Where current (and former) top Dodgers prospects land in post-deadline rankings

The Dodgers' uncanny ability to keep an elite MLB roster while also having a deep farm system is showing itself again. While the big league club has started to catch fire (even though they haven't built much of a cushion in the standings), the players within the Dodgers' minor league system are still making an impact and impressing scouts across the league. Dodgers fans should feel very encouraged by new prospect rankings from MLB Pipeline and ESPN's Kiley McDaniel.

Both MLB Pipeline and McDaniel released updated prospect rankings earlier this week. Because the Dodgers did not make any blockbuster trades at the deadline this year, L.A.'s farm system looks as fresh as ever, featuring eight different prospects that rank in either MLB Pipeline's top 100 or McDaniel's top 105 rankings -- or, in some cases, both rankings. It is also worth noting some of the prospects that are not still with the Dodgers, and where they rank in their assessments as well, which speaks to the overall depth in the system. L.A. has retained so much talent, even after parting with other highly ranked names.

C/OF Dalton Rushing - Pipeline: No. 1 Dodgers prospect, No. 39 overall; ESPN: No. 1 Dodgers prospect, No. 16 overall

Rushing has been a fixture atop L.A's prospect rankings for the past few years, and it doesn't look like he's going anywhere anytime soon. Rushing posted an .890 OPS at Double-A Tulsa, prompting his recent promotion to Triple-A Oklahoma City. In an attempt to fast-track Rushing's bat to the big-leagues, he has been playing left field often in his first few weeks at Triple-!.

That positional versatility not only allows the Dodgers to keep Rushing in Triple-A alongside former top prospect Diego Cartaya, but it also gives Rushing a solution to the problem of being blocked by Will Smith and Austin Barnes. If Rushing can continue to get on base at a high clip through the end of the year (he has a career .413 OBP in the minors) and transitions well to left field, he could find his way onto the Opening Day MLB roster in 2025.

OF Josue De Paula - Pipeline: No. 2 Dodgers prospect, No. 49 overall; ESPN: No. 2 Dodgers prospect, No. 24 overall

It is still going to be a while before Dodgers fans get to see De Paula in L.A., considering he is still only 19 years old, but his stock continues to rise. De Paula posted an .835 OPS in Rancho Cucamonga, earning a promotion to High-A Great Lakes. Although he has not put everything together at that level yet (currently has a .625 OPS in 31 games), De Paula's plate discipline in high-A has been insane.

Despite having a .192 average, De Paula has a .356 OBP because out of 130 plate appearances, he has walked in 20% of those plate appearances (26 walks total). If De Paula can keep his plate discipline at this level while adding onto his frame and adding power into his game, he will eventually live up to the lofty expectations that evaluators have placed on him at such a young age.

RHP River Ryan - Pipeline: No. 3 Dodgers prospect, No. 65 overall; ESPN: No. 5 Dodgers prospect, No. 66 overall

At this point, River Ryan needs no introduction to Dodgers fans. Ryan has dazzled ever since he got the call-up for his major league debut on July 22. Unfortunately, Ryan will be out for the season with an injury (a common thread in his career so far), but that doesn't mean his reputation as a prospect is tarnished. Ryan will enter 2025 as one of the Dodgers' highest-rated prospects, despite missing next season as well, delaying the day when he'll be off prospect lists for good as an established big-leaguer (with more than four starts under his belt). Long-term, he will compete with other young pitchers like Emmet Sheehan, Landon Knack, and Nick Frasso for a spot in what looks like an absolutely stacked starting rotation once Shohei Ohtani returns to pitching.

SS Alex Freeland - Pipeline: No. 4 Dodgers prospect, No. 79 overall; ESPN: No. 4 Dodgers prospect, No. 56 overall

Freeland's name might not be a familiar one to Dodgers fans, as he barely snuck his way into the Dodgers' top 30 on MLB Pipeline by the end of 2023. But in 2024, Freeland has become a name worth knowing for Dodgers fans, as he has climbed three levels of the Dodgers system already. Freeland's 1.111 OPS in 23 games at High-A Rancho Cucamonga earned him a promotion to Double-A, where he posted a .792 OPS and 24 stolen bases in 74 games.

After that strong run in Double-A, Freeland earned his most recent promotion to Triple-A Oklahoma City, where he has played in eight games. A switch-hitting shortstop with a 60 arm grade and 55 fielding grade who hovers around a .750-.800 OPS while stealing 30+ bases per season in the minors is an extremely valuable prospect, even if the numbers might not jump off the page, and putting all of those tools together is what has caused this rise in prospect rankings for Freeland.

