by Bill Moriarity / A’s Farm Editor
February 7, 2025
Now that spring training is just about to get underway, it’s time to present A’s Farm’s 2025 Top 10 Prospects List.
This year’s list includes seven position players and three pitchers, and four of them – Nick Kurtz, Jacob Wilson, Max Muncy and Daniel Susac – are former 1st-round picks. Nine of this year’s top prospects began their careers with the A’s. Pitcher Mason Barnett is the only member of this year’s list who was acquired from another organization.
Five prospects from last year’s list – Jacob Wilson, Denzel Clarke, Luis Morales, Max Muncy and Daniel Susac – are returning to our list again this year, while five prospects – Nick Kurtz, Mason Barnett, Jack Perkins, Henry Bolte and Colby Thomas – are all new additions.
Shortstop Jacob Wilson has officially maintained his prospect status despite having had the opportunity to make his big league debut for the A’s last year. And it’ll be interesting to see which other prospects might end up getting the opportunity to break on through to the big leagues in 2025. So, without any further ado, let’s take a look at A’s Farm’s 2025 Top 10 Prospects List…
A’S FARM’S 2025 TOP 10 PROSPECTS LIST
#1 – Nick Kurtz (1B)
#2 – Jacob Wilson (SS)
#3 – Denzel Clarke (OF)
#4 – Luis Morales (RHP)
#5 – Mason Barnett (RHP)
#6 – Jack Perkins (RHP)
#7 – Max Muncy (SS)
#8 – Henry Bolte (OF)
#9 – Colby Thomas (OF)
#10 – Daniel Susac (C)
#1 NICK KURTZ
Left-Handed-Hitting First Baseman
Age on Opening Day: 22
Drafted 2024 – 1st Round
The fourth overall pick in last year’s draft, the A’s were excited to make Kurtz their top pick in 2024 after he put up an impressive .333/.510/.725 slash line in 164 games over three seasons of college ball at Wake Forest. In his pro debut last summer, Kurtz immediately showed his prowess at the plate by slashing .368/.520/.763 in just 12 games for Stockton and Midland before being sidelined by a hamstring injury. He then returned to slash .353/.450/.608 in 13 games in the Arizona Fall League. The 6-foot-5 slugger has never failed to post an OPS over 1.000 in every season he’s played in either college or the pros. Kurtz makes contact, hits for power, drives the ball to all fields, takes walks, doesn’t strike out much and is a solid defender at first base, so there’s an awful lot to like. With his repertoire of strong tools and an advanced approach at the plate, his floor and ceiling both appear to be pretty high. It’s very easy to envision Kurtz becoming a big difference-maker in the middle of the A’s lineup, and it’s not hard to imagine that happening sooner rather than later. Kurtz has been invited to participate in big league training camp this spring. It’s expected that he’ll begin the season back with Double-A Midland but, if all goes well, it’s quite possible that he could end up making his big league debut before the season’s through.
#2 JACOB WILSON
Right-Handed-Hitting Shortstop
Age on Opening Day: 22
Drafted 2023 – 1st Round
The A’s made Wilson the sixth overall pick in 2023 after he slashed .361/.419/.558 over three collegiate seasons at Grand Canyon University. The 22-year-old’s bat-to-ball skills are so well-developed that he rarely ever whiffs. He hit an impressive .433 with just 15 strikeouts in 53 minor league games last year to earn a quick promotion to the big leagues in his first full season of pro ball. He then proceeded to hit .250 in 28 games in his inaugural season with the A’s. Wilson has an uncanny ability to put the bat on the ball with great consistency, and hopefully that will eventually enable him to become a .300 hitter in the majors. But the big question is whether or not the lanky infielder can develop enough pop to keep big league defenders honest. If they don’t believe that he can occasionally hit it over their heads, then they’ll be able to cheat in on him and keep a lot of those singles that he thrives on from being able to drop in. If he can manage to hit the ball just a little a bit harder, then Wilson could end up being a .300-hitting All-Star caliber infielder – much like Luis Arraez, who also doesn’t have much power and rarely strikes out – and that would make him a very valuable addition to the A’s lineup. But if he can’t learn to hit the ball with a little more authority, then it’s also possible that Wilson could end up being a somewhat better-hitting version of former A’s shortstop Nick Allen, who was able to put up a .345 batting average at Triple-A last year but could never manage to do a whole lot of damage in the majors. If Wilson ends up as a .250 hitter without much pop, that would be a bit of a disappointment, though it would still be an upgrade over what the A’s have had at shortstop in recent times. But if he ends up developing into a fairly consistent .300 hitter with decent doubles power whom the A’s can plug in every day at shortstop, then that would make Wilson a very valuable piece of the A’s future.
