Welcome to this week’s Big Movers in the weekly update of the RotoProspects Top 500.
The No. 1 riser is Samuel Basallo, a 19-year-old High-A catcher of the Orioles who has gone bonkers since coming off the 7-day injured list for a concussion – 11-for-19 with 5 homers, 2 doubles, 6 walks and 2 steals. Listed at 6-foot-3 and 180 pounds, Basallo has a well-chiseled physique that looks more like at least 200 pounds. In 25 games for Aberdeen, Basallo has put up a remarkable 1.091 OPS with 7 homers and 5 steals. The Dominican backstop posted an .887 OPS with 12 homers and 7 steals in 83 games in Low-A. Basallo may be blocked at catcher by Adley Rutschman in Baltimore, but he’s been seeing time at first base and DH, so the Orioles will find a way to get his bat in the lineup if he keeps mashing. With 60-grade power and surprising speed on the base paths, Basallo has us dreaming of 30 homers with a .270 average and a handful of steals in his prime. Punctuating a torrid stretch with a walk-off homer on Thursday, Basallo blasts up our rankings 64 spots to No. 49.
Next up is Justice Bigbie, a 24-year-old Triple-A outfielder of the Tigers who debuted in Triple-A on Thursday after combining for a .350/.411/.553 triple-slash with 18 homers and 6 steals between High-A and Double-A. The 6-foot-2, 200-pounder slipped under the radar coming out of Western Carolina, going in the 19th round in 2021 and reaching Triple-A in just over two years. Bigbie has an advanced hitting approach, spraying the ball with power to all fields. Bigbie skyrocketed up 69 spots to No. 226.
Luis Guanipa, a 17-year-old Dominican Summer League outfielder of the Braves who had an impressive pro debut with a .745 OPS, 4 homers and 20 steals in 46 games, leading to a 66-spot jump to No. 347.
Ryan Ritter, a 22-year-old Double-A shortstop of the Rockies who was promoted to Hartford on Wednesday after combining for 24 homers and 18 steals between Low-A and High-A, so he shoots up 61 spots to No. 348.
Ryan Bliss, a 23-year-old Triple-A second baseman/shortstop of the Mariners who has caught fire for Tacoma in September by going 12-for-20 with 3 homers and 6 steals to reach totals of 19 dingers and 50 bags over 2 levels on the season, and he jumps up 57 spots to No. 125.
Max Muncy, a 21-year-old Double-A shortstop of the Athletics who is starting to figure it out for Midland with an .819 OPS with 3 homers in 45 games, so he shoots up 56 spots to No. 314.
Kristian Robinson, a 22-year-old Low-A outfielder of the Diamondbacks who has a combined .853 OPS with 9 homers and 21 steals in 57 games after missing over 3 years dealing with off-the-field issues, so he jumps up 50 spots to No. 272.
Spencer Horwitz, a 25-year-old Blue Jays first baseman who is 6-for-20 for Toronto after putting up a .337/.450/.495 triple-slash in Triple-A, so he vaults up 50 spots to No. 393.
Tekoah Roby, a 21-year-old Double-A right-handed pitcher of the Cardinals who has a 3.00 ERA with 14 Ks in 9 IP since coming over from the Rangers in the Jordan Montgomery deal, leading to a 48-spot jump to No. 185.
Cory Lewis, a 22-year-old High-A right-handed pitcher of the Twins who has a combined 2.49 ERA with 118 strikeouts in 101.1 IP between Cedar Rapids and Low-A Fort Myers, and he shoots up 44 spots to No. 308.
Jace Bohrofen, a 21-year-old Low-A outfielder of the Blue Jays who has a 1.119 OPS with 6 homers in 17 games for Dunedin after going 184th overall in the draft, so he vaults up 41 spots to No. 433.
The biggest faller of the week is William Bergolla, an 18-year-old Low-A shortstop of the Phillies who is hitting for no impact with a .291 SLG while going just 2-for-7 on steal attempts, and he plummets 52 spots to No. 462.
The biggest risers inside the Top 100 besides Basallo are Blake Dunn, a 25-year-old Double-A outfielder of the Reds who has a combined .960 OPS with 22 homers and 52 steals between Chattanooga and High-A Dayton to jump 28 spots to No. 100, and Jace Jung, a 22-year-old Double-A second baseman of the Tigers who has a .997 OPS with 13 homers in 39 games for Erie to vault up 25 spots to No. 73.
The biggest faller of the week inside the Top 100 is Tyler Soderstrom, a 21-year-old Athletics catcher/outfielder who has a paltry .448 OPS in 30 games for Oakland – he drops 10 spots to No. 89.
Check back next week to see who the biggest movers are when our next update for the Top 500 Prospects comes out.