Top MLB Prospects Making a Case for a 2025 Opening Day Roster Spot
With new draft pick incentives for teams that carry top prospects on the Opening Day roster who then go on to find immediate success in the form of Rookie of the Year and MVP votes, there is increased focus on prospects breaking camp with a roster spot.
Michael Busch (CHC), Evan Carter (TEX), Jackson Chourio (MIL), Colton Cowser (BAL), Kyle Harrison (SF), Jared Jones (PIT), Colt Keith (DET), Wyatt Langford (TEX), Jackson Merrill (SD), Joey Ortiz (MIL), Austin Wells (NYY) and Masyn Winn (STL) were among the notable prospects who were part of their team's Opening Day roster in 2024.
Which up-and-comers will follow in their footsteps this year?
Ahead, we've highlighted the most impactful prospects with a realistic shot at making their team's Opening Day roster, based on their expected role and short-term upside in 2025.
Included is a look at each player's projected 2025 stats, courtesy of the depth chart projections system from FanGraphs.
Roster Locks
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These players technically still hold rookie eligibility, but they entered camp as a virtual lock for a spot on the Opening Day roster or have become one as a result of injuries, so they belong in a different category than players legitimately trying to win a job.
C Drake Baldwin, ATL
SP Sean Burke, CWS
OF Dylan Crews, WAS
OF Jasson Dominguez, NYY
SP Richard Fitts, BOS
3B Matt Shaw, CHC
SS Trey Sweeney, DET
IF Will Wagner, TOR
SP Will Warren, NYY
SS Jacob Wilson, ATH
Dylan Crews, Jasson Dominguez and Jacob Wilson all entered camp as a foregone conclusion to earn starting jobs, while Trey Sweeney and Will Wagner were also safe bets to make their respective clubs.
Sean Burke was surprisingly named Opening Day starter for the rebuilding White Sox, removing any question of whether he would make the team. Meanwhile, Matt Shaw starting both games of the Tokyo Series at third base for the Cubs is a clear indication the hot corner belongs to him.
An injury to starting catcher Sean Murphy opened the door for Drake Baldwin to get a shot with the Braves, while Richard Fitts and Will Warren find themselves locked into rotation spots after the Red Sox and Yankees rotations, respectively, were decimated by injury this spring.
Honorable Mentions
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These prospects didn't crack our list, but they are also still in the mix for an Opening Day roster spot. And if nothing else, they have laid the groundwork for an early promotion and potentially a major role in 2025.
IF Luisangel Acuña, NYM
2B Juan Brito, CLE
IF Zach Dezenzo, HOU
OF Blake Dunn, CIN
SP Connor Gillispie, MIA
OF Matthew Lugo, LAA
SP Michael McGreevy, STL
2B/OF Christian Moore, LAA
OF Tirso Ornelas, SD
OF Alan Roden, TOR
OF Zac Veen, COL
2B/OF Nick Yorke, PIT
The biggest names here are 2024 first-round pick Christian Moore and outfielder Zac Veen, and while both might end up back in the minors, seeing them make their MLB debuts at some point during the first month of the season would not be a surprise.
Juan Brito still has a shot to beat out Gabriel Arias for the Guardians starting job at second base, while Luisangel Acuña is competing with Brett Baty to fill in at second base for the Mets after Jeff McNeil suffered an oblique strain.
2B Kristian Campbell, Boston Red Sox
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An injury to Masataka Yoshida has brought some clarity to the Boston Red Sox infield, at least temporarily, with Rafael Devers now clear to slide into the everyday DH role and Alex Bregman slotted at third base.
There is still a big question that needs to be answered at second base, though.
Versatile infielder David Hamilton was a 2.6-WAR player as a rookie last season on the strength of his speed and defense, and he would be the easy choice to slot in at second base for the time being.
However, there is also now a clear path for top prospect Kristian Campbell to break camp with a starting job following a huge season in the minors a year ago.
The 22-year-old hit .330/.439/.558 with 32 doubles, 20 home runs, 77 RBI and 24 steals in 115 games across three minor league levels in 2024, closing out his first full professional season at Triple-A after going in the fourth round of the 2023 draft.
His spring numbers don't jump off the page, but he does have a hit in five of his last eight games. The fact that he stayed in camp while Vaughn Grissom was optioned to Triple-A makes it clear the Red Sox are still assessing him as an Opening Day candidate.
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SP Chase Dollander, Colorado Rockies
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Chase Dollander entered his junior season at the University of Tennessee as one of the favorites to go No. 1 overall in the 2023 draft, but an inconsistent spring saw him go 7-6 with a 4.75 ERA and 1.27 WHIP, though he still racked up 120 strikeouts in 89 innings.
The Rockies rolled the dice on his upside and took him with the No. 9 overall pick, and that looks like one of the best decisions the organization has made in years following a breakout 2024 season.
The 23-year-old had a 2.59 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and a 169-to-47 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 118 innings between High-A and Double-A, and he is now battling for the final spot in the Opening Day rotation. He struck out seven over 3.2 scoreless innings on Tuesday, and now has 7.2 shutout innings in his last two starts.
An injury to Austin Gomber (shoulder soreness) has opened up a spot behind Kyle Freeland, Germán Márquez, Ryan Feltner and Antonio Senzatela in the Colorado rotation.
Right-hander Bradley Blalock has made a strong case with a 1.42 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 12.2 innings this spring, but he could slot into a long relief role if the Rockies decide Dollander has earned a spot on the staff.