#3 Right-Handed-Hitting Outfielder
Age on Opening Day: 24
Drafted 2021 – 4th Round
The A’s 4th-round draft pick in 2021, Clarke has all the tools to be a potential impact player for the team. He’s got plenty of power and speed as well as the ability to run down balls in the outfield. It’s just a question of whether or not he can manage to put them all together consistently. Clarke has been considered to be one of the toolsiest prospects in the A’s system ever since he was drafted. In his first full season of pro ball in 2022, the 6-foot-5 outfielder showed plenty of power and speed by notching the second-most stolen bases and the fourth-most extra hits among all A’s minor leaguers. At Double-A Midland in 2023, he got off to a great start by slashing .261/.381/.496 with 12 home runs and 11 stolen bases in 234 at-bats before a shoulder injury ended his season in July. Clarke ended up having shoulder surgery and, when he returned to action in 2024 for Midland, he got off to a slow start. But after shaking off the rust and making some adjustments in his setup at the plate, Clarke slashed .296/.376/.464 in 233 at-bats in the second half, and he finished the season with 36 stolen bases, the third-most in the A’s system. The 24-year-old outfielder then cranked it up another notch in the Arizona Fall League, slashing an impressive .382/.495/.566 while tallying 9 stolen bases in 76 at-bats in the AFL. Clarke’s speed also allows him to run down a lot of balls in center field, where he’s made the vast majority of his starts. Though he draws his fair share of walks, he tends to strike out a lot too. But if Clarke can just manage to be a little more consistent at the plate, then his power, speed and abilities in center field could end up making him a big game-changer for the A’s. Clarke is expected to start the season with Triple-A Las Vegas and could potentially wind up getting his first look at the big leagues at some point before the season’s through.
#4 LUIS MORALES
Right-Handed Pitcher
Age on Opening Day: 22
Signed as International Free Agent
For the second straight year, the 22-year-old hurler is the youngest pitcher on our list as well as the only international signee on the list. In January of 2023, the A’s signed the Cuban defector, who was widely considered to be the top pitching prospect of the 2023 international class, for a reported $3 million bonus. The young righty saw a limited amount of action that year, throwing a total of 44 combined innings for the DSL A’s, the ACL A’s, the Stockton Ports and the Lansing Lugnuts while posting a 2.86 ERA and averaging 10.8 K/9 over that span. A shoulder injury kept Morales off the mound until the final day of April in 2024, but he still managed to almost double his workload from 2023 while pitching exclusively for High-A Lansing. Last season, Morales threw a total of 81 innings while posting a 4.46 ERA in 11 games in April, May and June and compiling an improved 4.01 ERA in 11 games in July, August and September. On the season, he averaged 9.3 K/9 and 4 BB/9. Morales tended to throw a lot of pitches in many of his appearances and, consequently, only averaged about 4 innings per start. The 6-foot-3 righty flashes an excellent fastball that sat around 97 mph last year. He effectively pairs that with a sweeping mid-80s slider to keep hitters off balance, and he clearly has some of the best raw stuff of any pitcher in the A’s system. Morales has big upside if he can put it all together, but the key question is whether or not he can learn to command his stuff. If he’s going to be able to realize his tremendous potential, he’s going to need to locate better and be far more efficient with his pitches so that he can pitch much deeper into games. It’s expected that he’ll get the chance to see if he can take the next step forward against Double-A hitters this season at Midland.
