Latest news with #prospect
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Lightning Prospect Invited To Team Canada's World Junior Summer Showcase Camp; Unable To Attend
Recently acquired and now top Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Sam O'Reilly has been invited to Team Canada's World Junior Summer Showcase camp, but is unable to attend.
New York Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Dodgers slated to call up infield prospect Alex Freeland: Source
CINCINNATI – The Los Angeles Dodgers are set to call up infielder Alex Freeland, a league source told The Athletic, shoring up their position player group and bringing the club's most promising middle infield prospect to the majors. The 23-year-old, who was the Dodgers' third round selection in 2023, has been one of the club's most intriguing prospects for quite some time and put together a promising start to his first full season at Triple A, hitting .253/.377/.421 in 453 plate appearances while mostly playing shortstop and third base. Freeland was the No. 68-ranked prospect on the preseason edition of Keith Law's top 100 list. Advertisement The Dodgers have been seeking different ways to upgrade their position player group going into Thursday's trade deadline, but have been reluctant to include either Freeland or catcher Dalton Rushing in potential deals, The Athletic reported last week. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said as much publicly with Rushing on Monday, saying, 'I just don't see a world in which he's moved.' Instead of moving Freeland, the Dodgers are calling up the switch-hitter as an internal solution. The club has been in need of another versatile option of late due to injuries. Max Muncy's bone bruise in his left knee has essentially forced Tommy Edman and Miguel Rojas – two of their switchable infield types – to share third base duties. Muncy is expected back sooner than originally anticipated and will start a rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Oklahoma. There's even an outside shot that he's active this coming weekend in Tampa. The team has also been without Kiké Hernández, who injured his left elbow in late May and was placed on the injured list in July. There's no clear timetable for his return. Hernández has still been dealing with discomfort, Roberts said, so much so that he's undergone a pair of non-surgical 'procedures' to help alleviate pain in the area. Bringing Freeland to the majors can help make the pieces on the big league roster fit a bit cleaner, and perhaps open Edman up to play some more outfield as the team evaluates its options.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Who is Sal Stewart? Reds' minor-leaguer named to 2025 MLB Futures Game roster
He's only 21, but there's already considerable excitement about Cincinnati Reds infield prospect Sal Stewart. Stewart and catcher Alfredo Duno were the two Reds' minor-leaguers named to the 2025 MLB All-Star Futures Game roster. Stewart ranks No. 3 among MLB Pipeline's top Reds' prospects, and 52nd in MLB. In April, Stewart hit a walk-off grand slam in the first game of a doubleheader for Double-A Chattanooga against the Birmingham Barons. In February, Stewart hit a pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning of the Reds' Cactus League win against the Dodgers, his first homer in big-league camp. Through 71 games this season for the Lookouts, Stewart is batting .327 with nine homers, 13 stolen bases and an OPS of .889 in 292 plate appearances. What to know about Stewart: Stewart hasn't struck out much in the minors. Many young prospects strike out a lot. Stewart walked more than he struck out in 518 plate appearances between Low-A Daytona and High-A Dayton in 2023. And last season he walked 50 times with just 57 strikeouts in 338 plate appearances for the Dragons. This season, Stewart has 86 hits and 47 strikeouts. A wrist injury limited Stewart to 80 games in 2024. Among highlights at Dayton last season: Stewart helped the Dragons to a win against the Great Lakes Loons in June with a two-run, 454-foot home run that broke a 2-2 tie. Stewart batted .279 with eight homers, 46 RBIs, 10 stolen bases and an OPS of .844 at Dayton. He was named the Reds' minor-league player of the month for May. The Reds selected Stewart in the first round of the 2022 MLB draft. Stewart was a compensation pick for Nick Castellanos departing via free agency. Stewart was the 32nd overall pick in 2022, out of Westminster Christian School in Miami, Florida. Westminster Christian's best-known Major League Baseball alum is Alex Rodriguez. Stewart has trained with former Red Yonder Alonso and Manny Machado in Miami. Stewart has called Machado one of his closest friends. The Reds took Stewart's teammate, Cam Collier, 18th overall in 2022. Defensively, Stewart has split time between second and third base. This season, Stewart has played 59 games at third base, and just four at second base. In 2024, Stewart played at second base in 36 games (313 innings). He played at third base in 33 games (288 innings). In 2023 at Low-A Daytona, Stewart played 45 games at third, and just eight games at second. Stewart had committed to Vanderbilt when the Reds drafted him. Stewart opted to sign with Cincinnati out of high school, which included a $2,100,000 bonus. Stewart had 30 home runs and 31 doubles in 91 varsity games in high school. He was a co-champion of the 2021 high school Home Run Derby in Colorado, including one homer he hit 533 feet with a metal bat. Stewart also played basketball in high school. "Stewart's advanced approach has been apparent from day one of his pro career," MLB Pipeline's Stewart profile reads. "He makes a lot of hard contact and can send line drives to all fields consistently against all kinds of pitching. Just 21 for all of this season, he's still learning to tap into his considerable raw power, with confidence it will come without him losing any of his hitability." This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Sal Stewart, Reds minor-leaguer, named to 2025 MLB Futures Game roster
