Mid-Major Prospects To Watch In The 2025 MLB Draft
With Regionals and the NCAA Tournament underway in college baseball, we’ve seen some incredible performances from mid-major draft prospects. It inspired me to take a deeper look at a few standouts — so here's a list highlighting them! There will be two-to-three players from each position highlighted in this blog.
1B Prospects
Tony Martinez - UC Irvine
Martinez is one of the most underrated prospects in this class. He can flat out hit the ball better than most, never recording a batting average below .300 in his career. At 6’3”, 230 lbs, he’s been able to showcase some serious raw power as well. His 2023 campaign where he hit 11 HR’s and 19 2B’s featured a .619 slugging percentage. He hasn’t matched that HR total in the remainder of his college career, but the power can certainly be tapped into more in professional baseball. While his 109 wRC+ is the lowest of his college career, he’s still slashing .320/.388/.456, while keeping the K% below 10%. A hitter that’s consistent as they come.
Zach Yorke - Grand Canyon
GCU has become a well known name among the mid-major college baseball scene. Producing a bat like Jacob Wilson will naturally do that, and they continue to put out prospects that stand out. Yorke is maybe the most intimidating player in a batters box, at 6’2” and 290 lbs. He’s been an incredible bat his entire career with GCU, recording season OPS’s north of 1.000 twice, while never dipping below .868. He took his power to another level this season, hitting 13 HR’s in 48 games, with a .293 ISO. While the power increased his BB% and K% both improved from the year before.
Juan Cruz - Alabama State
Cruz has been one of the most intriguing mid-major prospects all season, after a very impressive couple of seasons with Alabama State. This past season Cruz slashed .420/.481/.690 with a 1.172 OPS. He raised his BB% to over 11% while cutting his K% in half. He’s always had the pop being 6-foot-5 and 240 pounds, but he elevated the power slightly, recording 14 HR compared to his 11 in 2024, and raised his ISO to .271. A prospect to watch for in the later rounds.
3B Prospects
Murf Gray - Fresno State
Gray is the best third base prospect out of the college level this season. While he started out slow he picked up in a big way to end the season, and finished his campaign with a 1.037 OPS, 18 HR, and a 132 wRC+. Gray has a great overall hit tool with a lot of power, as he recorded a .315 ISO this season. It’ll be interesting to see how his success against the fastball translates to the pro level, but his plate discipline and strong bat-to-ball skills make him one of if not the most intriguing mid-major prospect in this upcoming draft.
Grant Gallagher - East Tennessee State
ESTU featured multiple great bats but one that stood out in particular was Grant Gallagher. A former JUCO standout, Gallagher brought some incredible power to his 2025 campaign with ETSU, slugging at a .665 rate that helped him to his 20 total HR’s. While his K% was slightly over 30%, his BB% was still slightly over 25%. The jump to pro ball will be an interesting test to his plate discipline, but his ability to draw walks with a huge power threat gives a ton of upside.
Ryan Sprock - Elon
His entire career at Elon, Sprock has been a productive bat. 2025 however, has been his most productive season, slashing .321/.411/.593, with a 1.003 OPS, and a 136 wRC+. Sprock flashed some more power this season as well, hitting a season high 14 HR’s compared to his totals of eight from the previous two seasons. He has an incredible arm that was utilized on the mound for Elon, where he touched 96 MPH from the right side. A very intriguing prospect out of the CAA.
Shortstop Prospects
Colin Yeaman - UC Irvine
Irvine has produced a lot of great talent and Yeaman is another prospect to watch in this draft. In his Junior season with the Anteaters, Yeaman slashed .336/.447/.591 with a 1.038 OPS. He walked over 10% of the time while keeping the K% below 18%. He showed some solid power in 2025 as well with 13 HR’s and 16 2B’s. A fresh 21-years-old, Yeaman is a very intriguing bat at the shortstop position in this class.
Dixon Williams - East Carolina
Williams has been playing high level baseball in Greenville with the Pirates his entire collegiate career, and it’s earned him a spot on this list. He hit over .300 in his 2024 campaign and while he was a point shy of that threshold in 2025, he posted his highest season OPS at 1.012. He showed the most power in his single season in 2025, with 14 HR’s and a .262 ISO. He walked more than he struck out as well in his final season with ECU. A well rounded bat that’s shown its consistency over a 120 game stretch.
Emilio Barreras - Grand Canyon
GCU did it again. They’ve put out yet another shortstop prospect with a great hit tool. Barreras isn’t ranked too high, as Baseball America’s 473rd overall prospect in the class, but he showcased an incredible two seasons from 2024-on. He slashed .358/.462/.484 with a .946 OPS, and a 134 wRC+. That wasn’t the most impressive part about his season however, as he struck out just 3.6% of the time. Barreras has the plate discipline and the glove to make him a valuable staple in any organization.
Catcher Prospects
Grant Jay - Dallas Baptist
Besides Coastal Carolina’s Caden Bodine, there may not be a more intriguing catcher among mid-major prospects than DBU’s Grant Jay. Over his three-year career with Dallas Baptist, he slashed .309/.432/.684 in 177 games. That was good for a career 1.116 OPS. A great build for a big league catcher at 5-11, 218 lbs, Jay stole 29 bases in those 177 games, only being caught stealing three times. He hit 61 HR’s in his collegiate career, and with his past of also being able to man the corner outfield, he’s an incredibly valuable prospect.
Brooks Bryan - Troy
While Caden Bodine was mentioned briefly when talking about Grant Jay, he’s not the only standout catcher out of the Sun Belt in this draft. Bryan posted a .926 OPS with Troy over a three year career, with 34 HR’s in 141 games. His 127 wRC+ was a season high for him, and a 10 point improvement from 2024. Another catcher who can be versatile in the field manning the corner outfield in 9 games in 2025, he’s a great bat to have in any team's farm system.