#5 Right-Handed Pitcher
Age on Opening Day: 24
Drafted 2022 – 3rd Round
Acquired from the Royals in the Lucas Erceg trade last summer, Barnett was originally taken by Kansas City in the 3rd round of the 2022 draft out of Auburn. After his first full season of pro ball in 2023, the Royals’ named Barnett their minor league pitcher of the year, and Baseball America named him the Royals’ minor league player of the year. In 2024, Barnett got off to a somewhat mediocre start for the Royals’ Double-A affiliate in Northwest Arkansas, but he looked dominant after joining the A’s Double-A affiliate in Midland in early August. The 6-foot righty posted a 2.61 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP while averaging 11.3 K/9 in 41 1/3 innings for the RockHounds. He also allowed just 1 run and struck out 15 in 11 innings of postseason work for Midland last year. The Georgia native throws a mid-90s fastball, an excellent mid-80s sweeper, which apparently really caught the eyes of A’s brass, and a solid curveball and changeup. Barnett and fellow righty Jack Perkins have both been invited to participate in big league training camp this spring, and the A’s front office believes that they are currently the two minor league pitching prospects who are closest to fighting their way into the A’s big league pitching plans in the near future.
#6 JACK PERKINS
Right-Handed Pitcher
Age on Opening Day: 25
Drafted 2022 – 5th Round
The oldest player on our list this year, Perkins was also selected later in the draft than any other player on this year’s list. The righty was taken by the A’s in the 5th round in 2022 as a 22-year-old out of Indiana, and some in the A’s front office considered him to be a bit of a steal at the time given his plus fastball and plus slider. He performed well enough to make it to Double-A Midland in his first full season of pro ball in 2023. The 6-foot-1 righty got off to a late start in 2024 due to a lat injury but, once he was healthy, he was dominant for Midland, putting up a 2.96 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP while averaging 11.8 K/9 over 76 innings for the RockHounds. He also notched 20 strikeouts in 11 innings of postseason work for Midland last year. The Indiana native throws a mid-90s fastball that can reach 97 mph, an excellent mid-80s slider and a solid cutter, but he can sometimes struggle with his control. Perkins and fellow righty Mason Barnett have both been invited to participate in big league training camp this spring, and the A’s front office believes that they are currently the two minor league pitching prospects who are closest to fighting their way into the A’s big league pitching plans in the near future.
#7 MAX MUNCY
Right-Handed-Hitting Shortstop
Age on Opening Day: 22
Drafted 2021 – 1st Round
The A’s made Muncy their 1st-round pick back in 2021 as an 18-year-old out of Thousand Oaks High School in southern California, where he played on the same team with Jacob Wilson. Still just 22, Muncy has gotten bigger and stronger since being drafted and his numbers have steadily improved each season as he’s moved up through the A’s system. In 2021, he hit .129 with a .335 OPS in just 11 games after he was drafted. In 2022, he hit .229 with a .757 OPS, while in 2023, he hit .275 with a .763 OPS, and in 2024, he hit .292 with a .903 OPS. Muncy missed more than half of last season due to a hand injury, but he slashed .278/.374/.491 with 20 extra-base hits in 50 games while playing for Triple-A Las Vegas. And members of the A’s front office have admitted that, if it wasn’t for the injury, Muncy probably would have gotten the opportunity to make his big league debut with the A’s last season. The young infielder was drafted as a shortstop and has primarily played that position throughout his minor league career. But with Jacob Wilson now the A’s presumptive shortstop and no clear incumbent holding down the hot corner for the team, he’s expected to see plenty of time at third base in Las Vegas this season. With a fairly strong arm, decent speed and some pop in his bat, Muncy could have the highest upside of any of the potential third base options at the higher levels of the A’s system, and he could get the chance to audition for the job at the hot corner for the A’s before the season’s through.
