Ben and Carlos dig into some of the more interesting prospects to know from the Arizona Fall League rosters, including a few well-known players with a chance to make up for lost time, and a few lesser known names who could jump on the scene. Players include Guardians outfielder Chase DeLauter, Tigers righthander Jackson Jobe and Blue Jays lefthander Ricky Tiedemann, among others. After that, the two talk about more big league call-ups, led by Phillies righthander Orion Kerkering, who went...

Carlos and Ben briefly talk about Corbin Carroll’s historic rookie season and the rare company that he has joined with his power/speed combination. Then, they look at the NL MVP race that is heating up between Ronald Acuña Jr. and Mookie Betts and try and figure out who, if either, has the edge.  That leads to a conversation about stolen base and base running value in the game today before diving into some season-ending team retrospectives. The two focus in particular on the Padres and try to...

Ben and Carlos talk about a few recent high-profile front office moves, led by the Red Sox decision to fire chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, as well as the Mets hiring of David Stearns and an extension for Mike Rizzo with the Nationals. The two talk about Bloom’s tenure with Boston and try to assess the job he did with the organization, before looking ahead to how the Mets could look with Stearns in charge in New York. After that, the two talk about the seasons that Japanese players Kodai...

Ben and Carlos talk about Jordan Lawlar’s big league promotion and what to expect from him, then look back at the 2021 draft class and debate who they would take early in the draft with the benefit of a few years of hindsight. They then talk about the odd pro debut and shutdown of 2023 No. 1 overall pick Paul Skenes and what we can take away from that—if anything. After that, the two talk about the minor league player of the year race and make the cases for both Orioles shortstop Jackson...

Ben and Carlos talk about the most disappointing teams in the big leagues this year, and then follow up on a 90th Percentile Podcast conversation from Geoff Pontes about how many games the 2023 Louisiana State team could win against the 2023 Oakland A’s.  The two then move into a few notable prospect promotions that have happened recently, including Padres catcher Ethan Salas moving to Double-A as a 17-year-old, Rangers outfielder Evan Carter moving up to Triple-A and a number of 2023 draftee...

Ben and Carlos get back on the podcast train after a month of busy travel watching some of the top high school players in the country. First on the docket in today’s episode is the surprise announcement that the Angels are calling up 2023 first rounder Nolan Schanuel. After that, the two start with a conversation about our midseason farm system rankings. How much separation is there at the top with the Orioles, Mariners and Dodgers? And which teams beyond that top trio stand out to us? How do...

Ben and Carlos review the 2023 draft and talk through some of their favorite picks and draft classes, as well as talk about surprising bonuses and look through a couple of over slot players drafted later who are names to keep in mind. The two discuss the 2024 draft class and talk about how the class currently has a number of question marks, and then talk about a few prominent movers on the top 100 update—including where the top-ranked 2023 draftees slotted in.  They end the podcast with a few...

Carlos and Ben have a deep draft preview, going pick by pick through the first round to cover the potential picks for all 30 teams. They walk through different scenarios, player/team connections for each club, the players who could potentially go earlier than expected on under-slot deals and the players who might end up sliding down the board.  ​​— Do you have a question you want us to answer? Email us: [email protected]   Follow us on Twitter: @FutureProPod Ben's Twitter:...

Ben and Carlos chat briefly about Ben’s updated top 100 2024 prospect list, and then the two discuss the start of the summer showcase season. What are their preferred events? Which are the big events to know on the calendar? After that, the two talk about Paul Skenes and his recent 124-pitch outing in the regionals for LSU. How many pitches is too many pitches for a college player with big-time draft aspirations in a few weeks and a long career ahead of him? The two try to get into a deeper...

Ben and Carlos talk through our most recent draft update, which was the release of the BA 500—always a fun milestone to reach on the draft calendar. The two talk through a few players of note on the list, including Arizona outfielder Chase Davis and a prominent pop-up player in Southern California, among others. After that, the two talk about the value of team workouts. What sort of information are scouting departments trying to gather in this setting and how important are they when trying to...

Today Ben and Carlos talk about the potential benefits of replacing extended spring training with a full-season league in the minors, and then get into a conversation about the pros and cons of scouting history and getting fresh-eyed looks on players from others. The two talk about players they have different history or personal experiences with and also dive into a couple prospects who they either like a lot personally, or think should get a bit more attention. Players include Mariners first...

Ben and Carlos talk about how impressive Orioles shortstop Jackson Holliday has been since he was drafted and make the case for him as the No. 1 prospect in baseball. The 19-year-old shortstop has an extremely well-rounded game with few, if any, holes to speak of—who else is in the conversation and competing with him right now? After that, the two discuss a few other players who were taken with the first few picks of the 2022 draft, including Rangers righthander Kumar Rocker, D-Backs...

Ben and Carlos open with some draft talk, where the two discuss the most recent Baseball America mock draft and talk about why they are still so high on the depth of the 2023 draft class. After that, the two break down a few notable movers on the most recent update to the top 100 prospect list—headlined by Rangers outfielder Evan Carter, who was a surprise draft pick at the time and is now looking like a savvy scouting move. Ben and Carlos both pick a few movers they are either higher or...

