We have made it to the month of May, and it's been a busy month so far down in the Minor Leagues. The Athletics are seemingly promoting every prospect of note they have this year, with pitcher Gunnar Hoglund the latest example alongside slugger Nick Kurtz, and the Rockies have been busy as well. We are also already seeing a lot of movement among top prospects around the league, which is poised to create some really fun position battles here soon.
Other than the A's, Rockies and maybe the Angels, most MLB teams aren't going to be in much of a hurry promote guys to the big leagues right now. There are no PPI incentives available now that we are deep enough into the season, but it is early enough for teams to not want to draw too many conclusions about guys on their active rosters and potentially lose a year of service time with a top talent.
That does not mean, however, that some players could be pushing for service time soon.
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MLB prospects that are setting themselves up for future position battles
For some of these players, they could see playing time in the Major Leagues this season — and very soon at that. Others may still have to wait a bit longer, but are playing well enough to start asking questions about the guys that currently play their position in the big leagues and whether they should factor into the team's future plans. There will certainly be other names not mentioned here that will push for playing time as well, but here are a few notable names that are throwing their hats into the ring.
George Lombard Jr., New York Yankees
Lombard Jr. has been on fans' radar for a while now, but showing up in camp this year bigger and seemingly stronger got Yankees fans especially excited. No one realistically thought that Lombard Jr. would push for playing time in 2025, but he is making moves that could have in the conversation by 2026.
After posting a .329/.495/.488 line in 24 games at High-A this season, the Yankees saw enough out of Lombard Jr. to promote him to Double-A. With Anthony Volpe currently scuffling in the Majors, there is reason to think that Lombard Jr.'s development could force New York to start entertaining ways to get him into the big leagues next year. Given how good of a defender Lombard Jr. is at short, Volpe may find himself pushed to third base and hoping he hits enough to stay there in 2026.
Edgar Quero/Kyle Teel, Chicago White Sox
The White Sox are a colossal mess, and everyone knows it. After posting the worst season in modern MLB history last year, they are only marginally better so far this season at 10-25. However, they do have some talent coming from the Minor Leagues, and the position battle at catcher in particular is going to be fascinating to watch unfold.
Edgar Quero is only 17 games into his professional career, but he has been extremely impressive thus far with a .314/.417/.373 slash line while controlling the running game well. Chicago also has Kyle Teel lurking in the Minor Leagues, who has not only been heating up at the plate but who probably grades out as a better framer than Quero. Ideally, the White Sox can keep both and get them playing time at DH as well. However, there is a world where Chicago feels forced to choose which guy to keep and which one to include in a trade to bolster the roster elsewhere.
Roman Anthony, Boston Red Sox
Everyone knows that Roman Anthony is ready for the big leagues, and it's only a matter of finding a roster spot for him in Boston. He is arguably the best prospect in baseball and currently has a .933 OPS at Triple-A this season after also raking in a cameo appearance there in 2024. The only question right now is how the Red Sox will get him in their lineup with their outfield already crowded.
One option may have just presented itself after Triston Casas ruptured his patellar tendon on a play at first. Casas is going to be out for the season, leaving first base as an open question. So far, Boston has seemed resistant to play Anthony at first and may prefer to see if they can get Rafael Devers to play there after pulling him off third base once they signed Alex Bregman. There are a lot of moving parts here, but expect Anthony's name to come up a lot this season until Boston finally calls him up.