Scouting the Players Added to 40-Man Rosters

November 21, 2024

Tuesday was this year’s 40-man roster deadline, the date by which players who would otherwise be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft at Winter Meetings need to be added to their club’s roster in order to be protected. In addition to a few dozen players’ big league tickets essentially being punched on this day, there is often a flurry of trade activity as teams with a surplus of rosterable players look to find teams with skimpier rosters with which to trade.

I’ve updated the scouting reports for these newly rostered players over on The Board, which you can find here. There will probably be a couple of guys from this contingent whose grades change between now and when their team’s prospect list goes up on the site, but for the most part, these evaluations are hot off the presses and will hold up all offseason. I go into much greater depth on each player in their Board scouting report than I have here. The commentary below often has more to do with a team’s roster makeup than any individual player.

Players Added to 40-Man Rosters

Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Joe Elbis	SP	22.2	ARI	40
Tim Tawa	1B	25.6	ARI	35+
Elbis is likely to spend a developmental year on the 40-man the way Cristian Mena did in 2023. Tawa’s carrying trait is his defensive versatility, which is a great fit on an Arizona 40-man currently thin on the infield.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Denzel Clarke	CF	24.6	ATH	45+
Gunnar Hoglund	SP	24.9	ATH	35+
Ryan Cusick	SIRP	25.0	ATH	35+
Clarke might be the best defensive center fielder in the org right now. Hoglund and Cusick are lower-impact arms. The A’s have a lot of good position player pieces and might sneak up on people next year.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Rolddy Munoz	SIRP	24.6	ATL	40
Munoz has a ridiculous slider and could really break out if the Braves’ big league coaching staff can help his fastball play better than it has.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Brandon Young	SP	26.3	BAL	50
Kade Strowd	SIRP	27.2	BAL	35+
I buy that Young’s fastball plays, and he currently has a Top 100 ticket with his name on it. Baltimore’s rotation needs guys like this to backfill for Corbin Burnes as best as they can.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Jhostynxon Garcia	RF	21.9	BOS	45+
Hunter Dobbins	SP	25.2	BOS	40+
Garcia has ceiling akin to Teoscar Hernández if he keeps his strikeouts down like he did most of 2024. With Ceddanne Rafaela likely patrolling center field, Garcia could be forced into a corner, where his chase will be a bigger issue.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Owen Caissie	RF	22.4	CHC	45
Benjamin Cowles	SS	24.8	CHC	40
Caissie had enough of a power downtick that he looks less like a surefire everyday option and more like a platoon guy. Players with fewer option years remaining, like Kevin Alcántara, are definitely ahead of Caissie in the pecking order for big league time as things currently stand.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Colson Montgomery	SS	22.7	CHW	55
Juan Carela	SIRP	22.9	CHW	35+
Montgomery still has the talent to be an impact player, but it’s pretty clearly going to take a while.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Luis Mey	SIRP	23.4	CIN	40+
Tyler Callihan	2B	24.4	CIN	35+
If Mey can keep pitching like he did in the Arizona Fall League, he’ll help the Reds bullpen in 2025.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Petey Halpin	CF	22.5	CLE	40
Franco Aleman	SIRP	24.4	CLE	40
Doug Nikhazy	MIRP	25.3	CLE	35+
Just pitching depth and a part-time outfielder here. Most of Cleveland’s young lineup from 2024 should remain and improve in 2025.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Zac Veen	RF	22.9	COL	40+
This is still a turbo-charged fifth outfielder grade for Veen. You can’t trust surface stats at the Rockies’ affiliates; they’re too hitter-friendly for that.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Tyler Mattison	SIRP	25.2	DET	40+
Tyler Owens	SIRP	23.9	DET	35+
Chase Lee	SIRP	26.3	DET	35+
If Mattison comes screaming back from his TJ rehab, then he might make a late-inning relief impact. If not, these additions will provide more depth than pound-for-pound impact.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Colton Gordon	SP	25.9	HOU	35+
With so many serious mid-season injuries to Houston’s starters, the Astros’ ability to generate depth from within is especially important next year. Alex Santos II was a surprising omission.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Luinder Avila	SP	23.3	KCR	40+
Noah Cameron	SP	25.3	KCR	40+
Eric Cerantola	SIRP	24.6	KCR	35+
The Royals have a ton of optionable, young reliever depth but were thin on starters. Avila and Cameron help stabilize their starting pitching situation.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Jack Dashwood	SIRP	27.0	LAA	35+
Matthew Lugo	LF	23.5	LAA	35+
Dashwood was added after just a handful of regular season innings and looks like a pretty standard lefty specialist with a good slider.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Jack Dreyer	SIRP	25.7	LAD	40+
Another sly draft-and-development success for the Dodgers, Dreyer has three good pitches and might end up working in higher-leverage spots. Injuries forced the Dodgers to roster a lot of young, green pitching in 2024, and a pretty big chunk of their 40-man is made up of Nick Frasso, Edgardo Henriquez, and Justin Wrobleski — talented young arms who lack much experience, let alone the kind you’d want while you defend your title.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Jared Serna	2B	22.5	MIA	45+
Dax Fulton	SP	23.1	MIA	45
Deyvison De Los Santos	DH	21.4	MIA	40+
Luarbert Arias	SP	23.9	MIA	35+
Serna and DDLS are the kind of higher-upside power hitters who deserve prolonged big league exposure to make adjustments and (hopefully) hit their ceiling. Miami definitely has the rebuild runway to do that.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Logan Henderson	SIRP	22.7	MIL	40+
Chad Patrick	SP	26.3	MIL	35+
These guys are behind Carlos Rodriguez on the spot start depth chart. Brandon Woodruff’s health is a huge 2025 variable for this squad.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Marco Raya	MIRP	22.3	MIN	45
Travis Adams	SP	24.8	MIN	35+
The Twins’ roster has a ton of starting pitching depth, but it’s light on athletic, multi-positional defenders.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Justin Hagenman	SP	28.1	NYM	35
Hagenman signed a one-year big league deal. He looks more like a depth starter or swingman than a true on-roster contributor. The Mets also traded for Jose Siri, which you can read about here.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Jesus Rodriguez	C/3B	22.6	NYY	40+
Caleb Durbin	2B/3B	24.6	NYY	40
The Yankees have rostered a developmental catching prospect each of the last several years and Rodriguez is the latest. Durbin is one of two D-III guys rostered this week.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Moisés Chace	SP	21.5	PHI	50
Mick Abel	SP	23.3	PHI	40+
Jean Cabrera	SP	23.1	PHI	35+
Chace is going to have a monster fastball and is the biggest individual riser from this group. He looks like Bryce Miller did a couple years ago.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Omar Cruz	MIRP	25.8	SDP	40
Ryan Bergert	SIRP	24.7	SDP	40
Henry Baez	SP	22.1	SDP	35+
All depth types here, with Cruz having the best chance to emerge as a more meaningful contributor.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Carson Seymour	MIRP	25.9	SFG	40+
Carson Ragsdale	SP	26.5	SFG	35+
Who knows whether the Giants will continue to deploy big league pitching the way they did under the former regime. If they do, these two guys with plus breaking stuff and sketchy command will be well-suited for that approach.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Tink Hence	SP	22.3	STL	50
Matt Koperniak	LF	26.8	STL	45
Tekoah Roby	MIRP	23.2	STL	40+
Matt Svanson	SIRP	25.8	STL	35+
What do the Cardinals need to see from Tink to take the training wheels off? Koperniak is one of the best stories of this year’s additions, a D-III senior sign who had a power uptick deep into his 20s.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Ian Seymour	MIRP	25.9	TBR	45
Joe Rock	SP	24.3	TBR	40+
Jake Mangum	CF	28.7	TBR	40
Evan Reifert probably gets popped in the Rule 5, right?
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Winston Santos	SP	22.6	TEX	45
Emiliano Teodo	SIRP	23.8	TEX	45
Max Acosta	SS	22.1	TEX	45
Luis Curvelo	SIRP	24.1	TEX	35+
A good group here. Acosta had a great Fall League, and Santos and Teodo could help the pitching staff immediately.
Name	Position	Age	Team	FV
Robert Hassell III	CF	23.3	WSN	35+
Andry Lara	SP	21.9	WSN	35+
Lara’s slider is legit and he should keep starting for a while, but his ultimate role should be in the bullpen. Hassell is coming off a good AFL run where he had nearly as many extra-base hits as he did during the entire regular season.