#8 HENRY BOLTE
Right-Handed-Hitting Outfielder
Age on Opening Day: 21
Drafted 2022 – 2nd Round
Having just turned 21 last August, Bolte is the youngest player to make this year’s list. Taken by the A’s in the 2nd round in 2022 out of Palo Alto High School, Bolte ranks just above fellow outfielder Colby Thomas on our list mainly due to the fact that he’s got much better speed and he’s two-and-a-half years younger than Thomas despite being just one level below him on the organizational ladder. The 6-foot-3 slugger possesses plenty power and speed. He led all A’s minor leaguers with 46 stolen bases last year, while also notching the third-most extra-base hits in the system. Bolte got off to a great start last year as a 20-year-old with High-A Lansing, slashing .278/.393/.519 with 36 extra-base hits and 28 stolen bases in 68 games for the Lugnuts. His production took a bit of a dip, especially in terms of his power numbers, after he was promoted to Double-A Midland in the offense-suppressing Texas League, and he finished the season with a .267/.368/.466 slash line in 468 combined at-bats for Lansing and Midland. Though he draws plenty of walks, the strikeouts can come in large bunches too. The young outfielder led all A’s minor leaguers with 189 strikeouts in 2024 and also led the system with 164 strikeouts in 2023. But if Bolte can manage to develop greater consistency at the plate, then his power, speed and strong arm could potentially make him a valuable addition to the A’s outfield in the not-too-distant future.
#9 COLBY THOMAS
Right-Handed-Hitting Outfielder
Age on Opening Day: 24
Drafted 2022 – 3rd Round
Taken by the A’s with their 3rd-round pick in 2022, Thomas put himself on the map in 2023 when he led all A’s minor leaguers with 63 extra-base hits in 507 at-bats for Stockton and Lansing during his first full season of pro ball. But Thomas topped that performance last year by leading all minor leaguers with 80 extra-base hits in 513 at-bats for Midland and Las Vegas. He also led the system last year in hits (142), home runs (31), doubles (44) and RBIs (92) while also boasting the best slugging percentage (.563) and OPS (.906) among all A’s minor leaguers with at least 350 at-bats. Within a couple of seasons, Thomas has established himself as the top power-hitting prospect in the organization, but he doesn’t always show a lot of discipline at the plate. He often chooses to take his chances hacking away at pitches out of the zone rather than take a walk, and his 142 strikeouts were the fourth-most among A’s minor leaguers last season. Thomas does have decent speed, having notched a total of 40 stolen bases over the past two seasons, and he’s also shown a strong arm in the outfield. If he can just tighten up his approach at the plate and learn to be a little more selective, then his powerful bat will have a much better chance of having a real impact in the big leagues. Thomas should start the season back in Las Vegas but, as long as he keeps punishing Pacific Coast League pitchers, then he’ll likely get a chance to show what he can do against big league pitching at some point before the season’s through.
#10 DANIEL SUSAC
Right-Handed-Hitting Catcher
Age on Opening Day: 23
Drafted 2022 – 1st Round
The A’s made Susac their top draft pick with the 19th overall selection in 2022 after the 6-foot-4 catcher clubbed 24 home runs and 43 doubles in 515 at-bats during his two seasons at the University of Arizona. The Sacramento-area native’s older brother, Andrew, was a big league catcher for parts of six seasons, so catching is in his blood, and the big backstop has shown a solid arm behind the plate. Susac has the ability to make contact and has also shown a little pop, but the A’s believe there’s more power potential still to be tapped. In his first full season of pro ball in 2023, Susac hit a solid .301 while putting up a .365 on-base percentage over 99 games for High-A Lansing and 13 games for Double-A Midland. Last season, he hit 12 home runs in 343 at-bats while posting a .434 slugging percentage for Midland in the pitcher-friendly Texas League. He then slashed .286/.467/.619 with a pair of home runs in just 21 at-bats during a brief spell in the Arizona Fall League. Susac has a career batting average of .283 in the minors. And with a lack of catchers currently putting up very big numbers in the majors, it seems likely that he could at least find a future role as a backup backstop at some point. But if Susac can just manage to combine his power potential and his contact skills a little more consistently, then he could develop into a potential starter behind the plate. And the former 1st-rounder should get the chance to show what he can do at Triple-A Las Vegas this season.
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