UFLB Reveals Much Anticipated Top Prospects List for Upcoming Auction
Updated: Feb 2, 2022
For months UFLB franchises and scouts have been guessing what names would appear on the Top Prospects List from UFLB Director of Scouting Bryan Hernandez, and today they get to open that present like it’s Christmas day!
Hernandez has been compiling and tweaking his list for several months and today released the 142 players that will be available for franchises and scouts to select in the one-time Top Prospects Auction slated for Saturday, February 19 through Monday, February 21. This initial event for the UFLB launch will see franchises and scouts bidding on draft spots and selecting their preferred prospects from the list provided by Hernandez. The winning bidder will immediately select their prospect within the auction room.

“Putting this list together has been a real passion project and it was a balance of not only finding the right players, but the right number, which came down to 142,” said Hernandez.
The list consists of some of the top prospects who are part of MLB organizations but have yet to play a big-league game, and it will be exciting to see how competitive the bidding gets.
“February 19th is going to be a great day when the auction begins. I can think back to past auctions in other sports and a lot of money was spent on the future of the game,” said UFFS Head of Baseball Dean Millard. “This is a big deal for UFLB, as only $25 dollars from each auction spot goes to the platform, the rest all goes to the prize pool and gives it a massive boost.”

Some of the prospects are 2021 draft picks and could take a while to reach UFLB rosters, but Hernandez is confident there will be a decent number of players who will see time in the majors — and in UFLB — this season.
“There are definitely guys who will play in the big leagues this year — when is the big question,” mused Hernandez. “We only saw Wander Franco for 70 games last season, so I think we’ll see guys make the jump, but whether or not they can make a big impact in Year 1 is a question nobody has the answer to right now.”
Of the 142 prospects, 50 are pitchers meaning UFLB franchises and scouts will have a lot of options when it comes to position players and hitters as well as the games next best arms.
"Shortstops, Corner Base players and Pitchers are the top three positions. Baseball teams seem to love shortstops as well as a lot of these players are playing that position."
Hernandez won’t reveal who he thinks are the best players on his list, but the long-time Dodger fan does admit to having some favourites among the 142 top prospects.
“I’ll be cheering a little harder when certain players get selected, that’s for sure,” chuckled Hernandez, who will be the man in charge of the three-day auction.

Overall, Hernandez’s list will provide franchises a chance to fill some protected spots, whether that is with players knocking on the door of UFLB or prospects who will take more time to develop. Scouts will also have to make that choice, as any scout bidding on a player who is close to making the big leagues must realize the potential for a forced auction when the player is no longer rookie eligible. Franchises can trigger forced auctions when a scout-owned player reaches 130 career at-bats, 50 innings pitched, or 45 days accumulated on an MLB team’s 26-man active roster.
“It’s quite a gamble to try and outbid all 30 franchises for a player who is close to being ready, as the turnaround time to a forced auction could be quick, and that could impact the ROI the scout is looking for,” explained Millard. “I expect franchises to be the most active while scouts will try and go after some of the guys who can up their value and raise their stock over the next 2-3 years before being sold to franchises.”

