The Cards of the Fastest Rising Prospects in MLB
In this story:
The MLB All Star Game, the unofficial midpoint of the MLB season, is less than a week away. So far baseball fans and collectors have gotten an extended look at the talent both at the major league and minor league levels with many prospects racing up the ranking sheets of reputable evaluators like MLB Pipeline and Baseball America. Now that BA in particular has released an updates list, I wanted to take a look at the two prospects who made the largest leap and their current hobby market.
Mike Sirota OF Los Angeles Dodgers
Despite the penalties to draft picks and international bonus pools, the Dodgers still find ways to accumulate high end prospects. Count Mike Sirota in that ever growing list of prospect talent that includes players like Zyhir Hope. Sirota was initially projected to be a top ten talent in the 2024 draft but slipped down draft boards after a tough spring. Instead he was drafted in the third round by the Reds before eventually being acquired by the Dodgers for Gavin Lux before the 2025 season. Since that trade, Sirota has played up to his previous projections hitting .354/.448/.687 with 7 home runs playing between A and A+ ball. He also made the largest jump in BA’s rankings, moving up 51 spots from 97 to 43. Like his draft year, Sirota made his product debut in Bowman Draft 2024 where he was considered a secondary chase to first round pick Chase Burns.
Interestingly, Sirota’s hobby market does not appear to have caught up to his hype quite yet especially considering how well he’s been playing and that he’s a prospect for a premium team like the Dodgers. His base autos are selling for $35-$45 dollars per 130Point. The market for numbered autos such as true blues to 150 has also remained weaker than I would expect as the recent sales have ranged from $180-$200. As I said earlier it’s possible that collectors have not realized how well Sirota has been playing so his cards could present a solid buy now with the potential for growth to match his growth as a player.
Payton Tolle SP Boston Red Sox
After trading Brandon Montgomery to the White Sox as part of the Garrett Crochet trade, Tolle represented the highest remaining 2024 Draft pick in the Red Sox farm system. Initially considered a slight reach by draft evaluators. Tolle has certainly silenced those critics as he has dominated three levels so far for the Red Sox. He had the second highest rise on BA’s Top 100 jumping from 88 to 49, just behind Sirota in total number of spots and overall ranking.
Like Sirota, Tolle made his hobby debut in Bowman Draft 2024. Also like Sirota his hobby market has not seen much of a boost despite rising up prospect ranking sheets. For example base auto prices have increased per 130Point, however, the increase was rather modest going from $20 to $25-$30. Tolle’s hobby market is certainly helped by being a part of the Red Sox organization, however, that is offset by being a pitcher. Either way, for those less risk averse collectors Tolle could also be a nice buy low option with the potential for solid gains down the road.
