4. Matt Wilkinson, Cleveland Guardians
Matt "Tugboat" Wilkinson might be the most underrated prospect in baseball and is a real diamond in the rough. In a very different manor than Termarr Johnson, Wilkinson didn't bring a whole lot of expectations to the Cleveland Guardians organization. He was the 308th overall pick in the tenth round of the 2023 draft to the Guardians out of Central Arizona College — a community college in the greater Phoenix area.
Despite being selected in the tenth round, you would think Wilkinson was one of the top pitching prospects in the 2023 draft class based on his numbers last year. Along with the aforementioned David Davalillo, Wilkinson was one of three pitchers in the minors with at least 20 starts and a sub-2.00 ERA (1.90).
He threw 118.2 innings over 24 starts between Low-A Lynchburg and High-A Lake County. He also posted a 2.69 FIP, 0.91 WHIP, and a .168 BAA, all of which ranked within the top ten among pitchers who pitched at least 100 innings.
Wilkinson was also the best strikeout pitcher on a rate basis in 2024. His 37.6 K% and 29.6 K-BB% led all minor league starters. Wilkinson is a big lefty, standing in at 6'1" and 270 pounds, but doesn't quite have the power stuff you would be led to believe a pitcher his size has. His fastball sits in the low-90s, which is likely why many prospect outlets are taking his performance at the lower levels with a grain of salt.
However, Wilkinson has obviously found a lot of success without a big fastball because of his great breaking stuff and ability to get all of his pitches over for strikes. He also has a deceptive delivery from the left side from a lower arm slot, very similar to Hagen Smith, another top left handed pitching prospect.
It might be difficult for "the tugboat" to maintain his level of success heading into 2025 and the upper levels of the minors, but he has shown that he possesses great pitch-ability, which is ultimately where all good things come from on the mound. If he can sustain his success anywhere close to what he did in 2024, I expect him to make an appearance on multiple top 100 lists soon.