Brewers, Dodgers, Cardinals Top MLB's Farm System Rankings for 2026 Season, Full List Revealed

After losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2025 NLCS, the Milwaukee Brewers can at least brag about having the better farm system going into the 2026 MLB season.

In MLB.com's ranking of all 30 minor league systems entering the regular season, the Brewers sit atop the list for the first time since 2016.

The Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers round out the top five.

Here is the full top 10 (indicates top-100 prospects):

1. Milwaukee Brewers (five)
2. Los Angeles Dodgers (five)
3. Pittsburgh Pirates (five)
4. St. Louis Cardinals (six)
5. Detroit Tigers (four)
6. Cleveland Guardians (six)
7. New York Mets (four)
8. Seattle Mariners (six)
9. Minnesota Twins (four)
10. Tampa Bay Rays (three)

Milwaukee jumped up to the No. 1 spot after being ranked fourth in the 2025 midseason rankings. The reigning NL Central champs have five prospects in MLB.com's top 100 list, led by shortstop Jesús Made (No. 3 overall).

Made, who doesn't turn 19 until May 8, played at three levels en route to finishing 2025 in Double-A. He hit .285/.379/.413 in 115 games overall.

The Brewers' offseason trade that sent Freddy Peralta to the New York Mets played a huge role in their ascent to the top of the farm system rankings. They received two top-100 prospects in Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat as part of the deal.

If not for that trade, it's entirely possible the two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers would have had the No. 1 farm system after an offseason that saw them add Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker to the MLB roster in free agency.

This is part of the problem for those arguing that the Dodgers' spending is why they are so good. The money allows them to supplement their roster in ways other teams aren't, but they have been arguably the best developmental organization in MLB for the past decade.

MLB.com specifically cites the Dodgers' system as boasting the best collection of outfield talent in the league. Each of their top four prospects—Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Eduardo Quintero and Mike Sirota—are all outfielders.

De Paula's scouting report on the MLB website notes that he compares favorably to a "slightly smaller but more athletic version of Yordan Alvarez, thanks to his precocious combination of swing decisions and exit velocities."

Alvarez is famously the player the Dodgers traded away to the Houston Astros for Josh Fields in 2016. They had no idea what he would become at that point because had just signed with Los Angeles as an international free agent two months before the trade, he was only 19 years old and hadn't appeared in a professional game.

Ten years later, though, maybe the Dodgers found another Alvarez-type player who can eventually plug into the middle of their lineup. De Paula hit .250/.391/.400 across two levels last season as a 20-year-old.

Sitting in third in the rankings, led by the consensus No. 1 prospect Konnor Griffin, is the Pirates. Griffin has already made his presence felt this spring with three homers in 16 at-bats, including two against the Boston Red Sox.

The power output did lead to some hope that Griffin might make the big-league roster out of spring training, but he has shown that there's still plenty of development road left for him. He's hitting .188/.278/.750 in seven games.

One encouraging sign is that Griffin has only struck out twice in 18 plate appearances, so some of his low average can be attributed to bad luck.

Regardless of where Griffin opens the 2026 season, it shouldn't be too much longer before he is the centerpiece position player for the Pirates at shortstop.

Behind Griffin, Bubba Chandler is the No. 2 pitching prospect behind Nolan McLean of the New York Mets. The 23-year-old made his MLB debut late last season, posting a 4.02 ERA in seven appearances (four starts) and is poised to be part of a strong staff at the start of 2026 with Paul Skenes and Mitch Keller.

The NL Central is set up to have a great future with three of the top four farm systems in MLB's rankings. The Cardinals' plan to take a step back at the MLB level this season to build their farm system back up looks like it will pay off.

St. Louis' system has gone from No. 20 at the start of last season up to fourth right now. Its six top-100 prospects are tied with the Cleveland Guardians and Seattle Mariners for most by a single team.

JJ Wetherholt, the No. 7 pick in 2024, looks like the best player from that draft at this point. He hit .306/.421/.510 with 17 homers and 23 stolen bases in 109 games across two levels in his first full season in pro ball.

After finishing last season at Triple-A, Wetherholt could arrive in St. Louis very early in 2026. His .333/.579/.583 slash line so far this spring has led to speculation he might even break camp with the MLB club.