The Outlook of the Farm System

At this point, there’s no need to rush our prospects. Let them develop at their own pace and become complete players rather than pushing them up too soon and ending up with half-developed talent. The focus should be on growth, refinement, and getting them truly ready for the majors.

Whoever we draft this year will likely become the top prospect in the system. If we land a player with a 55 or 60 overall future grade, that instantly boosts the farm’s outlook and gives us another key piece to build around.

Breaking Down the System

Dana

Dana should spend about 70% of the season in the minors, mainly at Double-A. The priority should be refining his changeup and curveball. Ideally, he doesn’t need to exceed 100 innings in the minors—80 innings of focused development would be perfect. Right now, his growth as a pitcher is more important than just logging innings.

Moore

Time and adjustments are key. We’ve seen both the highs and struggles in Spring. He should follow a similar path to what Dylan Crews did with the Nationals—Crews spent 90 games in the minors before getting called up last year. Moore has a similar skill set. Crews may develop a better hit tool long-term, but at this stage, they’re quite comparable.

Klassen

Klassen has the best pure stuff in the system. If his command improves or even just holds steady, he could see big-league time this year—but only if absolutely needed and development is there. If not, he’s a key bullpen weapon down the road.

Aldegheri

He’s on the 40-man roster and the closest to the majors of anyone in the system. He was slowed down in spring training, but from a development standpoint, he’s ready.

Johnson

Johnson has impressed this spring and moved up the system. Unless he completely dominates in the minors, let him keep starting and look at a call-up next year. No need to rush him.

Rada

Rada has looked great this spring, posting a BB rate close to 15% and a K rate under 30% against solid competition. Keep him in AA and hope that added muscle leads to some power. If he has a breakout year, the outlook on him could change significantly compared to last season.

Matthew Lugo

Another guy who’s gotten a lot of looks in spring—17 games so far. He’s someone who could be called up at any time this season if there’s an opening.

Paris

Talk about a big spring—Paris has improved his stock significantly. If he can get regular at-bats in the bigs, give him the spot. If not, let him start regularly in AA and keep the momentum going.

Cortez

Still a bit further away than Johnson. Start him in High-A and aim for him to reach AA by the end of the season.

Joshua Lugo

Still too young—needs more time to develop.

Final Thoughts

Let these guys develop at their own pace. My top prospects list has definitely shifted after seeing how they’ve performed this spring, with many of them getting at-bats against quality competition. There’s real potential in the top 10 and beyond, and if things go right, this system could look a lot stronger in a year’s time.