The A’s came out of this summer’s draft with more than just a fresh batch of names. They added another layer of talent to a farm system that already had plenty of it, and the early prospect rankings reflect that haul in a big way.
At the top of the group is first-round pick Drew Burress, the Georgia Tech outfielder who now checks in as the No. 41 prospect in all of baseball. That puts him behind only Leo De Vries in the A’s system, with De Vries sitting at No. 2 overall after coming over in the Mason Miller deal with the Padres. Jamie Arnold, last year’s first-rounder out of Florida State, is right there too at No. 57 overall after turning in a strong season in Double-A with the Midland Rockhounds.
Burress has already started making noise in the system. After the line, "That ball is crushed!"
After setting the @GTBaseball all-time HR record, @Athletics 2026 first-rounder Drew Burress has homered twice in his first three games for the Single-A @stocktonports: pic.twitter.com/bdmEfyIgT7, he’s been promoted to Low-A Stockton, where he’ll likely spend the rest of his 2026 season. The hope from there is a steady climb through the minors next year, with Triple-A as the target before season’s end if everything breaks right.
What makes the A’s class stand out is that Burress isn’t the only newcomer landing in the organization’s top 30. Second-rounder Mason Edwards, the USC left-hander who led all of Division I pitching in strikeouts, comes in at No. 8 in the system.
The pitching depth keeps going after that. Gabe Gaeckle, the Arkansas right-hander and the team’s third-round pick, is ranked 11th.
The source points to a 60-grade fastball and slider mix, which gives him a ceiling that could be even higher than Edwards’. Jacob Dudan, the A’s third-round selection, is right behind him at No.
Roman Martin, the fourth-rounder out of UCLA, rounds out the summer group in the rankings at No. 18.
Taken together, the class gives the A’s another wave of talent to stack on top of an already strong pipeline. On paper, this has the look of one of the better draft hauls the organization has put together in a while.
In Other News...
Denzel Clarke Is Giving The A's A Tougher Call To Make
The As system had a busy night across the minors, but the most intriguing development for Oakland was in Las Vegas, where Denzel Clarke kept nudging his name into the conversation with another impactful showing at the plate. In a 10-8 Aviators win over Albuquerque, the outfielder helped supply some offense and continued to build the kind of case that makes roster decisions harder as the season moves along.
Clarke is already known for the tools that make him stand out, and nights like this only sharpen the question of how soon Oakland wants to test that upside at the next level. With the organization juggling performances from across the farm, his recent run is starting to look less like a brief surge and more like a player forcing the issue. [Read more 🡒]
A's Patched-Together Outfield Is Giving This Lineup New Life
The Athletics have spent much of the season piecing together an outfield while injuries have piled up across the roster, leaving them to keep adjusting around missing bats from Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Nick Kurtz, Tyler Soderstrom and Denzel Clarke. It has been a frustrating stretch for a lineup that has had to reinvent itself on the fly, but the club has still found enough production in unexpected places to keep some life in the order.
Henry Bolte has helped steady that shuffle, giving the As a different look at the top of the lineup, while Carlos Cortes and Lawrence Butler have both started to turn in better at-bats at the right time. For a team that has been scrambling for stability, the encouraging part is not just that bodies are filling spots, but that several of those replacements are beginning to swing the bat well enough to matter. [Read more 🡒]
A's Twins Series Could Test Whether Oakland's Pitching Surge Is Real
A series against Minnesota arrives at a useful moment for the Athletics, who have spent enough of this season trying to sort out their rotation that any glimpse of stability feels significant. The matchup cards point to a collection of arms on both sides who have had their share of uneven results, with Jeffrey Springs and Gage Jump trying to build on recent work while Zebby Matthews, Taj Bradley and Connor Prielipp add their own layers of uncertainty to a weekend that could swing on who throws first-pitch strikes and who can keep the damage contained.
JT Ginn gives Oakland the cleanest path to feeling better about where its pitching stands, and that alone makes this set worth watching beyond the box score. If the A's can navigate the rest of the rotation innings without getting exposed, it would lend some credibility to the idea that their recent pitching uptick is more than a short-lived bounce, but Minnesota's starters are good enough to make that claim hard to prove in just one series. [Read more 🡒]