*In an effort to make the nomination voting easier for everyone, I will comment, “NOMINATIONS”, and you may reply to that with your picks and upvote the player you’d like to see on the next nominee list.
We’ve officially finished the top-20 prospects in the Athletics system. This was where we were planning to end this series but due to high demand and a few weeks left until Opening Day, we’re set to continue our CPL for at least around five rounds of voting. So get ready for a few more votes!
The player
that rounds out the top-20 prospects in the system according to A’s fans is righty Kade Morris. The 23-year-old was the return piece the A’s received back in exchange for former All-Star Paul Blackburn. He just wrapped up his first full season in the Athletics’ system, first beginning at Double-A and pitching well there before a promotion to the final stop in the minors. His time with the Aviators went a bit tougher than his time in Midland but hopefully a full year at Triple-A can further his development. Like many of the names on our CPL Morris could be an option for the A’s as soon as this upcoming season.
We have our first reliever taking a spot among the nominees as right-hander Eduarniel Nunez gets the nod to replace Morris in the next round of voting. One of the return pieces the A’s got back from the Padres in exchange for Mason Miller and JP Sears, Nunez comes with a big fastball and wicked slider than should make him a force in the backend of the bullpen… if he can learn to harness his two-pitch repertoire. If he can manage to do that the A’s could have their future closer already on hand.
The process for this public vote is explained below. Please take a moment to read this before participating:
- Please only vote for one. The player with the most votes at the end of voting will win the ranked spot. The remaining four players move on to the next ballot where they are joined by a new nominee.
- In the comments, below the official voting, the community will nominate players to be put onto the ballot for the next round. The format for your comment should be “Nomination: Player Name”.
- If a prospect is traded, his name will be crossed out, and all other players will be moved up a space. If a prospect is acquired, a special vote will be put up to determine where that player should rank.
Click on the link here to vote!
* * *
A’s fans top prospects, ranked:
- Leo De Vries, SS
- Jamie Arnold, LHP
- Gage Jump, LHP
- Wei-En Lin, LHP
- Braden Nett, RHP
- Henry Bolte, OF
- Johenssy Colome, SS
- Edgar Montero, SS
- Steven Echavarria, RHP
- Devin Taylor, OF
- Mason Barnett, RHP
- Tommy White, 3B
- Henry Baez, RHP
- Zane Taylor, RHP
- Cole Miller, RHP
- Gunnar Hoglund, RHP
- Shotaro Morii, SS/RHP
- Junior Perez, OF
- Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, SS
- Kade Morris, RHP
The voting continues! Time to vote for the 19th-best in the system everyone. Here’s a quick rundown on each nominee— the scouting grades (on a 20-to-80 scale) and scouting reports come from MLB Pipeline.
Nominees on the current ballot:
Eduarniel Nunez, RHP
Expected level: Triple-A/Majors | Age: 26
2025 stats (AA/AAA): 2.51 ERA, 39 appearances, 46 2/3 IP, 71 K, 25 BB, 2 HR, 2.90 FIP
2025 stats (Majors): 7.11 ERA, 10 appearances, 12 2/3 IP, 11 K, 11 BB, 2 HR, 6.77 FIP
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:
Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 70 | Control: 40 | Overall: 40
Pitching exclusively out of the stretch, Núñez has the goal to blow both of his pitches past batters, starting with a 97-99 mph heater that has touched as high as 101.4 mph in front of Statcast this season. It’s pure velo over movement here, and Núñez gets minimal extension under six feet (allowing batters to see the fastball a little longer), but it’s still enough to make for an uncomfortable at-bat. The Dominican Republic native’s upper-80s slider is an even better pitch, getting good depth while still being thrown hard, and it’s posted whiff and chase rates above 40 percent in the Minors during Núñez’s time in the San Diego system. Plenty of left-handed hitters have been fooled by the breaking ball too, but without a quality changeup, Núñez has drastic handedness splits.
