charlie-condon-getty-images.jpg

The season is here, but not all of the prospects are yet.

For every Carson Benge or Kevin McGonigle who found his way onto a major league roster, a Konnor Griffin or Bryce Eldridge was left to toil at Triple-A. It won't be forever, of course, and their potential for impact is still high enough that you'll want to track their progress closely, with an eye on their eventual promotion.

Or rather, I can do that for you. This will be the place, all season long, where I update you on all minor league goings on, straddling the line between redraft and dynasty play with my Five on the Verge and Five on the Periphery. The former are the five prospects most deserving of your attention right now, and the latter are five others doing something else of note.

For this first edition, I've given my full attention to Triple-A since that's the only level (apart from the majors, of course) that's begun its season yet.

FIVE ON THE VERGE

(Here are the prospects most worth stashing in redraft leagues.)

Konnor Griffin, SS, Pirates

2025 minors: .333 BA (484 AB), 21 HR, 65 SB, .942 OPS, 50 BB, 122 K
2026 minors: .462 BA (13 AB), 3 2B, 2 SB, 1.280 OPS, 4 BB, 4 K

Already, rumors of Griffin's timetable have begun to circulate on X. Some are saying the start of the Pirates' homestand Friday. Others are suggesting Memorial Day. That's a wide chasm, which would seem to suggest that no one has a clue, but you had to figure that speculation would run amok after the 19-year-old failed to secure a job this spring. He's doing what he can to make his stay at Triple-A as short as possible -- no homers yet, but plenty of hard-hit balls and a better batting eye than he showed across three levels last year. For all the attention JJ Wetherholt and Kevin McGonigle are receiving now, Griffin was the shortstop everyone wanted on Draft Day, and you'd be a fool to give him up after making such an investment. His promotion is inevitable and likely sooner than later.

Bryce Eldridge, DH, Giants

2025 minors: .260 BA (384 AB), 25 HR, .843 OPS, 42 BB, 127 K
2025 majors: .107 BA (28 AB), 2 2B, .476 OPS, 7 BB, 13 K
2026 minors: .214 BA (14 AB), .664 OPS, 4 BB, 6 K

After getting his feet wet last September, Eldridge's spot on the Giants roster seemed like a foregone conclusion, which is why they now have Casey Schmitt starting at first base. The front office had some concerns, not only Eldridge's perpetually high strikeout rate but also his defense (and, surprisingly, baserunning) and decided to send him to Triple-A for more seasoning. It shouldn't take much given that, again, they're trying to make do with Schmitt at first base, but it'll take more than the little bit Eldridge has shown at Triple-A so far. Few minor leaguers hit the ball harder than he does, but his 6-feet-7 frame will leave him vulnerable to certain pitch locations. I would guess that his first hot streak propels him to the majors, where he's likely to pick up first base eligibility in short order.

Charlie Condon, 1B, Rockies

2025 minors: .268 BA (365 AB), 14 HR, .820 OPS, 52 BB, 112 K
2026 minors: .357 BA (14 AB), 2 HR, 1.286 OPS, 3 BB, 6 K

The Rockies said they'd give Condon an opportunity to win the first job out of spring training, and if not for TJ Rumfield demanding a first look with his own performance, he may well have done that. The former No. 3 pick in the 2024 draft finally began to deliver on his potential after a couple of uninspiring minor league seasons, not only hitting .385 (15 for 39) with three homers and four doubles but also delivering the sort of exit velocities befitting of a middle-of-the-order slugger, with a peak of 115.3 mph. He's taken that hard hitting into his first Triple-A stint, homering twice in the second game of the season, and has grown into the classic patience-and-power profile long projected for him. Early returns from Rumfield are strong, but the Rockies have mostly used Edouard Julien at DH. For as many times as he's flopped already, it wouldn't take much for Condon to overtake him.

Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Diamondbacks

2025 minors: .289 BA (484 AB), 18 HR, 29 SB, .892 OPS, 96 BB, 106 K
2026 minors: .188 BA (16 AB), 1 3B, 2 2B, .788 OPS, 4 BB, 6 K

Waldschmidt didn't stick around for long in spring training but made a strong impression with six batted balls of 110 mph or more. For as productive as he was last year, half of his time was spent at one of the most hitter-friendly Double-A locales, Amarillo, so all those hard-hit balls served as a welcome confirmation of his power. There's little reason to doubt his hitting chops otherwise, with his plate discipline standing out in particular. At 23, he should already be in the conversation for a promotion, and while he has yet to do anything at Triple-A to warrant one, he's already had one obstacle removed with Pavin Smith's elbow injury.

