This will be your weekly look at the hottest prospects in the system, highlighting the top performers at the plate and on the mound. Below is the hotlist for Week Eleven. Check out the previous week’s hotlist here.
Who’s Hot At The Plate?
Drew Brutcher – Brutcher, signed as an undrafted free agent in 2024, was one of the hottest hitters on the planet this week. The 24-year-old hit .542 with 6 doubles, 2 home runs and 14 runs batted in over 5 games. Brutcher is hitting .358 with 3 home runs and 23 runs batted in over 14 Double-A games.
Tyler Whitaker – Whitaker was drafted back in 2021 and is putting together his best professional season. Whitaker hit .478 with 2 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs and 8 runs batted in over 5 games. He has a .767 OPS over 45 games for the Hooks this season.
Lucas Spence – Spence had a breakout 2025 season but got off to a slow start this year. He has turned it on recently and this week over 6 games, Spence hit .481 with 3 doubles, a triple and 10 runs batted in. Spence is hitting .367 in June driving in 13 runs over 11 games.
Alejandro Nunez – Nunez continues to fly under the radar, but he put together a nice week for Asheville. Over six games for Asheville, Nunez hit .333 with 2 home runs and 4 runs batted in. Overall he has 9 home runs, 31 runs bated in and a .750 OPS over 47 games for Asheville.
Anthony Huezo – Huezo is an extra base hit machine, something we asked him about on the podcast, and he continued his torrid pace this week. In five games for the Woodpeckers he hit .364 with 4 doubles and a home run. He has a .886 with a system leading 17 doubles and 4 triples this season.
Joseph Sullivan – Like Spence, Sullivan had a breakout season last year but got off to a slow start this year. He hit .444 with 2 doubles, a triple and 6 runs batted in. Sullivan is up to .357 in June and has a .778 OPS with 11 home runs and 14 stolen bases overall this season.
Who’s Hot On The Mound?
Ethan Pecko – Pecko got off to a slow start this year with an injury but then got healthy and moved up to Triple-A, where he was up and down. This week he was rally good tossing 7 scoreless innings with 4 strikeouts. He has a 4.55 ERA in Triple-A and a 3.86 ERA overall this season.
Cole Hertzler – Hertzler has been the best pitcher in the system this year and this week he got a promotion to Double-A. He made one start for the Hooks and was solid allowing 1 run over 5 innings while striking out 2 batters. He has a 2.63 ERA with 66 K in 48 innings this season.
Nick Potter – Potter was drafted by the Astros in the 5th round of the 2025 draft and is looking like a nice selection. This week, the right-hander allowed 1 run over 5 innings with 3 strikeouts. He has a 2.18 ERA with 38 K in 33 innings this season allowing just 18 this overall.
Luis Rodriguez – Rodriguez has been up and down a bit this year but this is two weeks in a row for him. This week, Rodriguez went 6 innings allowing 2 runs while striking out 4. He’s allowed just 2 earned run over his last 12 innings.
TEAM ERA and OPS:
Sugar Land – From 5.25 ERA to 5.00 ERA – From .686 OPS to .681 OPS
Corpus Christi – From 4.80 ERA to 4.93 ERA – From .689 OPS to .730 OPS
Asheville – From 7.93 ERA to 7.94 ERA – From .817 OPS to .804 OPS
Fayetteville – From 4.65 ERA to 4.63 ERA – From .721 OPS to .719 OPS
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