Núñez’s desire to show explosive stuff can lead to inconsistencies in his delivery, and while his control numbers were much-improved with the Padres, he’s still likely to have issues locating routinely in the Majors. But there’s no doubt his electric arsenal is a quality find for a big league bullpen.
A.J. Causey, RHP
Expected level: Double-A | Age: 23
2025 stats (A+/AA): 1.72 ERA, 48 appearances, 73 1/3 IP, 75 K, 18 BB, 0 HR, 2.28 FIP
Causey thrives with a fastball that hovers around 90 mph, but that’s because he has a funky sidearm delivery that helps him get crazy movement and deception with his arsenal. Causey excelled in his first full pro season, posting a 1.72 ERA across High-A Quad Cities and Double-A Northwest Arkansas. He’s a fast mover with a different look that could add to the Royals’ bullpen in the coming years.
Causey began the year with a sinker, changeup and sweeper, but he added a four-seam fastball this season to help him at the top of the zone. After years of working on adding a cutter, Causey finally found something that works with the four-seamer.
Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, RHP
Expected level: Double-A | Age: 25
2025 stats (AA): 4.08 ERA, 26 starts (28 appearances), 145 2/3 IP, 145 K, 35 BB, 22 HR, 4.19 FIP
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:
Scouting grades: Fastball: 45 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 550 | Control: 55 | Overall: 40
Zhuang relies heavily on his four-seam fastball, which can touch 95 mph but normally hovers in the 90-93 range. He also throws a low-80s split-finger offering with good diving action. His arsenal is rounded out by a low-80s slider, a mid-70s curveball with good bend and a low-80s changeup.
Zhuang does have a history of injuries, which brings some real concern as to whether he can hold up as a starter despite having the necessary pitch mix for the role. He can command it well, as evidenced by his low walk numbers. For now, the A’s are enjoying watching the rise of the man many in the organization have nicknamed ‘Z-Man.’ He is firmly on their prospect radar, and his age could actually help him move up quickly if the success continues.
Gavin Turley, OF
Expected level: A+ | Age: 22
2025 stats (A): 125 PA, .243/.336/.430, 8 doubles, 0 triples, 4 HR, 20 RBI, 14 BB, 34 K, 0 SB
MLB Pipeline grades and scouting report:
Scouting grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 60 | Run: 55 | Arm: 60 | Field: 50 | Overall: 45
In some ways, Turley is the same player he was post-high school, a veritable toolshed with some concerns about him using those tools consistently. He might have had as much raw power as anyone in his Draft class, with some scouts hanging a 70 on it. He can drive the ball for extra bases anywhere with prodigious home run pop thanks to outstanding bat speed, and he was showing more ability to hit the ball out the other way this spring. There has long been the question about whether he’ll hit enough to get to that power. He had a 36 percent miss rate in 2024 with the Beavers, leading to a 27.3 percent strikeout rate, and while he’s improved those rates this season, including his propensity to chase breaking stuff, the swing-and-miss is still a concern. He does draw a ton of walks to help offset that.
Turley has above-average speed, though he hasn’t used it to be a basestealing threat. His athleticism does help him in the outfield, where his easily plus arm is also an asset. He’s played more left field than anywhere else and he should fit nicely as a corner outfielder in pro ball.
Yunior Tur, RHP
Expected level: Triple-A | Age: 26
2025 stats (A+/AA/AAA): 3.29 ERA, 26 starts (30 appearances), 125 2/3 IP, 130 K, 60 BB, 7 HR, 3.79 FIP
Tur is 26 but only signed with the A’s before the 2023 season after several seasons pitching in the Serie Nacional in Cuba. He started almost all of last year, going from High A to Triple A, although I think he’s a straight reliever. He comes straight over the top, sitting 96 with some ride along with a 55 splitter and a low-90s cutter that doesn’t miss many bats. The slider is fringy and he’s very north-south because of the arm slot. He could pitch in the big-league bullpen right now.
* * *
Programming Note: Each CPL vote will run for around 48 hours, so don’t delay in making your