Payton Tolle, SP, Red Sox

2025 minors: 3-5, 3.04 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 91 2/3 IP, 23 BB, 133 K
2025 majors: 0-1, 6.06 ERA, 1.59 WHIP, 16 2/3 IP, 8 BB, 19 K
2026 minors: 4 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

The Red Sox rotation is full at the moment, and Tolle didn't exactly put his best foot forward in his first Triple-A start. He had a great spring, though, striking out 13 while issuing just one walk in 10 2/3 innings, and has the makings of an elite bat-misser with his uphill fastball. You may not see the urgency in stashing him up -- and to be fair, only the first two of these Five on the Verge are musts -- but for as common as pitching injuries are, Tolle's promotion could come at the drop of a hat. He'll be of particular use in Head-to-Head points leagues thanks to his relief pitcher eligibility. 

FIVE ON THE PERIPHERY

(Here are some other prospects doing something of note.)

Colt Emerson, SS, Mariners

2025 minors: .285 BA (506 AB), 16 HR, 14 SB, .841 OPS, 71 BB, 105 K
2026 minors: .278 BA (18 AB), 1 HR, 1 2B, .816 OPS, 0 BB, 6 K

The Mariners just signed Emerson to an eight-year, $95 million deal, which is the kind of contract a prospect gets when his team is looking to sidestep all the service time considerations that come with a promotion. But his promotion wouldn't seem to be forthcoming, not with J.P. Crawford beginning a rehab assignment for Triple-A Tacoma Tuesday. Emerson has also played some second and third base but is blocked there by   Cole Young and Brendan Donovan, respectively. Obviously, an injury to any of these players would accelerate Emerson's timetable, but as of now, he wouldn't appear to be in the Mariners' immediate plans, despite the contract news.

Robby Snelling, SP, Marlins

2025 minors: 9-7, 2.51 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 136 IP, 39 BB, 166 K
2026 minors: 4 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K

You might think this post is a celebratory one, given that Snelling threw four one-hit innings in his season debut, but sadly, it is not. Turns out the left-hander's fastball velocity was down more than 1 mph in that start, putting it about where it was in 2024. That's when Snelling had a 5.15 ERA and 1.52 WHIP, causing the Padres to give up on him. Might I be reading too much into just one start? I would say that's a fair accusation except that Snelling also had a miserable spring training, putting together a 7.56 ERA and 1.92 WHIP. Of course, all of these samples are minuscule, but the job requires me to make something of minuscule sample sizes. I don't like what I'm seeing here, especially from a pitcher who's had his ups and downs in the minors already.

Sam Antonacci, 2B, White Sox

2025 minors: .291 BA (406 AB), 5 HR, 48 SB, .842 OPS, 69 BB, 73 K
2026 minors: .333 BA (15 AB), 2 HR, 3 SB, 1.257 OPS, 6 BB, 1 K

Antonacci's 2025 stat line, particularly the .433 on-base percentage, put him on the radar as a prospect, and then he became a force of nature for Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic, delivering not just a go-ahead home run in an upset win over Team USA but also a little league home run on a mad dash around the bases against Great Britain. And then there was his fakeout of Joey Ortiz against Team Mexico, which was one of the headiest baseball plays I've ever seen. So he has a high baseball IQ, an Energizer Bunny motor and what appears to be burgeoning power with two home runs already at Triple-A to go with his two in spring training. He also has 11 walks to just one strikeout between Triple-A and spring training this year.

James Tibbs, OF, Dodgers

2025 minors: .243 BA (457 AB), 20 HR, 10 SB, .802 OPS, 90 BB, 120 K
2026 minors: .556 BA (18 AB), 3 HR, 1 3B, 4 2B, 1.989 OPS, 2 BB, 4 K

Leave it to the Dodgers to recover the potential of a prospect that two organizations already gave up on. Tibbs was the Giants' top draft pick in 2024, but they were willing to forfeit him in the Rafael Devers deal with the Red Sox, who then flipped him to the Dodgers a couple months later. Getting bounced around like that is normally a bad omen for a prospect who was thought to be a real building block at one point, but look what Tibbs is doing now. He's already up to three home runs at Triple-A after hitting four in spring training, when his average exit velocity was 93.2 mph and his max was 113.5. Between that high contact quality and his plus on-base skills, that first-round selection is starting to make sense again.

Robert Gasser, SP, Brewers

2025 minors: 3-2, 2.37 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 38 IP, 11 BB, 41 K
2025 majors: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 5 K
2026 minors: 5.2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 11 K

Gasser, who first reached the majors in 2024, made his return from Tommy John surgery in the second half last year. While he wasn't a serious rotation candidate this spring, he finished the exhibition season on a high note, shutting out the Padres over six innings with seven strikeouts and just one walk. His first start at Triple-A was even more of a banger, seeing him strike out 11 batters while registering 17 whiffs, nearly half of which came on his sweeper. The left-hander doesn't have the best pure stuff, but he does have a history of missing bats in the minors, registering 11.0 K/9 when last healthy in 2024. There likely will come a point this year when he's making starts for the big club.