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ScoreboardMember since 2016

12 days ago

Hahaha, great labeling of “OAK” as “ATH” because they don’t actually have a home 😛

jmantell

Reply to Scoreboard

That’s actually how MLB is labeling them

dangledangleMember since 2024

I was so confused until I saw the write up. I was like did I rip can winkle an expansion team lol

fjtorres

That has been their full name going back to Philadelphia.
Unless they change their name for Las Vegas, they might be bringing it back.
Full break from Oakland.

Las Vegas Athletics?
Nevada Athletics?
Las Vegas Aces?

Jason BMember since 2017

11 days ago

Reply to fjtorres

Las Vegas “We apologize for our shit owner and what we did to Oakland, it was a naked cash grab but that kind of extortion is kind of our thing”s?

May be too long to fit on a t-shirt…

-3

Envy AngelMember since 2017

They will be known as the Las Vegas Athletic Club (an inside joke for Las Vegans).

10 days ago

Reply to Envy Angel

A nod to the Siegel/Lansky days?
Or people’s tendency to join a gym, go a few times, and then forget to keep going while still paying?

There’s actually a very popular chain of gyms called the Las Vegas Athletic Club, hence the joke 🙂

sadtromboneMember since 2020

Las Vegans! Incredible. But I suppose Las Vegasans sounds even sillier.

Reply to sadtrombone

That’s what they call each other. Say it without the “Las” in front, and the joke turns into a lot of comments about vegetables.