One Prospect Outside the Top 20 for NL Teams

Whittling prospect lists down to just 20 names is a tough task. There are players who have the skills to crack the list, but for one reason or another they miss. Whatever the reason is, there are still prospects to know beyond the list. Every year there are players across all organizations that take big steps forward and climb up these lists.

The goal here is to identify who those prospects could be. A team of evaluators have sifted through the prospects outside of the top 20 prospect lists for each NL team to identify one player to keep an eye on. These players could have standout tools that could some refinement, and for many of them even a small step forward could cause them to shoot up team prospect lists in a hurry.

There was only one rule here for the evaluators to follow and that was the prospect couldn't be on the active list. Other than that, it was free reign.

2026 Team Prospect Lists - Prospects LiveProspects LiveProspects Live Staff

NL East

Braves: LHP Landon Beidelschies

Landon Beidelschies was one of the better left-handed arms in the 2025 draft. After two seasons at Ohio State, where he emerged as one of the top starters in the Big Ten as a sophomore, he transferred to Arkansas before his junior season. He pitched well, highlighted by an impressive College World Series outing against LSU to end his college career.

It’s a low-to-mid-90s fastball and a low-to-mid-80s slider he can shape to backfoot right-handers or sweep away from lefties. He leaned heavily on that two-pitch combo in college. The Braves will look to develop the changeup further (looked like he was griping a kick-change in his pro debut) and potentially find the rare curveball he used in college to round out the arsenal.

Beidelschies struck out hitters in college, with the whiff potential in his fastball and slider that should continue in pro ball. If the rest of the arsenal doesn’t come along, there’s still a foundation here for a quality lefty bullpen piece. He’s a big-bodied arm with a directional, easy-flowing delivery. Atlanta will aim for a slight velocity uptick while continuing to develop him as a starter. The fastball-slider combination, paired with his physicality and operation, makes him a pitching prospect to monitor as he builds innings in 2026.

-Brandon Tew

Landon Beidelschies, Wicked Sliders. 🤢 pic.twitter.com/vHT4SpUD9O

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 19, 2025

Marlins: SS Luis Arana

After a standout performance last year in the DSL, Luis Arana was a pretty easy pick for this list. As a 17-year-old he hit .297 with more walks than strikeouts to go along with five homers and 28 stolen bases. For those who follow the people who routinely cover the DSL, Arana was a name that came up early and often because he seemed to be pretty consistently performing throughout the season.

The switch hitter is working from a listed 5’10” frame. Arana has shown the ability to get bat to ball from both sides of the plate. Beyond that, he has some power that is already showing up in games. He spent his time defensively split between shortstop and third base, so seems the Marlins are planning to develop him on that side of the infield. Arana will be 18-years-old for all of the 2026 season, so he may be on track to make his stateside debut very soon.

-Trevor Hooth

Mets: OF Edward Lantigua

A popular breakout pick ahead of 2026 is Edward Lantigua, and it’s a hard one to refute. On the Complex last year, at 18-years-old he walked more than he struck out en route to a .288/.433/.399 slash line. The counting stats don’t stand out, with three home runs and 13 steals from the outfielder. Still, with the development machine the Mets seemingly acquired overnight there’s a lot to like here.

He operates with a small leg kick with a smooth swing from the right side. If he can continue to put his hit tool to work while continuing to build on the frame, there’s a lot of potential for him to become a very good prospect for the Mets. It’s a corner outfield profile and right now it’s very much hit-over-power with potential for more. Lantigua has proved what he needs to prove on the Complex, so he should start 2026 in Single-A.

-Trevor Hooth

One of my favorite swings from the DSL ASG belonged to #Mets outfielder Edward Lantigua, who put a charge into a mid-90s FB here. pic.twitter.com/5XbAL4BVkG

— Josh Norris 🐻 (@jnorris427) July 23, 2024

Phillies: OF Raylin Heredia

Back in 2021 the Phillies signed Raylin Heredia as part of their 2021 class. He’s worked slowly up the ladder, spending last season in High-A where he hit .285 with seven homers and five steals. Strikeouts have long been a part of his game, but was able to cut it down to 25 percent last year from over 30 percent the season prior. Heredia did more than enough to believe that Double-A is in his 2026 plans, whether he starts there or not.

At the plate Heredia can get to some impact on his pull side, which is what he’s looking to do. He could stand to lift a bit more, but when he does he can do good things. His approach is rather aggressive, which keeps him from walking a ton. Overall the hit tool improvements are going to drive the rest of the profile. Defensively he’s played all over the grass, but the bulk of his time in 2025 was spent in right field. This is a bet on athleticism. His game is still raw, but has looked more refined year over year.

-Trevor Hooth

3-run HOME RUN for Raylin Heredia...6-0 Claws and he's got 5 HRs in his last 30 at bats! 🦀⚾ pic.twitter.com/GK0iTLuH3G

— Jersey Shore BlueClaws (@BlueClaws) September 5, 2025

Nationals: SS Seaver King

There was a time early last year where the only discourse on Seaver King was that he was a draft haircut so the Nationals could afford Luke Dickerson. While that may be true, it really undercuts how good King is. He spent most of last season in Double-A, where he slashed .233/.287/.313 with 18 stolen bases and a trio of home runs. While he got plenty of time there, it seems he could benefit from returning to the level to start 2026.

Overall, King is a solid defender with the arm to play anywhere on the dirt. His speed is the carrying tool right now, with what could become an average or slightly better hit tool. While he’s not a massive power threat by any stretch of the imagination, if he can get his hit tool to the right spot the rest of the profile can turn into a fringe starter or utility-type profile at the big league level that can cover several different positions.

-Trevor Hooth

seaver king: professional hitter activities 👑 pic.twitter.com/5O6ZPflm8u

— Nationals Player Development (@Nats_PlayerDev) February 28, 2026

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