February is here and spring training is just about underway, which can mean only one thing around these parts: it’s time to rank minor-league prospects. Every team across the majors is selling hope to their fans: some are selling it in a more immediate fashion, in the form of active offseasons full of free-agent signings and trade acquisitions. Others, meanwhile, are selling it in the personage of prospects who could make the difference over the coming years.
CBS Sports continues examining the top three prospects in each organization. Our definition of “prospect” is simple: does that player have rookie eligibility remaining for the 2025 season? If so, they’re a prospect; if not, that’s probably why your favorite young player is absent from the proceedings.
As always, these lists are formed following conversations with scouts, analysts, player development specialists, and other talent evaluators around the industry. There’s a fair amount of firsthand evaluation, statistical analysis, and historical research mixed in, too. Plus a heaping of personal bias — we all have certain traits and profiles that we prefer over others, there’s no sense pretending otherwise.
Keep in mind that there’s no one right answer with these sorts of things. Besides, these are merely our opinions, meaning they have no actual bearing on the future. We already published our ranking of the top 25 prospects in all of the minors.
With all that out of the way, let’s get to ranking the top three prospects in the Los Angeles Dodgers system.
Top 25 rank: No. 22
The short hook: Will hit wherever he plays
Rushing has primarily served as a backstop during his professional career, making it notable that the Dodgers shifted him to left field on a nearly exclusive basis after promoting him to Triple-A. (Los Angeles, you may have heard, has a good catcher in place for the next nine years.) Rushing is the rare catching prospect with the bat to play far down the defensive spectrum. He’s an on-base machine who seldom expands his strike zone to chase bad pitches. He has more than enough juice to keep pitchers honest, too, having averaged a 90 mph exit velocity during his time in Triple-A. Rushing even had a minimal platoon split, posting an almost identical OPS against lefties and righties alike. He’s all but certain to play a role in the majors in 2025. Stay tuned to find out with which team and at what position. MLB ETA: Spring 2025
Top 25 rank: No. 25
The short hook: Teenage outfielder with room to grow
De Paula, one of our breakout picks last spring, validated the selection by hitting around 30% better than the league-average mark and walking nearly as often as he struck out across two levels of play. Not bad for someone who won’t celebrate his 20th birthday until late next May. De Paula still needs to tap into his above-average strength on a more reliable basis; he homered only 10 times total last season and he hit nearly 50% ground balls during his 52-game stint in High-A. He’s shown enough promise overall to merit a high ranking with the potential to make a big leap in 2025. MLB ETA: Late summer 2026
3. Zyhir Hope, OF
The short hook: Dynamic outfielder on the rise
The Dodgers obtained Hope as part of the trade that sent Michael Busch to the Cubs. Although he missed several months because of a shoulder injury, he nevertheless raised his stock in his first full professional season after being drafted in the 11th round out of a high school in Stafford, Va. Indeed, Hope hit .287/.415/.490 across 54 games in the Cal League in what doubled as his first experience outside of the complex league. He earns plus or better potential grades with both his power and speed tools, with the former allowing him to scorch a 110.6 mph home run during the Arizona Fall League — not bad for someone who only just turned 20 in January. He did strike out in nearly a quarter of his plate appearances, but he has immense upside if he can maintain some semblance of bat-to-ball skills as he moves up the ladder. MLB ETA: Spring 2027
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