IF Caleb Durbin, Milwaukee Brewers
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With the Milwaukee Brewers officially announcing Brice Turang will stay at second base and Joey Ortiz will be manning shortstop, one of the final big items on the spring to-do list is deciding who gets the bulk of the playing time at third base.
There is a good chance Oliver Dunn, Caleb Durbin and Vinny Capra all wind up on the Opening Day roster, and Dunn has been the early favorite to start at the hot corner thanks to his strong defensive profile.
However, Durbin has the highest ceiling of that group by a sizable margin and could quickly play his way into the starting job.
The 25-year-old was acquired from the Yankees in the Devin Williams trade, and he entered the offseason with his stock on the rise after hitting .312/.427/.548 with five doubles, five home runs, 21 RBI and 29 steals in 24 games in the Arizona Fall League.
Durbin also hit .287/.396/.471 with 35 extra-base hits in 82 games at Triple-A last season, and his 55-hit, 60-speed profile could make him one of the biggest rookie surprises of the 2025 season.
SP Thomas Harrington, Pittsburgh Pirates
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The Pittsburgh Pirates have a wealth of young starting pitchers knocking on the MLB door, but there did not appear to be a path to a rotation spot for any of them heading into camp.
Even after Luis L. Ortiz was traded to the Guardians during the offseason, the Pirates still had a projected rotation of Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Jared Jones, Bailey Falter and free-agent signing Andrew Heaney.
However, an elbow injury is now expected to sideline Jones to start the season, and the fact that the club is seeking a second opinion is an ominous sign on his availability going forward.
Meanwhile, top prospect Thomas Harrington made his first start of the spring on Tuesday, allowing just one hit—a Nick Castellanos solo home run—in 3.2 innings of work while ramping up to 62 pitches.
Relievers Carmen Mlodzinski and Caleb Ferguson have been stretched out a bit this spring, while left-hander Joey Wentz also has some starting experience, but Harrington might now be the top candidate for the No. 5 starter job.
SP Jackson Jobe, Detroit Tigers
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"I don't even want to watch, because it's better than mine."
That's what 2024 AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal told Foul Territory about the stuff of young right-hander Jackson Jobe, and fans got a taste of it down the stretch last season when he was promoted to give the club another weapon out of the bullpen during its playoff push.
Jobe allowed one hit in four scoreless innings after making his MLB debut on Sept. 25, averaging 97.0 mph with his fastball while also showcasing a cutter, changeup and sweeper.
With an athletic 6'2", 190-pound frame, clean mechanics and the aforementioned four-pitch arsenal, his future is in the starting rotation, and he has the upside to join Skubal at the top of the staff.
With a 3.65 ERA and 0.89 WHIP in 12.1 innings this spring, the 22-year-old has made his case for a rotation spot, but veteran Kenta Maeda has also thrown the ball well this spring as he looks to reclaim a starting role after being moved to the bullpen a year ago.
Jobe has yet to reach 100 innings pitched in a season since going No. 3 overall in the 2021 draft, and that number figures to climb only incrementally this year, but that doesn't mean he won't start the year in the rotation.
OF/3B Cam Smith, Houston Astros
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Every year there is at least one prospect who makes an unexpected push for a roster spot with a strong performance in spring training, and Cam Smith is that guy this season.
The 22-year-old was selected No. 14 overall in the 2024 draft by the Cubs after hitting .387/.488/.654 with 22 doubles, 16 home runs and 57 RBI in 66 games as a draft-eligible sophomore at Florida State.
Smith continued to rake with a .313/.396/.609 line and 16 extra-base hits in 134 plate appearances over three minor league levels in his pro debut, reaching Double-A for five games to close out the year.
The Cubs sent him to the Astros in the Kyle Tucker blockbuster, and he has been one of the biggest stories of spring training, going 11-for-27 with three home runs and nine RBI while looking the part of a future MLB star.
With just 32 pro games under his belt, he is getting a serious look to potentially break camp with the Astros, giving the team a more offensive-minded option in right field despite playing primarily third base in college.
That would mean a platoon of Chas McCormick and Jake Meyers in center field, and likely leave Ben Gamel as the odd man out on the roster.
SPs Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker, Texas Rangers
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At the start of spring training, it looked like former Vanderbilt teammates Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker would be headlining the Triple-A Round Rock rotation and waiting in the wings as the next guys up when the Texas Rangers starting rotation needed reinforcements.
However, with Jon Gray (fractured wrist) and Cody Bradford (elbow soreness) headed for the injured list, the door has now opened for at least one, and possibly both, of them to start the year in the MLB rotation.
Veteran Patrick Corbin was recently signed to a one-year, $1.1 million, incentive-laden deal, though he will likely start the year in Triple-A to build up his arm. Non-roster invitee Adrian Houser and swingman Dane Dunning are the other potential candidates to round out the rotation.
Rocker, 25, was dominant in his return from Tommy John surgery last year, pitching his way to the majors and logging a 3.86 ERA with 14 strikeouts in 11.2 innings over three starts in September. He has allowed 12 hits and 11 earned runs in 4.1 innings this spring.
Leiter, 24, struggled to an 8.83 ERA in 35.2 innings in the majors last year, but he turned a corner at Triple-A after a couple disappointing seasons in the minors. He has a 3.07 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 14.2 innings this spring, though he has also issued nine walks.
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