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Anton Frondell Won't Be At World Junior Summer Showcase for Sweden
At first, Chicago Blackhawks prospect Anton Frondell was named to the World Junior Summer Showcase as a representative of Team Sweden. After becoming the third overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, Frondell is considered to be one of Sweden's best young players.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Sport
- CTV News
Blue Jays top prospect Arjun Nimmala focused on growth, consistency in Vancouver
Vancouver Canadians shortstop Arjun Nimmala fields the ball during the fourth inning of a Northwest Minor League Baseball game against the Eugene Emeralds in Vancouver on Wednesday, July 23, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns VANCOUVER — Arjun Nimmala has learned a lot this year. As the No. 1 prospect for the Toronto Blue Jays, he's been figuring out what it takes to be a professional athlete while playing shortstop for the team's High-A affiliate, the Vancouver Canadians. As a 19-year-old living more than 5,000 kilometres away from his parents' home in Valrico, Fla., he's been figuring out how to take care of himself. 'There was a little bit of an adjustment period, learning how to do things on my own,' Nimmala said with a smile. Cooking was one hurdle the teen had to overcome. In recent months, he's learned how to make a few staples, including fried rice. A more intangible hurdle has been learning how to stay locked in on the day-to-day amid a whirlwind of speculation and excitement about his future. Staying focused isn't easy, Nimmala said. 'It's definitely hard. It's definitely something that you have to consistently make an effort for,' he said. 'You could definitely get lost in what people are saying, stats, all that stuff. And for an athlete, for a baseball player, those aren't the best things to be looking at. 'The better I can stay focused on what I can do in the present, the better I'll be on the field as well.' Few Canadians players feel the glare of the spotlight the way Nimmala has this season. At No. 46 on the MLB's list of the 100 top prospects, it's not only the shortstop's performance on the field that has grabbed headlines, but his story. Nimmala's parents immigrated from India to the U.S. before he was born, and when Toronto picked the teen 20th overall at the 2023 draft, it marked the first time an MLB team selected a first-generation Indian player in the first round. 'Going into it, I've always just tried to be the best player I can be and impact the team in the best way,' he said. 'But over time, my family and I, we've learned a lot of what it means to become the first or a trailblazer in some sort of way. For us, it's just making people proud while also getting better on the baseball field.' After spending last season with the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays in the Florida State League, Nimmala has shown major potential since moving up to Vancouver this year. The six-foot-one, 170-pound athlete boasts a .232 batting average across 84 games, is tied for most runs on the team (55) and slots in at second for most home runs (11). June was a stellar month for the Canadians, who chalked up a franchise-record 11-straight wins, with Nimmala contributing big hits in several games, including Vancouver's 8-4 victory over the Spokane Indians on June 11 when he blasted a three-run homer into the bullpen. Solid showings have been harder to come by in recent weeks, though. And that's part of the learning process, too, Nimmala said. 'I think we all know that recently, I haven't been the same or as good of a player as I was earlier this season. And that's just part of baseball. But it's also that I need to find ways to make adjustments and be better on the field as well,' he said. 'I think that comes with more experience and learning who I am, what guys are going to do against me. It's a lot of the little things that you can overlook that really make players really good.' During both his success and his struggles, Nimmala turns back to his family. They're home in Florida, where his dad, Balu Nimmala, stays up late to keep tabs on his son's play. 'He watches the games, even though it's like one o'clock back there. I'm like 'Bro, you should go to sleep,'' Nimmala said with another broad smile. 'But he's like, 'Just keep doing what you're doing, it's working, whether you're getting the results or not. Just trust who you are, what type of player you are, and just do things right.' So listening to him and knowing what I need to do are things that help me.' With just over a month left in the Northwest League's regular season, the Canadians are still looking to clinch a playoff spot. And Nimmala is still learning how to be a better baseball player, a better professional athlete. Those lessons only come with time, he said. 'I think one of the biggest things in growth, at least in baseball, is just experience. Whether it's taking more reps or more pitches, there's only so much you can learn from hitting (batting practice) and things like that. The real test is what you do out there,' said the highly touted prospect. 'It's in these very high-pressure situations, especially when we're trying to win and clinch and go out there and make playoffs, I think that's where you're going to get better.' For Nimmala, the learning has just begun. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 25, 2025. Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press
