Los Angeles Dodgers

Track Record: Bruns touched 97 mph at Perfect Game National to establish himself as one of the top pitchers in the 2021 draft class, but his control disappeared the rest of the summer and was hit-or-miss throughout his senior spring. The Dodgers still believed in his arm strength and drafted him in the first round, No. 29 overall, and signed him for $2,197,500.
Scouting Report: Bruns has a strong, 6-foot-2 frame and attacks hitters with a potent four-pitch mix. His fastball sits 93-95 mph, touches 97 and is a plus pitch with the deception he generates out of his crossfire delivery. His 82-84 mph slider is another plus pitch with tough angle and late bite, and his high-arching, 74-76 mph curveball also shows plus at its best. He also has advanced touch and feel for a fading changeup that projects to be average. While Bruns’ stuff is unquestioned, he has well below-average control and struggles to stay around the strike zone. The Dodgers believe his control can become average with adjustments to his timing, delivery and mindset, but he’s not a natural strike-thrower.
The Future: Bruns has to prove he can throw enough strikes to reach his mid-rotation potential. He’ll try to show he can at Low-A Rancho Cucamonga in 2022.

Track Record: Beeter had Tommy John surgery in high school but recovered to become a standout closer at Texas Tech before taking over as the Friday night starter. The Dodgers drafted him 66th overall in 2020 and signed him for $1,196,500. Beeter made his pro debut in 2021 and posted a 3.44 ERA between High-A Great Lakes and Double-A Tulsa, but he mostly worked as an “opener” and never threw more than 3.1 innings in an outing.
Scouting Report: Beeter is a strong, physical righthander who pitches almost exclusively with his fastball and curveball. His plus fastball sits 93-95 and touches 98 with ride through the top of the strike zone and his is curveball is a high-spin, top-to-bottom offering in the mid 80s that drops below the zone for swings and misses. Beeter rarely throws his below-average, low-80s changeup and gets hit hard by lefties as a result. His long arm action leads to a lack of deception and fringe-average control
The Future: Beeter is universally seen as a future reliever. His fastball-curveball combination is good enough for him to potentially be a setup man.

Track Record: Ramos signed with the Dodgers for $30,000 out of Panama when he was 17 and immediately emerged as a potential sleeper in the system. He delivered on that promise in his U.S. debut in 2021. Ramos torched the Arizona Complex League to earn a promotion after only 15 games to Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, where he hit.313/.377/.559 over the final two months.
Scouting Report: Ramos is a strong, aggressive hitter who feasts on fastballs. He has a smooth, rhythmic swing with plenty of bat speed and strength. He turns fastballs around 400-plus feet with his plus raw power and posts some of the highest exit velocities of any Dodgers prospect. Ramos struggles to recognize breaking balls, but he’s adept at working himself into fastball counts and playing to his strengths. Ramos is a playable defender in center field and above-average in right field with his average speed and clean routes and reads. His best tool is his plus-plus, accurate arm that makes jaw-dropping throws.
The Future: Ramos will have to better learn to recognize or lay off breaking stuff. If he does, he could be an everyday, power-hitting right fielder.

Track Record: Amaya grew up in suburban Los Angeles and is the grandson of former Brooklyn Dodgers prospect Frank Amaya. The Dodgers kept the connection going when they drafted the younger Amaya in the 11th round in 2017 and signed him for an above-slot $247,500. Amaya quickly established himself as the best defensive shortstop in the Dodgers system, but longstanding questions about his bat only increased after he hit .216/.303/.343 at Double-A Tulsa in 2021.
Scouting Report: Amaya is a gifted defensive shortstop with elite instincts for the position. He is always in the right place, secures every ball with his soft, reliable hands and makes every throw with his plus, accurate arm. He’s not the rangiest or flashiest defender, but he makes every play and is elite at nuances such as tags and relays. Amaya’s bat is further behind. He previously demonstrated elite-strike zone discipline but tried to hit for power in 2021 and started chasing and overswinging. He’s an undersized hitter who is best when he drives singles the other way with a short, direct stroke.
The Future: Amaya’s defense gives him a chance to stick as a utilityman. He’ll try to make the necessary offensive adjustments in 2022.

