Competition is rife in the National League Central with five clubs perpetually jockeying to dethrone one another. A consistent factor in determining who does that? Prospect development. These top performers have a uniquely NL Central bent and it’s no surprise, given that the division accounts for 23 of the Top

There was a little bit of everything during a productive full slate of Minor League action. Top 100 prospects Chase Burns and Trey Yesavage made good first impressions at new levels while two of the sport's brightest young stars -- JJ Wetherholt and Braden Montgomery -- came through when their

Like his prior stay, Chase Burns wasn't bound long for Double-A. MLB's No. 11 prospect was promoted to Triple-A Louisville on Sunday, MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo confirmed. Burns, the No. 3 right-handed pitching prospect, posted a 1.29 ERA, 0.71 WHIP and 11.79 K/9 in 42 innings for Double-A Chattanooga.

When the No. 1 prospect in baseball demolishes a 497-foot grand slam, we can’t really bury the lead. Beyond Roman Anthony’s eye-popping home run prowess, a swath of 2024 Draft picks starred up and down the Minors, particularly first-rounders. Plus, there was a no-hitter! Did we mention it includes chicken

As the third month of the baseball season begins, the sample sizes for prospects continue to expand. The MLB Pipeline crew is taking the opportunity to dig a little deeper to highlight players who are balling out, but might still be flying under-the-radar. On the latest MLB Pipeline Podcast, Jim

As temperatures continue to heat up, so have top prospects across the sport. Multiple top hitters kicked off June by sending baseballs out of the yard. Although dominated by a handful of sluggers, Sunday's top performers also featured a few rising arms turning the corner in 2025.

This story was excerpted from Mark Sheldon’s Reds Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

It was a grand Saturday for one of baseball's Top 100 prospects, who ended the month on a home run heater ... but he wasn't alone. A teenager cycled in the desert, another continued tearing things up in Florida and a quartet of hurlers were in total command on the

CHICAGO -- First, former All-Star closer Alexis Díaz was unable to fix his issues on the mound in the big leagues for the Reds. Then, Díaz couldn't turn things around while at Triple-A. On Thursday, Cincinnati felt there was only one avenue left for Díaz and traded him to the

The top performers roundup is always about big games, but to crack Sunday's list, they had to be real big, and a lot of them came courtesy of really big prospects. Three-homer game? Yep. Record strikeouts for your first seven outs of the game? Yep. Make Triple-A look easy? Another

Making the jump to Double-A is difficult for any prospect and that can particularly apply to pitchers. But Chase Burns has made it look easy. The latest outing for MLB’s No. 11 prospect backed up that premise as Burns racked up a career-high 10 strikeouts over five innings in Chattanooga's

CINCINNATI – A big setback for Reds prospect Rhett Lowder during his rehab assignment could put the starting pitcher out for an even longer period of time. Lowder was diagnosed with a left oblique strain after he exited his rehab start for Triple-A Louisville on Thursday. He went for an

As the end of May draws near and we recognize the 2025 Draft is less than two months away, it's hard not to catch Draft fever. We'll be talking about it more and more as the big event draws near. Sometimes, you don't even realize it enters into your thinking.

Lovers of the long ball had a lot to feast upon in Thursday's Minor League action. Angels 2024 first-rounder Christian Moore continued his torrid start at Triple-A while a pair of catchers -- the O's Samuel Basallo and the Kyle Teel of the White Sox -- both cleared the fences

There were plenty of notable names coming through with primetime performances as another week of Minor League action got underway. Red Sox phenom Roman Anthony continued to trek toward Boston, Reds 2024 first-rounder Chase Burns dominated and a pair of newly promoted Top 100 prospects -- Blue Jays hurler Trey

This story was excerpted from Mark Sheldon’s Reds Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CINCINNATI -- Pitcher Rhett Lowder's rehab assignment has moved up a couple of levels. The Reds' No. 2 prospect's third start in the Minors was scheduled for Friday for Triple-A Louisville, but the scheduled contest at Indianapolis was postponed due to weather, moving Lowder's appearance to one of the games

A pair of Top 100 heavyweights led the charge on Wednesday, with Max Clark and Chase Burns lighting up the High-A Midwest League. But the star-studded performances didn't stop there. A pair of Texas prospects -- one an Astro, the other a Ranger -- enjoyed huge offensive afternoons before ending

HOUSTON -- Chase Petty saw some improvements in his second Major League start Sunday, but the 22-year-old rookie right-hander knows he still has work to do moving forward. Petty (Cincinnati’s No. 6 prospect) surrendered four runs while pitching into the fourth inning of the Reds’ 6-0 loss to the Astros

On a night in which two Top 100 prospects made noise on the mound, a 24-year-old backstop in the High-A Midwest League might have stolen the spotlight by connecting on not one but a pair of grand slams. There was no shortage of action around the Minors, including a teenager

On Wednesday, MLB.com Reds beat reporter Mark Sheldon held his first Ask Me Anything on Reddit with Reds fans at r/Reds. This mailbag features questions and answers from there. The full AMA can be read here.

A handful of baseball's top prospects flexed their muscles on Tuesday, kicking off another week of Minor League action in a loud way. Jac Caglianone, Braden Montgomery and Colby Thomas all left the yard twice, but pitchers did their parts too. Unhittable Chase Petty put together one of the best

ATLANTA -- After being involved in a scary crash into the wall on Monday night that resulted in a broken left forearm, rookie left fielder/second baseman Tyler Callihan had successful surgery in Cincinnati on Tuesday prior to the Reds' 2-1 loss in 10 innings to the Braves at Truist Park.

ATLANTA -- A near no-hitter? A scoreless defeat to the Braves? That took a backseat for the Reds on Monday night after a gruesome injury for rookie left fielder Tyler Callihan. During the 4-0 loss at Truist Park, where Cincinnati notched one hit, Callihan suffered a broken left forearm from

This story was excerpted from Mark Sheldon’s Reds Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.