A look at the top new prospects entering the A's farm system

WEST SACRAMENTO -- The Athletics made a pair of moves at this year’s Trade Deadline, including one of the more high-profile transactions in a deal with the Padres that nabbed them four of San Diego’s Top 30 prospects, a package headlined by teen phenom Leo De Vries.

While De Vries is the clear standout, the A’s accomplished their goal of boosting their Minor League pitching depth by acquiring four right-handers, all of whom now reside on their Top 30 Prospects list, in separate moves that sent Miller and JP Sears to the Padres, as well as Miguel Andujar to the Reds.

Here's a look at the additions that the A’s made to their system in these deals.

No. 1 Leo De Vries, SS, High-A Lansing
Acquired in: Mason Miller/JP Sears trade with Padres
Pipeline scouting report: "A switch-hitter, De Vries already shows an exquisite knowledge of the zone and will take his walks like he's a player many years older. He needed just a little bit more exposure to California League arms before making the adjustment to their quality, and that speaks well to how he'll handle higher levels, something he continued to show in the Midwest League with low strikeout and high walk rates at the time of the trade. After getting to his power more from the right side in 2024, with seven of his 11 homers coming from that side despite far fewer plate appearances, he flipped the script in 2025, with seven of his eight homers coming left-handed before he was sent to the A’s. He has more than enough bat speed from both sides of the plate where splits aren’t a major concern." More >>

Organizational fit: De Vries immediately slots in as the top overall prospect in the A’s system, marking the third A’s representative on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 list along with left-hander Gage Jump and right-hander Luis Morales.

ETA: 2027

No. 5 Braden Nett, RHP, Double-A Midland
Acquired in: Mason Miller/JP Sears trade with Padres
Pipeline scouting report: "Nett has some effort in his delivery, and the 2025 season (pre-trade) was the first time he’d posted a walk rate below 13 percent at any Minor League stop. Combine that with the early injury concerns, and it’s easy to think he could be a reliever eventually. But his arsenal is deep enough, and his stuff is promising enough -- when combined with strides taken this season -- to keep landing him in a starting role in the upper Minors." More >>

Organizational fit: Nett slots in as the No. 5 prospect for the A’s as one of their top three pitching prospects along with Jump and Morales.

ETA: 2025

No. 9 Henry Baez, RHP, Triple-A Las Vegas
Acquired in: Mason Miller/JP Sears trade with Padres
Pipeline scouting report: "Baez took a major jump in workload but didn’t let his control improvements suffer. That certainly helps his starting chances, as does his 50.1 percent ground-ball rate from 2024. He’s still only 22, but with his place on the roster now set, the A’s (never afraid to move guys quickly) could try to see what it looks like in the big leagues in a relief role to ease him in." More >>

Organizational fit: Baez bolsters the A’s organization with some much-needed pitching depth.

ETA: 2026

No. 17 Eduarniel Núñez, RHP, Athletics
Acquired in: Mason Miller/JP Sears trade with Padres
Pipeline scouting report: "Pitching exclusively out of the stretch, Núñez has the goal to blow both of his pitches past batters, starting with a 97-99 mph heater that has touched as high as 101.4 mph in front of Statcast this season. It’s pure velo over movement here, and Núñez gets minimal extension under six feet (allowing batters to see the fastball a little longer), but it’s still enough to make for an uncomfortable at-bat. The Dominican Republic native’s upper-80s slider is an even better pitch, getting good depth while still being thrown hard, and it’s posted whiff and chase rates above 40 percent in the Minors during Núñez’s time in the San Diego system. Plenty of left-handed hitters have been fooled by the breaking ball too, but without a quality changeup, Núñez has drastic handedness splits." More >>

Organizational fit: Núñez should get a chance to earn a high-leverage spot in the A’s bullpen.

ETA: 2025

No. 27 Kenya Huggins, RHP, High-A Lansing
Acquired in: Mason Miller/JP Sears trade with Padres
Pipeline scouting report: "A strong and athletic 6-foot-3 right-hander, Huggins has the chance to have a solid three-pitch mix. He’s always had a power arm and his fastball now averages better than 94 mph, touching 97. He backs up the heater with a hard slider he throws in the 86-91 mph range, and has decent feel for an 87-91 mph changeup, producing a 33 percent miss rate combined with Daytona in 2025." More >>

Organizational fit: Huggins provides starting pitching depth as one of four right-handers acquired at the Trade Deadline.

ETA: 2027