Track Record: Outman was a standout middle linebacker in high school, but he chose to pursue baseball and became a three-year starting outfielder at Sacramento State. He led the Western Athletic Conference with 11 home runs as a junior in 2018 and was drafted by the Dodgers in the seventh round. Outman immediately starred on defense and progressively improved as a hitter leading up to a breakout 2021. He posted a career-high .869 OPS while advancing to Double-A and finished the year with a star turn in the Arizona Fall League.
Scouting Report: Outman is a physical, athletic specimen more usually seen playing football. He is a plus runner at 6-foot-3, 215 pounds with quick initial burst and elite acceleration in center field. He ticks up to nearly plus-plus speed underway and runs down long flies to both gaps and at the wall. The Dodgers refined Outman’s lefthanded swing to get his upper and lower halves more in sync. He still has a hand hitch and has to cheat to get to velocity, but he sees pitches well and crushes fastballs when he connects.
The Future: Outman is a nearly-ready fourth outfielder with his defense and power at the plate. He’ll head to Triple-A in 2022.

Track Record: Nastrini entered his junior year at UCLA considered a potential first-round pick, but he suffered the yips and walked 38 batters in 31.1 innings. The Dodgers still took a shot on his potent stuff and drafted him in the fourth round, signing him for an above-slot $497,500. Nastrini rediscovered his control as a pro and dominated in six starts at Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, then became the talk of instructional league with a sensational showing.
Scouting Report: Nastrini is a sturdy, physical righthander who flashes three plus or better pitches. His fastball sits 92-96 mph as a starter with high spin rates at the top of the strike zone. His short, tight 84-88 mph slider is a plus pitch that tunnels well off his fastball and his 78-82 mph, high-spin curveball with depth and sweep is another plus offering. His firm, 87-88 mph changeup with split action is developing. Nastrini’s control is the wild card. He is a good athlete with a polished delivery and threw strikes in the past, but he presently has well below-average control and has some mental hurdles to overcome.
The Future: The Dodgers are optimistic Nastini will find his way back and become a mid-rotation starter. His first big test will come at High-A Great Lakes in 2022.

Track Record: After spending most of his first two seasons in the bullpen, Stone moved into Central Arkansas’ starting rotation in 2020 and threw a no-hitter in his final start before the coronavirus pandemic shut down the season. The Dodgers drafted him in the fifth round and signed him for a below-slot $97,500. Stone made his pro debut in 2021 and was one of the surprises of the season. He led the Dodgers organization with 138 strikeouts as he rose from Low-A to High-A.
Scouting Report: Stone’s fastball sat 90-92 mph in college but ticked up to 93-97 in his pro debut. His fastball plays up with run and ride from his low release point to make it an above-average pitch that gets swings and misses in the strike zone. Stone uses his fastball heavily, but his slider and changeup are also viable weapons. His mid-80s slider flashes average and he began incorporating a firm, 86-89 mph changeup as last year progressed and flashed a plus offering with split action and late dive.
The Future: Stone is undersized and has some effort to his delivery, but he has above-average control and holds his velocity through his starts.
The Future: Stone largely projects to be a multi-inning reliever. He still has some physical projection left and could potentially blossom into a back-end starter.

Track Record: Fernandez played for Venezuela in the 2015 Little League World Series and built a long track record of hitting to become one of the top catchers in his class. The Dodgers signed him for $717,500 and sent him to the Arizona Complex League for his pro debut in 2021, where he hit .319/.382/.454 and received a late promotion to Low-A Rancho Cucamonga.
Scouting Report: Fernandez hardly cuts an imposing figure with his short, stocky build, but has elite hand-eye coordination and barrel control and sprays line drives all over the field. He handles upper-90s velocity and has sneaky power that could become average once he starts to pull the ball. He is aggressive and doesn’t walk much, but he recognizes pitches and rarely swings and misses. Fernandez was a second baseman who converted to catching and is still learning to play the position. He’s a good athlete with soft hands and is making progress with his blocking, throwing and game-calling. He has a chance to be an average defender with a plus, accurate arm, but that requires a lot of projection.
The Future: Fernandez’s bat will buy him time to develop his defense. He is playable enough at second base to be a catcher/infielder utilityman.