The starting bid for each spot will be $25 USD worth of SCO, and in the rare case of no bids on a spot, any remaining players would go to the Open Market following the Futures Auction (March 26-28) and the International Free Agent Auction (April 2). Any leftovers and the best of the rest will be available on the Open Market for a flat rate of $20 USD worth of SCO, which is where scouts are able to register players on a first-come, first-serve basis. Finders keepers!
Please reach out to Bryan Hernandez (Bryan_UFLB@UFFSports.com) for more information. Franchises and scouts will need to register with Bryan ahead of these auctions.
Without further ado, here is the list of 142 players for the UFLB Top Prospects Auction:
P Grayson Rodriguez – Baltimore Orioles
SS Jordan Groshans – Toronto Blue Jays
P Daniel Espino – Cleveland Guardians
2B Nick Gonzales – Pittsburgh Pirates
CF Alek Thomas – Arizona Diamondbacks
C/DH Gabriel Moreno – Toronto Blue Jays
P MacKenzie Gore – San Diego Padres
OF Garrett Mitchell – Milwaukee Brewers
P Ryan Rolison – Colorado Rockies
SS Noelvi Marte – Seattle Mariners
P Max Meyer – Miami Marlins
1B/3B Spencer Torkelson – Detroit Tigers
P Jordan Balazovic – Minnesota Twins
P Riley Greene – Detroit Tigers
SS Greg Jones – Tampa Bay Rays
SS Bobby Witt Jr – Kansas City Royals
SS Oswald Peraza – New York Yankees
P Mick Abel – Philadelphia Phillies
OF Michael Harris – Atlanta Braves
3B Brett Baty – New York Mets
SS Anthony Volpe – New York Yankees
SS Marco Luciano – San Francisco Giants
P Ryan Pepiot – Los Angeles Dodgers
3B Michael Busch – Los Angeles Dodgers
3B Jordan Walker – St Louis Cardinals
OF Heliot Ramos – San Francisco Giants
P Nick Lodolo – Cincinnati Reds
OF JJ Bleday – Miami Marlins
OF Julio Rodriguez – Seattle Mariners
OF Jasson Dominguez – New York Yankees
P Asa Lacy – Kansas City Royals
C Shea Langelier – Atlanta Braves
OF Robert Hassell – San Diego Padres
INF Nolan Jones – Cleveland Guardians
SS Orelvis Martinez – Toronto Blue Jays
SS Ronny Mauricio – New York Mets
C Tyler Soderstrom – Oakland Athletics
P George Kirby – Seattle Mariners
SS Xavier Edwards – Tampa Bay Rays
P Matthew Liberatore – St Louis Cardinals
CF Corbin Carroll – Arizona Diamondbacks
SS Liover Peguero – Pittsburgh Pirates
P Emerson Hancock – Seattle Mariners
CF Austin Martin – Minnesota Twins
CF Brennen Davis – Chicago Cubs
3B Nolan Gorman – St Louis Cardinals
P Hunter Greene – Cincinnati Reds
OF George Valera – Cleveland Guardians
C/DH Francisco Alvarez – New York Mets
OF Drew Waters – Atlanta Braves
CF Luis Matos – San Francisco Giants
SS CJ Abrams – San Diego Padres
2B Justin Foscue – Texas Rangers
SS/2B Tyler Freeman – Cleveland Guardians
2B Nick Yorke – Boston Red Sox
OF Zac Veen – Colorado Rockies
SS Bryson Stott – Philadelphia Phillies
P Cade Cavalli – Washington Nationals
1B Nick Pratto – Kansas City Royals
P Kyle Harrison – San Francisco Giants
P Bobby Miller – Los Angeles Dodgers
1B Triston Casas – Boston Red Sox
C Diego Cartaya – Los Angeles Dodgers
C/DH MJ Melendez – Kansas City Royals
3B Josh Jung – Texas Rangers
OF Andy Pages – Los Angeles Dodgers
SS Gabriel Arias – Cleveland Guardians
P DL Hall – Baltimore Orioles
SS/3B Gunnar Henderson – Baltimore Orioles
P Quinn Priester – Pittsburgh Pirates
SS Royce Lewis – Minnesota Twins
P Cole Winn – Texas Rangers
C Adley Rutschman – Baltimore Orioles
C Henry Davis – Pittsburgh Pirates
P Jack Leiter – Texas Rangers
P Jackson Jobe – Detroit Tigers
SS Marcelo Mayer – Boston Red Sox
OF Colton Cowser – Baltimore Orioles
SS Jordan Lawlar – Arizona Diamondbacks
P Frank Mozzicato – Kansas City Royals
OF Benny Montgomery – Colorado Rockies
P Sam Bachman – Los Angeles Angels
SS Brady House – Washington Nationals
C Harry Ford – Seattle Mariners
P Andrew Painter – Philadelphia Phillies
P Will Bednar – San Francisco Giants
OF Sal Frelick – Milwaukee Brewers
SS Kahlil Watson – Miami Marlins