The players we highlighted as having the best individual tools on our 2022 Top 100 Prospects list wasted no time displaying them at the big league level.
Julio Rodríguez (best hitter) slashed .284/.345/.509 and became the fastest player ever to reach 25 homers and 25 steals (125 games) en route to winning American League Rookie of the Year honors. Runner-up Adley Rutschman (best defense) ranked in the upper quartile of catchers in terms of throwing and framing.
Hunter Greene (best fastball) led all starters by averaging 98.9 mph with his heater and found success when he started commanding it better. Reid Detmers (best curveball) leaned on his bender as his most reliable pitch during a solid first full season that included a no-hitter. Among pitchers with 130 or more innings, George Kirby (best control) ranked sixth in K/BB ratio (6.1) and seventh in walks per nine innings (1.5).
Can this year’s Top 100 prospects with the best tools make as immediate an impact? Most of the top players detailed here are projected to play in the Majors in 2023.
