Pinning down a defensive home for 21-year-old prospects with less than 50 games above High-A can be tricky, but
Josue Briceno's future is particularly hazy and relevant. There aren't any public scouting sites that give Briceno's catcher defense positive reviews, but the scouting reports also don't fully close the door on his potential to stick there. He could be an above-average defender at first base if he moves off of catcher, and that should probably be the expectation for those rostering him in dynasty leagues. His most notable achievement to date was logging a 1.376 OPS with 10 homers in 25 Arizona Fall League games in 2024. He eviscerated High-A pitching over 55 games to start 2025, slashing .296/.422/.602 with 15 homers and more walks (16.8 BB%) than strikeouts (16.4 K%). Among hitters with 200-plus plate appearances at High-A last year, Briceno led the way with a 187 wRC+, far outpacing runner-up Esmerlyn Valdez's 176 wRC+. Briceno wasn't as dominant after a July promotion to Double-A, as his strikeout rate jumped to 23.7 percent while his pull rate and flyball rate plummeted en route to a .149 ISO and .381 SLG. Briceno will be eligible at catcher everywhere in 2026 (32 games at first base, 46 at catcher in 2025), and in a best-case scenario, he could be up in June and playing every day at a combination of first base, designated hitter and catcher. In a more realistic scenario, he works at Double-A and Triple-A until getting the call in late August.
