bat is one of the best in his class, and he could be joining the Athletics major league roster in just a few years if he continues to rip the cover off the ball.

3B JJ Wetherholt

Another lefty on this list, Wetherholt was selected 7th overall by the St. Louis Cardinals. Wetherholt’s game is revolved around his contact and discipline. In about 100 at-bats in A-ball, he has a triple slash of .295/.405/.400. While he is getting on base at a tremendous clip (.400 is nothing to sneeze at), he is lacking in the slugging department.

Only seven extra-base hits across 30 games is something he will need to work on. If he can maintain his high batting average and on-base percentage (OBP) while working in more doubles, Wetherholt will prove to be one of the best contact hitters in this draft.

2B Christian Moore

Taken 8th overall by the Los Angeles Angels, Moore was promoted to AA after just two games in A-ball. In just 23 games in AA, Moore has 12 extra-base hits while still maintaining a .322 batting average. This early success should be no shocker as Moore was one of the biggest threats in college baseball in 2024.

He hit 34 home runs in just 72 games with a .375 batting average. He will likely not come close to this kind of production in the Major Leagues, but his early success in continuing his power and contact skills could see another rapid promotion for him to AAA.

Like Kurtz, Moore is another player who could see Major League action in the short term, provided the Angels plan to build a competitive team in the next few years.

SS Seaver King

Drafted 10th overall by the Washington Nationals, Seaver has performed similarly to Wetherholt. He has just four extra-base hits over 20 games in A-ball, and will likely stay there until that number can be improved. This leads to a slugging percentage of just .385.

On the other hand, he is making contact and drawing walks, batting .295 with an OBP of .367. Seaver gained power in his bat throughout college, improving on his home run total every year. He could experience something similar as he adjusts to professional pitching, and if he does that, he could be another addition to a scary young Nationals core.

3B Cam Smith

Selected 14th overall by the Chicago Cubs, Smith is another prospect to swing their way to AA baseball. He found great success across 27 games in A and A+ baseball but has come down to Earth upon reaching AA. Smith has shown great prowess in his batting average and slugging.

Smith also has been an above-average defensive third baseman for most of his collegiate and professional career. Major League Baseball teams can often overlook a few flaws if you can provide solid defense in an important position, like third base.

Carter Brooks is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email cjb7448@psu.edu.