Jack Arcamone - Richmond
Richmond had a bunch of notable bats from their 2025 roster put up great years but the improvements from Arcamone stand out the most. He raised his wRC+ from 104 in 2024 to 155 in 2025, while raising his OPS by almost 300 points. He showed a tremendous improvement in his power production, posting 13 HR’s and 22 2B’s. The K% did go up slightly but the overall jump in production offensively is way too good to overlook on this list.
Video: @JakeBarg on X
2B Prospects
Dylan Palmer - Hofstra
Palmer has a phenomenal hit tool never having his average dip below .369 in a single season. He slashed .400/.449/.536 with a .985 OPS in 2025, where he showed the most power of his college career, with 7 HR, raising his ISO to .136 compared to his .054 clip in 2024. The uptick in power was just a bonus to his ability to steal 20-30 bases a year. A toolsy infielder that can be a fun prospect to watch, especially if the power gets tapped into more.
Nick Monistere - Southern Miss
Since 2023, Monistere has been a solid hitter both for USM, and in summer ball. He was a career .294 hitter with the Golden Eagles, and hit for a career best .323 batting average, 1.033 OPS, and 146 wRC+ in 2025. His power surged this year, hitting 21 HR’s compared to 11 in 2024, and improving his ISO by 80 points. Monistere’s BB% has dipped slightly, but the K% was a career low for him in 2025 at 17.7%.
Outfield Prospects
Ryan Wideman - Western Kentucky
Wideman earned himself a Top 100 spot in this draft class according to Baseball America. He’s had a complete breakout year with WKU, hitting .398/.466/.652, with a 1.118 OPS in 60 games. He totalled 36 extra base hits with a jaw-dropping 45 stolen bases. A bat that doesn’t strike out often, he had a 160 wRC+ in 283 plate appearances. This is another incredibly toolsy prospect with a great hit tool, and speed to cover the outfield.
James Quinn-Irons - George Mason
A-10 Player of the Year James Quinn-Irons had a historic season for George Mason. He became the first Golden Spikes Semifinalist in program history, after slashing .419/.523/.734 in 61 games. He was an All-American center fielder by 64Analytics, and his speed helped him steal 36 bases. He hit 42 extra base hits this past season, and posted a career high .315 ISO in 11 more games than any other season he’s played. A fringe Top 100 prospect in this class.
Matthew Bucciero - Fairfield
Bucciero has been one of the most consistently good bats in the MAAC, hitting for a career .325 batting average in his three seasons. In that 163 game span he recorded a 1.018 OPS with 35 HR, 11 3B, and 35 2B. He paired the extra base hit production with 34 stolen bases. His plate discipline greatly improved in 2025, where he walked 50 times, striking out 55. A staple piece from this Fairfield roster that was critical in their run to the Conway Regional.
RHP Prospects
James Ellwanger - Dallas Baptist
In 14 starts and 16 appearances for DBU in 2025, Ellwanger pitched 63.1 innings, posting an impressive 13.50 K/9. While his walk rate increased slightly, the strikeout rate increased 6%, reaching 33% in 2025. Ellwanger also improved his ERA, FIP, and LOB% this past season. His fastball sits mid-90s and if the control can improve, he can be a great piece to any organization’s pitching staff.
Michael Lombardi - Tulane
Lombardi’s stock has seemingly risen since Tulane’s performance in the AAC Tournament in late May. Lombardi opened the tournament against FAU, whereas the team’s closer he went deep into game one as a starter, giving a much needed time for rest to his fellow Green Wave pitchers. Lombardi posted a 2.14 ERA this season with 11 saves in 23 games. He showed that ability to be a starter making six this season. His K/9 improved drastically from 11.4 in 2024, to 15.6 in 2025. A workhorse of an arm that should translate to the professional level well.
Trace Phillips - Middle Tennessee State
Phillips is an interesting two-way prospect out of MTSU. He hit 13 HR in 2024 with a .303 batting average. On the mound, Phillips made 6 starts this past season, where he posted a 10.7 K/9. His fastball has reached up to mid-90s, with solid breaking pitches, and a nice changeup to round out a four-pitch-mix. A very intriguing prospect, but not the largest sample size to go off of from 2025.
Video: @prospectdugout on X
LHP Prospects
Dylan Brown - Old Dominion
In 15 starts for Old Dominion this past season, Brown posted a 4.04 ERA in 82.0 IP. His K/BB numbers were impressive, posting a 3.92 K/BB rate. His fastball sits low-90s while it has touched mid-90s before. His secondary pitches are great as well, with a slider and changeup that works especially well against right handed hitters. Brown held hitters to just a .238 BAA in 2025. A crafty left hander out of the Sun Belt.
Holden deJong - New Jersey Tech
NJIT’s Holden deJong is a very intriguing arm out of the America East Conference. He posted a 3.72 ERA in 29.0 IP, but an injury sidelined him for the rest of the 2025 season. He’s shown promise with his pitch mix, showcasing fastball velocity within the low-90s. A very interesting potential late round prospect.
Hudson Barrett - UC Santa Barbara
When looking into UCSB pitchers in this class, eyes immediately shift to one of the top arms in Tyler Bremner. While Tommy John surgery sidelined Barrett for a while until late season 2025, he looked great in 2023 to make him a standout mid-major prospect in this class. In 2023, Barrett posted a 1.92 ERA in 61.0 IP, and in 2025, posted a 5.00 K/BB rate.
Thank you for reading! There are many more mid-major prospects to watch as the draft approaches. Stay tuned for more MLB Draft content to come!