Ben and Carlos talk about Ben’s trip to the Dominican Republic and get into a few players who stood out, and Ben gives some insight on the difficulty of contextualizing the current IFA class to previous ones at this point in the calendar. The two talk about Kyle Glaser’s story on the ‘Enhanced Grip’ baseball that is being tested in the Double-A Southern League, and try and think through the ramifications it has for player development and player evaluation.  After that, the two dive into a ton...

Carlos is joined by Peter Flaherty to discuss the current state of the 2023 draft class and our recently updated top 400 draft list.  The two talk about the first round and the players getting a lot of buzz at the top of the class, talk through some of the strengths and weaknesses of the group as we see it today, and then get into a few of the biggest rising players on the draft board.  After that, Carlos and Peter each pick a player in each quadrant of the draft board who interests them for...

Ben and Carlos chat about their varying levels of disdain for the phrases “have a catch,” “off the charts,” and new pitch classification trends before getting into a conversation about why evaluating younger players is so exciting—and difficult!—at times. The two talk about how excellent the Rays have been early this season, starting the year 13-0, and seemingly winning every trade they make. Carlos makes the case that Wander Franco is in the midst of a breakout season and Ben makes the case...

Ben and Carlos talk about how impressive Padres catching prospect Ethan Salas has been, and the two try to contextualize how good he is compared to recent top international prospects. After that, the two pivot to the big leagues, where they talk about a trio of Brewers hitters who have come out of the gates hot, as well as a few pitching debuts and prospects from the Dodgers and A’s.  After that, Carlos recounts his trip to see Paul Skenes and Dylan Crews in Baton Rouge, and the two wonder...

Today Ben and Carlos have an interview with Hudson Belinsky. Belinsky led Baseball America’s draft coverage from 2015-2017 and then joined the Arizona Diamondbacks as a Georgia area scout, where he worked for the team for five years. He is the signing scout for 2022 first-round outfielder Druw Jones, 2021 ninth-round lefthander Jake Rice, 2019 13th-round second baseman Cam Coursey, 2019 third-round first baseman Tristin English and 2018 NDFA lefthander Trevor McKenna. He’s currently an...

Ben and Carlos give their final thoughts on the World Baseball Classic, including Ben’s victory lap on splitter usage and thoughts on how we talk about high-energy vs. low-energy players—including the fact that we might just have it backwards most of the time. The two discuss how the WBC impacts our anticipation for Opening Day and touch on a few more spring training players of note, including: Reds third baseman Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Blue Jays lefthander Ricky Tiedemann, Angels...

Ben and Carlos talk about the latest in the World Baseball Classic—the good, the bad and the ugly—before breaking down the contract extensions recently signed by Corbin Carroll and Keibert Ruiz. After that the two discuss the Nationals rebuild and the state of their farm system in the wake of the news that righthander Cade Cavalli will miss the 2023 season with a UCL injury. The two talk about the excitement about the top of the system but wonder a bit more about the depth, while...

Ben and Carlos talk about the World Baseball Classic! Who are the favorites in the competition itself and then who are the most interesting prospects to keep an eye on at the event?  Roki Sasaki is certainly the No. 1 name to keep an eye on thanks to his immense stuff, but don’t forget about another Japanese righthander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who might get into the big leagues much sooner. After talking about those electric Japanese pitchers, Ben and Carlos dive into the most interesting...

Ben and Carlos chat about how the pitch clock has looked so far in spring training and then dive into our recently published farm system rankings. Just how good are the Orioles in the No. 1 spot and how do they compare to some of the best No. 1 systems we’ve had in the past? What’s the tier break to the next group and how many teams are included? The two then talk about a few systems throughout the top 30 that they like and wind up getting into a conversation about who should actually count...

Ben and Carlos open the show by discussing the recent injuries to Guardians prospects Daniel Espino and Chase DeLauter before getting into the opening weekend of college baseball action.  The two discuss the players who stood out for Carlos at the College Baseball Showdown in Arlington, including Texas Christian third baseman Brayden Taylor, Arkansas lefthander Hagen Smith and Arkansas second baseman Roc Riggio, among others. They spend some time discussing the standout efforts around the...

Ben and Carlos start the show by talking about a few of the new rule changes that were announced for the big leagues in 2023. Both generally agree on the limitations of position players pitching, but there are some different thoughts on the extra-inning rule to put a runner on second base. Following that, the two talk through a number of different players who have yet to make their full-season debuts who they are excited about: either as potential sleepers, pop-up prospects or simply players...

Ben and Carlos briefly talk about the Guardians and Reds swapping outfield prospects and the Padres extending Yu Darvish, as well as the state of San Diego’s farm system and pitching development, before getting into nitty-gritty scout talk.  What’s in each of their bags when they head out to the fields to see players? What’s their evaluating process? How has it changed over the years? Then the two talk about the 20-80 scale and how BA uses grades and risk factors to try and quantify players....