Track Record: Hoese finished tied for fifth in the nation with 23 home runs his junior season at Tulane and was drafted 26th overall by the Dodgers in 2019. He posted an .863 OPS in his pro debut and was the Dodgers’ best hitter at the alternate training site in 2020, but he struggled badly in his first full season in 2021. He hit just .188 with two home runs in 59 games at Double-A Tulsa and missed two months with an intercostal strain. He finished the year by hitting .200/.250/.327 in an underwhelming showing in the Arizona Fall League.
Scouting Report: Hoese is a divisive player who draws widely disparate opinions depending on when scouts saw him. At his best, he is a balanced hitter with a short, compact swing and drives balls to all fields with his natural strength and leverage. Other times he jumps out of his legs, gets around the ball with a long swing and his bat speed disappears. Hoese shows above-average hitting ability and power when his swing is right, but the latter swing shows up too frequently. Hoese is a below-average runner who gets what’s hit to him at third base but lacks range. His arm strength fluctuates from below-average to above-average due to his inconsistent arm slot.
The Future: Hoese has a lot to prove in 2022, including that he can consistently maintain his best swing against upper-level pitching. He may open the season back at Double-A.

Track Record: Heubeck emerged as one of the top prep pitchers in the Northeast and led Gilman High to the Maryland Class A state title in the spring, highlighted by a 15-strikeout performance in the semifinals. The Dodgers drafted him in the third round and signed him for a $1,269,500 bonus. Heubeck impressed with nine strikeouts in only four innings in the Arizona Complex League after signing, and then became a favorite of Dodgers officials during instructional league.
Scouting Report: Heubeck is a thin, projectable 6-foot-3 righthander who keeps trending up. His fastball sits 90-91 mph with elite riding life at the top of the strike zone and should tick up as he fills out physically. Heubeck complements his fastball with a plus, 12-to-6 curveball in the low 80s with impressive depth and power. He effectively throws his fastball up and curveball down to give him the north-south profile teams covet. Heubeck mostly relies on those two pitches but has flashed an average changeup. He has an easy delivery and a clean arm action that give him average control.
The Future: Heubeck has a promising foundation but needs to get stronger. He’ll head to Low-A Rancho Cucamonga in 2022.

Track Record: Doncon used the 2020 coronavirus shutdown to get stronger and enhanced his stock on the international market. The Dodgers signed him for $497,500 out of the Dominican Republic on the first day the 2021 signing period opened. Doncon continued to blossom physically after he signed and outperformed many of his more touted classmates in the DSL in his pro debut. He hit .283/.387/.455 while showing an intriguing power-speed combination and made a loud first impression on Dodgers officials at instructional league after the season.
Scouting Report: Doncon is a long, lean 6-foot-2 with a high waist and lots of physical projection to dream on. He has fast bat speed, excellent natural timing in the batter’s box and consistently barrels fastballs. He has a flat swing plane that results in a lot of low line drives, but he has a chance to grow into average or better power as he gets stronger and fills out physically. Doncon remains lean and is a capable shortstop with good actions and a plus arm. He is a tick below average runner who projects to slow down as he continues to fill out, so he may eventually have to move to third base.
The Future: Doncon’s offensive potential has the Dodgers excited. He will make his stateside debut in the Arizona Complex League in 2022.

Track Record: Bruihl had Tommy John surgery in high school and pitched one season at Cal Poly before he transferred to Santa Rosa (Calif.) JC. He pitched well enough to earn a scholarship to Cal, but he instead chose to sign with the Dodgers as a nondrafted free agent. Bruihl slowly rose through the lower minors before breaking out in 2021. He vaulted from Double-A to the majors and made 21 appearances out of the Dodgers bullpen, where he posted a 2.89 ERA.
Scouting Report: Bruihl’s low arm slot and slightly crossfire delivery make it difficult to pick the ball up, especially for lefties. His hard, 88-89 mph cutter darts across the plate with late gloveside bite and his sweeping, 77-80 mph curveball gets lunging, off-balance swings Bruihl has average control but is prone to walks because he has to stay on the edges of the plate. His deception and pitch movement helped him hold lefties to a .150 batting average and .359 OPS in his debut, but righties hit .292 with an .830 OPS.
The Future: The Dodgers found situations to use Bruihl successfully even with the three-batter minimum. His ability to neutralize lefties should keep him in the bullpen moving forward.

