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Konnor Griffin, SS, Pirates: With the season winding down, Griffin continues to impress with Double-A Altoona. On Wednesday, Griffin went 3-for-5 with a home run, four RBIs and two runs. Griffin is now hitting .344/.443/.609 over his first 17 games in Double-A. He’ll lead Altoona into the Eastern League playoffs next week for a semi-finals rematch with Erie and Kevin McGonigle. Griffin is the top prospect in baseball and the way things are trending, expect a debut in the major leagues next year at 20 years old.

Brody Hopkins, RHP, Rays: Hopkins dominated over six scoreless innings on Wednesday in what may be his final start of the season. He needed just 77 pitches to get through six scoreless innings, allowing one hit, one walk and a hit batter, while striking out eight. Hopkins has some of the best stuff across his arsenal in the minor leagues. His outlier release height and mid-to-high-90s velocity paired with an upper-80s curveball is a devastating combination. Hopkins will likely spend a majority of next season with Triple-A Durham in 2026.

George Klassen, RHP, Angels: It’s been a very unusual season for the Klassen. His year has flashed moments of brilliance but has been flooded by messy performances and a scary injury when he was hit in the head by a comebacker in May. On Wednesday, Klassen was in prime form as he baffled the opposing Double-A Chattanooga lineup. He tossed seven innings allowing one unearned run on three hits and two walks, striking out eight. Klassen has premium stuff and when he consistently finds the plate, he’s one of the most impressive starting pitching prospects in the minors. Unfortunately, those outings are typically few and far between.

Andrew Painter, RHP, Phillies: The 2025 season has been a frustrating experience for Painter coming off of two years on the shelf recovering from Tommy John surgery. Painter made one of his best starts of the season on Wednesday afternoon, throwing five scoreless innings, three hits, no walks and six strikeouts. Painter needed only 74 pitches to get through five and leaned into his changeup, using the pitch 35% of the time, the highest of any pitch in his arsenal. Painter generated 13 total whiffs, with five coming against his slider and four against his changeup. Painter has struggled to command his fastball this season and it has led to increased hard contact against the pitch. The approach of leaning into his quality secondary offerings more often makes a lot of sense for Painter going forward. Despite not debuting with the Phillies to date, Painter should enter the offseason as a potential rotation option for the team in 2026.

Editor’s Picks

If you subscribe to this newsletter, you likely know the Arizona Fall League is one of our favorite times of the year. So yesterday was quite an exciting day with the release of roster ahead of the start of games next month. Here’s everything you need to know to get ready for the Arizona Fall League.

• 12 interesting players to watch

• Every Top 100 Prospect on rosters

• These 10 AFL pitchers touched 100 mph

• The 10 youngest players on rosters

• Mesa roster analysis

• Peoria roster analysis

• Salt River roster analysis

• Scottsdale roster analysis

• Surprise roster analysis

• Glendale roster analysis

LIDOM Draft: Speaking of offseason ball, the Dominican Winter League also had its annual rookie draft last night. Here are the results.

Best Fastballs: Geoff Pontes examines the pitchers with the 10 best performing fastballs in the minors in 2025. Read more…

Baseball America Helium Pick Of The Day

Each day, we’ll pick a prospect that has our attention.

Jonathon Long, 1B, Cubs: While Triple-A Iowa has rotated a cast of top prospects in 2025, the Cubs’ No. 7 prospect has been old reliable. Over 132 games for Iowa this season, Long has hit .311/.410/.492 with 151 hits, 89 RBIs and after last night's game 20 home runs. This is the first time Long has reached 20 homers in a season, besting 2024's total of 17. Long lacks the plus game power typical of corner infielders but he shows an excellent blend of bat-to-ball skills, approach and power. Long is still a year away from his 40-man roster decision and is likely to return to Triple-A to begin 2026. Long has average everyday regular upside with the ability to play a few positions, but is most comfortable at first base.

Quick Hits

Prospect news and notes from around baseball…

• So far, the Blue Jays haven’t called on RHP Trey Yesavage to bolster their pitching rotation for a playoff push, but he’s certainly making a convincing case even after they’ve deployed him in shorter stints for Triple-A Buffalo. He struck out four batters over three scoreless innings yesterday, and has 15 strikeouts and a 1.64 ERA over his last 11 innings (four outings).

• JJ Wetherholt was back in Triple-A Memphis’ lineup Wednesday after missing his previous five games with soreness.

• White Sox LHP Noah Schultz was not added to an Arizona Fall League roster and is expected to miss the rest of the 2025 season.

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