CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Twenty Appalachian League alumni appear on MLB Pipeline’s new 2026 team Top 30 Prospects lists.
Kaelen Culpepper (Bluefield ‘22) is the Appy League’s highest ranked prospect at No. 52 on MLB Pipeline’s new Top 100 Prospects list and No. 2 on the Minnesota Twins Top 30 list. 2021 Appy League Pitcher of the Year, Bryce Mayer (Greeneville ‘21), is the No. 6 Houston Astros prospect. Braden Nett (Greeneville ‘21), who was added to the Athletics’ 40-man roster in November, is the Athletics’ No. 6 prospect.
Six alumni rank inside their organization’s Top 10. Along with Culpepper, Mayer and Nett, Josh Owens (Elizabethton ‘25) is the Texas Rangers’ No. 6 prospect, Daniel Eagen (Greeneville ‘23) is the Arizona Diamondbacks’ No. 7 prospect and Marcus Phillips (Elizabethton ‘24) is the Boston Red Sox No. 9 prospect. Two alumni from the 2025 Appy League season appear on new Top 30 lists, Owens and Tampa Bay Rays’ No. 28 prospect Cooper Flemming (Bristol ‘25).
Seven different Appy League teams have a player on a Top 30 Prospects list. The Elizabethton River Riders lead the way with seven alumni represented, the Kingsport Axmen have five and the Greeneville Flyboys have four. The Bluefield Ridge Runners, Bristol State Liners, Burlington Sock Puppets and Pulaski River Turtles all have one player listed. Fourteen different MLB teams have at least one Appy League alum on their Top 30 list while six have two.
% Indicates Appalachian League All-Star
^ Indicates All-Appalachian League Team
& Indicates Appalachian League Select Team
Arizona Diamondbacks
No. 7 - Daniel Eagen, RHP, Greeneville 2023
No. 29 - Avery Owusu-Asiedu, OF, Elizabethton 2022 %^
Athletics
No. 6 - Braden Nett, RHP, Greeneville 2021
No. 29 - Cameron Leary, OF, Pulaski 2021 %
Boston Red Sox
No. 9 - Marcus Phillips, RHP, Elizabethton 2024
Houston Astros
No. 6 - Bryce Mayer, RHP, Greeneville 2021 %^
Miami Marlins
No. 19 - Brendan Jones, OF, Elizabethton 2022-23
No. 28 - Aiden May, RHP, Kingsport 2022
Minnesota Twins
No. 2 - Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Bluefield 2022
New York Mets
No. 15 - Zach Thornton, LHP, Elizabethton 2022
Philadelphia Phillies
No. 16 - Cody Bowker, RHP, Elizabethton 2022
San Diego Padres
No. 21 - Alex McCoy, OF, Elizabethton 2022
No. 27 - Kavares Tears, OF, Kingsport 2023
San Francisco Giants
No. 20 - Maui Ahuna, SS, Burlington 2021
St. Louis Cardinals
No. 11 - Tanner Franklin, RHP, Kingsport 2023
No. 24 - Deniel Ortiz, 3B/1B, Kingsport 2023 %^
Tampa Bay Rays
No. 25 - Homer Bush Jr, OF, Greeneville 2021 %^
No. 28 - Cooper Flemming, SS, Bristol 2025
Texas Rangers
No. 6 - Josh Owens, SS/RHP, Elizabethton 2025 &
Washington Nationals
No. 22 - Sam Petersen, OF, Kingsport 2022
About the Appalachian League
Founded in 1911, the Appalachian League is one of the longest-running baseball leagues in history. The Appy League is the only collegiate summer league under MLB and USA Baseball’s Prospect Development Pipeline (“PDP”) and is an integral part of the identification and development process for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Teams and other future National teams.
For more information about the Appalachian League, visit appyleague.com or follow @appyleague & @appyleaguedata on X, and @appyleague on Instagram.