Track Record: Vivas was an undersized shortstop with a track record of hitting when the Dodgers signed him for $300,000 out of Venezuela in 2017. He never really grew and he moved off of shortstop, but he’s continued to hit. Vivas made his full-season debut in 2021 and hit .321 with 14 home runs, 87 RBIs and an .893 OPS as he rose from Low-A to High-A. The Dodgers added him to their 40-man roster after the season to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.
Scouting Report: Vivas hardly stands out with his small, unimposing frame, but he’s a talented hitter who frequently outperforms his more physically gifted peers. He consistently puts the bat on the ball with his excellent hand-eye coordination and natural ability to manipulate the barrel. He has a sharp eye at the plate and rarely chases, forcing pitchers to throw strikes and not missing when they do. Vivas posts below-average exit velocities, but he picks out pitches to drive and has gotten strong enough to sneak them over the fence. Vivas is a below-average runner with a fringy arm and is limited to second base defensively. He makes routine plays but is challenged on the move.
The Future: Vivas’ size and lack of athleticism lead to skepticism he’ll succeed at higher levels. He’ll try to silence those doubts at Double-A in 2022.

Track Record: Grove looked like a future first-round pick as an underclassman at West Virginia, but he had Tommy John surgery during his sophomore year and missed his entire junior season as well. The Dodgers still drafted him in the second round and gave him an above-slot $1,229,500 bonus. Grove’s stuff took three years to return, but it finally happened at Double-A Tulsa in 2021. Even though he showed poor control and posted a 7.86 ERA, the Dodgers still added him to their 40-man roster after the season.
Scouting Report: Grove rebuilt himself into a power pitcher and now possesses the most imposing stuff of his career. He generates 94-97 mph fastballs that touch 99 as a starter with little effort out of his strong, athletic delivery. He complements his heater with a hard slider at 86-89 mph and a power curveball at 78-81 mph that both have downer action and get swings and misses. While everything looks good on paper, Grove’s fastball is straight and he tends to leave it over the plate, where it gets crushed, and he lacks a soft offering to keep batters from gearing up. His uptick in stuff has also come with a downgrade in his control, which is now below-average and prevents him from lasting long in his starts.
The Future: The Dodgers hope Grove’s stuff will play in relief moving forward. His transition to the bullpen may come in 2022.

Track Record: De Jesus signed with the Dodgers for $500,000 out of the Dominican Republic in 2018 and quickly emerged as one of their most promising low-level prospects. He got into bad swing habits during the coronavirus shutdown and hit .210 with a 38% strikeout rate the first two months of the 2021 season at Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, but after he made adjustments to get back to his former swing, he hit .314/.440/.490 the rest of the year.
Scouting Report: When De Jesus is right, he has a fast, direct swing with natural loft and drives balls hard in the air from gap to gap. He got too aggressive in his approach and struggled against righthanded spin during the early part of 2021, but as he eased back and fixed his load, trigger and bat path, he began to resemble the potential average hitter with above-average power previously seen. De Jesus is a below-average runner with a big, strong body and projects to move off of shortstop. His reliable hands, quick first step and plus arm strength should help him be an average third baseman. De Jesus is a smart, mature player who takes coaching well and puts in the work to improve.
The Future: De Jesus’ midseason improvement provides hope he can still be a power-hitting, everyday infielder. He’ll head to High-A Great Lakes in 2022.

Track Record: Yurchak played on the same high school team as Braves pitcher Ian Anderson and became one of college baseball’s best pure hitters, first at Wake Forest and then Binghamton. The White Sox drafted Yurchak in the 12th round in 2017 and traded him a year later to the Dodgers for lefthanded reliever Manny Banuelos. Yurchak continued to hit at every stop and finally gained some notoriety in 2021 when he hit .365 across High-A and Double-A, the highest batting average in the minors.
Scouting Report: Yurchak can make contact on par with almost anyone in the minors. He has an efficient lefthanded swing that can make contact with almost any pitch in any location and he stays in the strike zone with a sharp eye and advanced, patient approach. He rarely swings and misses, puts together elite quality at-bats and has a knack for getting hits in clutch situations. Yurchak doesn’t hit the ball very hard, however, and his well below-average power makes it tough to find him somewhere to play. He is a below-average runner with fringy arm strength and is limited to first base defensively.
The Future: Yurchak’s pure contact skills from the left side give him a shot to reach the majors. He’ll have to develop more power or defensive versatility to carve out a stable bench role.

