MLB

Prospect Community Rankings: #6 prospect in the Cincinnati Reds system

ballervisions 2026年1月18日

Edwin Arroyo has a chance to fight his way into the Cincinnati Reds’ roster sometime in 2026, and his superior defense likely means he’ll be there for a long time. That was good enough for him to take home the #5 spot in this year’s Community Prospect Rankings, and now we’re on to voting for who’s next!

As usual, there will be a poll embedded at the bottom of the post where you can vote, but if that has been removed you can find it too. link to vote by clicking here (until voting ends and I delete both access points).

Also, if there’s anyone you think deserves consideration who hasn’t been listed yet, let us know in the comments section below.

On to the candidates for position #6!

Cam Collier, 3B/1B (age 21)

2025 at a glance: .279/.391/.384 with 4 HR, 21 2B in 396 PA split between ACL Reds (Arizona Complex League), A+ Dayton Dragons (Midwest League), and AA Chattanooga Lookouts (Southern League); .221/.368/.325 with 1 HR in 95 PA with Peoria Javelinas (Arizona Fall League)

Good: Plus hit tool and his plate discipline are quickly entering the combine phase as well; A lot of energy is still hoping that he can return to the game after his thumb injury

Disadvantages: The defense leaves a lot to be desired, and he’s probably only 1B at this point

Collier sprained his thumb in spring training in 2025, and the break (and recovery) caused him to miss the first two months of the season. A rehab stint in Arizona came next, and he eventually worked his way up to AA Chattanooga…albeit with a shocking lack of power for a guy who hit 20 homers at A+ Dayton in 2024, a mark that tied him for the Midwest League lead.

What Collier does in 2025, however, is he’s starting to show good OBP skills, and if he can keep it up. again regained strength after a year removed from a broken thumb, well, the Reds have a guy they gave an overslot bonus to in the first round back in 2022 who repeatedly made the top 100 prospect list in his first years as a pro. And even if all of that comes down to a 1B who isn’t the greatest defender in the world that’s what matters most, especially with the lack of offense the franchise is running right now.

Chase Petty, RHP (23 years old)

2025 at a glance: 6.39 ERA, 1.61 WHIP, 102/58 K/BB in 112.2 IP with AAA Louisville Bats (International League); 13 ER in 6.0 IP with the Cincinnati Reds

Good: Three combination pitches, including a fastball that flirts with 100 mph and a 60-yard slider and cutter

Disadvantages: It shined in the first cups of MLB coffee, and struggled in AAA after being demoted

Petty has long been on the radar of every scout in the game, a former first-rounder for the Minnesota Twins out of high school (the Reds had an eye on drafting him back then, too). He was the centerpiece of the deal that sent Sonny Gray the other way, and has entered many Top 100 lists since then.

Of course, he has gone back to this same list again, and most of his work in 2025 does just that. He lost at the big league level, though that’s a caveat that he just turned 22 when that went down. The stuff is still there, he just struggled to put it all together long enough to show he could be a viable big league starter. Hopefully the lumps he took in 2025 paired with a healthy season for the first time in a while will send him into 2026 ready and with something to prove.

Tyson Lewis, SS (20 years old)

2025 at a glance: .340/.396/.532 (.928 OPS) in 207 PA with ACL Reds (Arizona Complex League); .268/.347/.417 (.765 OPS) in 144 PA with Class-A Daytona Tortugas (Florida State League)

Good: Statcast favorite with elite exit velocity and left-handed swing power; elite athleticism and added speed give him a chance to stick at SS for a long time, though a move from the position seems likely.

Disadvantages: It came in at a shocking 35.4% for Daytona (and at a shocking 29.1% overall last year); .432 BABIP across all leagues last year screams ‘down’

Tools. Tyson Lewis has all the tools out there. He hit the ball over 119 mph in his pro debut, was the Gatorade Player of the Year at Nebraska before being drafted as the No. 2 player (with an overslot bonus) by the Reds, and was originally committed to the University of Arkansas.

The upside here is obvious, as it has the loudest bat at any level. Swinging and missing things, however, is something that he will need to fully address as he climbs the ladder, or getting out of the FSL’s close quarters would probably help some.

Steele Hall, SS (18 years old)

2025 at a glance: Drafted 9th overall in the first round of the 2025 MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds out of Hewitt-Trussville HS (AL); 2025 Mr. Baseball in the state of Alabama, he once committed to the powerhouse University of Tennessee before signing with the Reds for $5.75 million.

Good: Speed, and its abundance; visible power and a potential five-tool player whose defense and arm look like they will play well in the short term; it was only 17 years old when it was drafted after being reclassified a year early

Disadvantages: It’s all still ‘predictable’ since, again, he just turned 18 after the draft and doesn’t have a professional PA to show for it.

Hall was also included in the 2025 class despite originally being part of the 2026 class, and the Reds — who had been scouting him — thought he had the talent to eventually become a player who would be a part of the overall selection in 2026. So, when he was picked #9 in 2025, there was no chance to sign him full time, there was no chance to sign him.

He has been compared to the likes of Trea Turner and Dansby Swanson, which is pretty high. Although he has never played a pro game and is only 18 years old, he is ranked 79th on MLB Pipeline’s list of the top 100 prospects in the game. How quickly he can mature and adjust to breaking balls at the highest levels remains to be seen, but the speed, glove, and arm all look like they will be major league level in a very short time.

Aaron Watson, RHP (19 years old)

2025 at a glance: Drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 2nd round of the 2025 MLB Draft out of Trinity Christian Academy (FL); signed a $2.7 million overslot bonus to commit to the University of Florida

Good: 6’5″; nearly 60-yard slider; fastball that tops out at 96 mph from three-quarter arm range and already has a solid three-pitch mix with his swing changeup

Disadvantages: He didn’t post professionally after being drafted, so he’s completely unknown

One glimpse of Watson on the mound and you think fast yeah, I bet this guy could turn into a great pitcher. He has the right frame to produce upward pitches, and his fastball/slider mix is already something to hang his hat on.

However, command of all three of his pitches — especially his developing changeup — will be what he needs to work on to begin moving quickly through the ranks. He has a good ‘feel’ right now about what pitches to throw, what portion of the offense he should attack vs. hitters, etc., but how well he can build with more manipulation of his offerings will be important.

Jose Franco, RHP (age 25)

2025 at a glance: 3.11 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 118/54 K/BB in 110.0 IP split between AA Chattanooga Lookouts (Southern League) and AAA Louisville Bats (International League)

Good: Fastball that flirts with triple digits with ease

Disadvantages: Second pitches need work, and that affects his overall command (and ability to limit walks)

Franco turned 25 in November and earned a promotion to the Reds’ 40-man roster soon after because of his consistent performance in the upper levels of their farm system.

The Reds have had a few hulks put on the mound in recent years, and Franco is a perfect fit. He’s listed at 6’2″ and an oddly specific 257 lbs, and his size and frame allow him to get to his fastball velocity with ease. It’s an area where he misses bats the most, but how he can isolate his breaking gaps (and improve his changeup command) will determine if he can break through the lefty high and run.

He’s been a late bloomer, in part due to an injury that cost him his entire 2023 season, and if he continues the way he’s been since getting healthy there could be a lot more for him in 2026 with Cincinnati.