LHP Jackson Ferris - Pipeline: No. 5 Dodgers prospect, No. 90 overall, ESPN: NR

Ferris has long been a favorite in MLB Pipeline's rankings. This prospect update is the first time that Ferris has actually appeared in the top 100, but he has been the top-ranked lefty to not appear in the top 100 for a good bit of time. Ferris (along with fellow prospect Zyhir Hope) was acquired from the Chicago Cubs in the Michael Busch trade, and has had two impressive seasons in the minor leagues.

In Ferris' time with the Dodgers in 2024, he posted a 3.39 ERA in 20 starts (97.1 IP) with 10.9 strikeouts per nine innings at High-A Great Lakes, earning himself a promotion to Double-A Tulsa, where he owns an 0.84 ERA with nine strikeouts in his first 10.2 innings at that level. Ferris likely won't make it to the big leagues until a pitcher is injured in 2025, but he is a name to keep an eye on as a potential part of the 2026 starting rotation.

OF Eduardo Quintero - Pipeline: No. 9 Dodgers prospect, NR overall; ESPN: No. 3 Dodgers prospect, No. 46 overall

Quintero is another very young outfielder (only 18 years old) with a ton of upside, similar to Josue De Paula. Quintero does not have quite the same physical attributes as De Paula, but he makes up for any of those questions with pure on-field production. Quintero has played 111 total games in the minor leagues (105 in rookie ball and six at the A-ball level) so far, where he has combined for a .980 OPS, including an otherworldly .460 OBP. For context, that is only a few points lower than Aaron Judge's season OBP (.467).

Although Quintero only has eight home runs in those 111 games, he has 22 doubles and 11 triples, showing that he has some power in his bat. What might be even more impressive about Quintero is that he has stolen 51 bases already. His MLB ETA isn't until 2028, so Dodgers fans won't be seeing him in the big leagues any time soon, but looking at the stats, it's obvious to see why Kiley McDaniel is so high on Quintero. Frankly, it's a bit surprising to see him so low on Pipeline's list.

SS Emil Morales - Pipeline: No. 8 Dodgers prospect, NR overall; ESPN: No. 6 Dodgers prospect, No. 75 overall

Morales is one of four shortstops (also: Freeland, No. 7 prospect Joendry Vargas and No. 10 prospect Kellon Lindsey) within the Dodgers' top 10 prospects, according to MLB Pipeline, and ESPN's rankings are even more favorable towards him. Morales is just 17 years old with an MLB ETA of 2029, but the Dodgers clearly have a lot of faith in him, as they signed him to a $1.9 million bonus during international free agency. That faith is paying off so far in the minor leagues, as Morales has a 1.141 OPS with 13 home runs and nine doubles, along with 11 stolen bases, in his first 44 games in rookie ball.

LHP Justin Wrobleski - Pipeline: No. 6 Dodgers prospect, NR overall; ESPN: No. 7 Dodgers prospect, No. 105 overall

Technically, Wrobleski didn't make the top 100 list for either ESPN or MLB Pipeline. But because Kiley McDaniel lists a few prospects who just missed out on the top 100 and Wrobleski made that list, he deserves a mention here. Pipeline ranks Ferris above Wrobleski as the Dodgers' top left-handed pitching prospect, even after seeing Wrobleski's decent big-league cup of tea (4.05 ERA in four starts), but ESPN has Wrobleski above Ferris (who does not appear on ESPN's list at all). Wrobleski is always only an injury or two away from another big-league stint and, at this point, fans probably know his name.

Tigers C/1B Thayron Liranzo, Tigers SS Trey Sweeney, White Sox 2B Jeral Perez, White Sox INF Alexander Albertus - Pipeline/ESPN: NR

Even though none of these prospects are still in the Dodgers' system, it is always important to make sure L.A. didn't create another Oneil Cruz or Yordan Álvarez situation. So far, none of the four most important Dodgers prospects traded away at this year's deadline have made it onto any top 100 lists. Tharyon Liranzo is ranked as the Tigers' No. 6 prospect according to Pipeline, but only the top four Detroit prospects are ranked in the Top 100, meaning he is likely somewhere in the ballpark floating around the top 100, but thought of quite highly enough for that honor yet.

Despite a low ranking (No. 20 in Detroit's system), however, Trey Sweeney has been called up to make his big-league debut. All in all, the Dodgers still have one of the best farm systems in MLB, even after giving up some pieces to improve at the deadline.