Track Record: A contact hitter in college at Louisville, Mann got stronger and made swing changes after the Dodgers drafted him in the fifth round in 2018. The changes helped him become one of the top power hitters in the High-A California League in his first full season, but he lost those strength gains and his swing regressed during the coronavirus shutdown. Mann struggled at Double-A Tulsa when minor league play resumed in 2021, but he eventually rounded into form and hit .279 with an .852 OPS over the season’s final three months.
Scouting Report: Mann is a tall, lanky righthanded hitter with strong strike-zone discipline, good pitch recognition and above-average contact ability even when he isn’t going well. He’s adept at working counts and drives balls from gap to gap when he’s right. Mann’s slow start depressed his overall numbers in 2021, but he showed his ability to adjust and still projects to be an average hitter with double-digit home run power with the way he finished. Mann has long been a stiff, below-average second baseman, but he began playing first base and the outfield in Tulsa. He gets excellent reads in the corner outfield and covers enough ground with his long gait.
The Future: Mann’s hitting ability and newfound defensive versatility give him a chance to be a bench option. He’ll head to Triple-A in 2022.

Track Record: Taylor split his time between catcher, first base and DH at Virginia Tech and got off to a blistering start in 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic canceled the season. The Dodgers drafted him in the fourth round and signed him for $397,500. Taylor jumped to High-A Great Lakes for his pro debut and shook off a slow start to hit .294 with an .842 OPS from June through the end of the season. Most importantly, he made needed defensive strides and capably handled a high-octane Loons pitching staff.
Scouting Report: The switch-hitting Taylor is firmly a bat-first catcher. He’s a patient hitter who controls the strike zone and consistently conducts high-level at-bats from both sides of the plate. He’s a better hitter from the right side, but he made adjustments to improve his lefthanded swing and projects to be an average hitter overall. Taylor has below-average power, so most of his offensive production will come from making contact and getting on-base. Taylor’s defense is improving and has an outside chance to get to average. His receiving and framing are solid, but his blocking, throwing and game-calling all have a ways to go. He’s physically large and has below-average mobility and athleticism, which often leads to inconsistent timing and footwork on his throws.
The Future: Taylor will have to keep improving defensively to be a backup catcher. He’ll move to Double-A Tulsa in 2022.

Track Record: Duran stood 6-foot-7 by the time he was 17 years old and signed with the Dodgers for $300,000 in 2018 out of the Dominican Republic. He made his full-season debut in 2021 and posted an unsightly 5.56 ERA across both Class A levels, but he finished tied for fourth in the organization with 115 strikeouts and flashed one of the best sliders in the minor leagues.
Scouting Report: Duran previously threw a four-seam fastball that stayed straight and got crushed up in the zone, so he switched to a 92-95 mph two-seamer that gets plus sink and run and still has room to improve. In any form, his fastball is merely a setup pitch for his plus-plus, mid-80s slider. Duran hides the ball well behind his big frame and the pitch turns hard with late sweep and dive, repeatedly getting righties to chase it down and away. Duran’s sinker-slider combination dominates righthanded batters, but his well below-average changeup leaves him vulnerable to lefties. He has good body control for his size and throws enough strikes to project fringe-average control.
The Future: Duran’s ability to dominate with his slider bodes well for a situational relief role in the majors. He’ll remain a starter for now to work on his entire arsenal.

Track Record: Choi had a chance to be a top pick in the Korea Baseball Organization draft out of high school but instead signed with the Dodgers for $300,000. He led the Rookie-level Arizona League in strikeouts in his pro debut in 2019 and, after spending the coronavirus shutdown in South Korea, posted a 3.55 ERA in 106.1 innings as he moved from Low-A to High-A in his full-season debut in 2021. He finished among the organization’s leaders in innings, ERA, wins (8), strikeouts (106) and WHIP (0.969) and was named the Dodgers’ minor league pitcher of the year.
Scouting Report: Choi is extremely polished for his age and has advanced command of a four-pitch arsenal. His fastball ranges from 90-94 mph with late armside run and plays up with his ability to locate it precisely on both sides of the plate. His best secondary pitch is an average, 80-84 mph split-changeup that plays well off his fastball in part because of how well he locates the pitch. Choi’s 80-84 mph slider flashes average but is inconsistent and he rarely uses his slow, 72-74 mph curveball, but he can locate both with plus control. Choi works quickly and efficiently and holds his stuff and command for the better part of five innings before slowing down.
The Future: Choi’s command and pitchability give him a chance to rise as a swingman. He may see Double-A in 2022.