MLB Pipeline<\/a>.<\/p>\nNominees on the current ballot:<\/p>\n
Tommy White, 3B<\/p>\n
Expected level: Double-A | Age: 22<\/p>\n
2025 stats (A+\/AA):\u00a0395 PA, .275\/.334\/.439, 23 doubles, 0 triples, 12 HR, 51 RBI, 29 BB, 54 K, 3 SB<\/p>\n
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:<\/p>\n
Scouting grades:\u00a0Hit: 50 | Power: 60 | Run: 30 | Arm: 50 | Field: 40 | Overall: 45<\/p>\n
White\u2019s right-handed power is legitimate and he can hit the ball a long way to all fields thanks to his strength and bat speed. He might be known for his home run totals but he\u2019s a better overall hitter than people think, finding the barrel consistently and limiting strikeouts. His knack for contact can lead to him expanding his strike zone, but he doesn\u2019t swing and miss very often.<\/p>\n
It will be White\u2019s bat that carries him to the big leagues. He\u2019s a well-below-average runner who likely lacks the range and tools to stick at third base, where he toiled as a sophomore and junior, earning praise for playing through a shoulder injury at LSU in 2023. He\u2019s likely headed to first base long term, which could give the A\u2019s a glut of serious offensive talent between him and first-rounder Nick Kurtz.<\/p>\n
Shotaro Morii, SS\/RHP<\/p>\n
Expected level: Low-A | Age: 19<\/p>\n
2025 stats (Rookie Affiliate):\u00a0188 PA, .258\/.399\/.384, 8 doubles, 1 triple, 3 HR, 27 RBI, 36 BB, 47 K, 4 SB<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:<\/p>\n
Scouting grades (hitter):\u00a0Hit: 50 | Power: 50 | Run: 55 | Arm: 60 | Field: 50 | Overall: 40<\/p>\n
Scouting grades (pitcher):\u00a0Fastball: 55 | Slider: 40 | Curveball: 45 | Splitter: 50 | Control: 45 | Overall: 40<\/p>\n
At the plate, Morii features a smooth left-handed swing with tremendous balance. His power stands out, as he clubbed 45 home runs as a high schooler. He is considered an advanced hitter with good barrel control. On the mound, his fastball has been clocked as high as 95 mph and sits around 92-93. He also brings a splitter with nasty movement, a true 12-to-6 curveball and a tighter slider with solid bite and depth, though that offering will probably require some fine-tuning. Having only been pitching with regularity for less than two years, Morii\u2019s arm is relatively fresh as he enters the organization.<\/p>\n
Morii\u2019s high-octane throwing arm plays well at shortstop, but some evaluators see a possibility of moving to third base as his 6-foot-1 frame fills out. While scouts see Morii\u2019s long-term future in the batter\u2019s box, the A\u2019s plan on giving him every opportunity to succeed as a two-way player, with excitement already building over his impressive physical traits and desire to become one of the next great players out of Japan.<\/p>\n
Henry Baez, RHP<\/p>\n
Expected level: Triple-A | Age: 23<\/p>\n
2025 stats\u00a0(Double-A): 2.39 ERA, 23 starts, 109 IP, 100 K, 35 BB, 3 HR, 3.19 FIP<\/p>\n
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:<\/p>\n
Scouting grades:\u00a0Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 45<\/p>\n
The 6-foot-3 right-hander has gained velocity steadily in his years as a pro and has touched as high as 99 mph this season. He typically sits around 94 mph, working north-south with the pitch while getting most of his whiffs up and to the armside. He played off that with a 76-79 mph curveball that could have more slurvish tendencies, but at its best, it snapped downward to fool batters sitting on the high heat and it had produced a 47 percent miss rate at the time of the trade. He also utilizes an 83-86 mph split-change to miss bats, but it stands out more for its separation than movement profile.<\/p>\n
Baez took a major jump in workload but didn\u2019t let his control improvements suffer. That certainly helps his starting chances, as does his 50.1 percent ground-ball rate from 2024. He\u2019s still only 22, but with his place on the roster now set, the A\u2019s (never afraid to move guys quickly) could try to see what it looks like in the big leagues in a relief role to ease him in.<\/p>\n
Gunnar Hoglund, RHP<\/p>\n
Expected level: Triple-A\/Majors | Age: 26<\/p>\n
2025 stats\u00a0(Triple-A): 2.43 ERA, 6 starts, 29 2\/3 IP, 30 K, 7 BB, 3 HR, 4.17 FIP<\/p>\n
2025 stats\u00a0(Majors): 6.40 ERA, 6 starts, 32 1\/3 IP, 23 K, 11 BB, 10 HR, 6.75 FIP<\/p>\n
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:<\/p>\n
Scouting grades:\u00a0Fastball: 45 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 60 | Overall: 45<\/p>\n
Though Hoglund may never get back the electric stuff he possessed earlier in his career, the A\u2019s were encouraged to see his fastball velocity tick back up to the low-90s. He has also experimented with adding a two-seamer and cutter. His low-80s slider now features more sweeping action and works as his main secondary pitch. He has also improved his low-80s changeup, creating a solid three-pitch mix that is enhanced by a strong ability to consistently throw strikes.<\/p>\n
Now three years removed from Tommy John, the A\u2019s are hopeful that Hoglund can develop into a solid back-end rotation piece, especially if he can successfully develop a fourth pitch. The Florida native was regularly going deep into starts in his big league cameo (6.40 ERA with 23 strikeouts to 11 walks across 32 1\/3 innings) before going down with the injury and is expected to make a full recovery before the 2026 season.<\/p>\n
Cole Miller, RHP<\/p>\n
Expected level: Single-A | Age: 20<\/p>\n
2025 stats\u00a0(ROK, Single-A): 1.90 ERA, 12 starts (15 appearances), 52 IP, 45 K, 11 BB, 1 HR, 3.38 FIP<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:<\/p>\n
Scouting grades:\u00a0Fastball: 55 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 45 | Overall: 40<\/p>\n
The A\u2019s were working on some mechanical adjustments with Miller prior to his injury. His electric fastball ticked up to 96 mph in high school and displayed excellent movement down in the zone. The mid-80s slider is a hard breaker and was showing signs of improvement. His low-80s changeup showed some potential as an average third pitch.<\/p>\n
There was real excitement within the organization for Miller\u2019s professional debut. His three-pitch mix and large 6-foot-6 frame give off the potential of a workhorse-type starting pitcher in the big leagues. The A\u2019s also loved the competitiveness they saw from him on the mound while scouting him. After an unfortunate delay, he finally got his first opportunity to make an impression this summer.<\/p>\n
* * *<\/p>\n
Programming Note:\u00a0Each CPL vote will run for around 48 hours, so don\u2019t delay in making your vote!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"*In an effort to make the\u00a0nomination voting\u00a0easier for everyone, I will comment, \u201cNOMINATIONS\u201d, and you may reply to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":566585,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2391],"tags":[537,5,5603,1655,2123,55,1107,43042,4,3226,459,69437,1949],"class_list":{"0":"post-566584","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-athletics","8":"tag-athletics","9":"tag-baseball","10":"tag-devin-taylor","11":"tag-gunnar-hoglund","12":"tag-kansas-city","13":"tag-kansas-city-royals","14":"tag-lucas-erceg","15":"tag-mason-barnett","16":"tag-mlb","17":"tag-mlb-athletics","18":"tag-nick-kurtz","19":"tag-scouting-report","20":"tag-the-athletics"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116053251852841147","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566584","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=566584"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566584\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/566585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=566584"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=566584"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=566584"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}