CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Thirty Appalachian League alumni were selected for Major League Baseball’s third annual edition of Spring Breakout, which takes place March 19-22. Spring Breakout serves as a showcase of baseball’s future stars with each Major League Club fielding a team of prospects from their farm system to play a team of top prospects from another organization in an exhibition game.
Two alumni from Spring Breakout 2025 made their Major League debuts last season. Paul Gervase (Bristol ‘21) debuted with the Tampa Bay Rays on June 21 and was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the deadline. Gervase made six MLB appearances in 2025. Kyle Karros (Greeneville ‘21) debuted on Aug. 8 with the Colorado Rockies; he hit one home run and had nine RBI in 43 games last season.
Kaelen Culpepper, MLB Pipeline’s No. 52 prospect and the Minnesota Twins’ No. 2 prospect, is among notable Appy League alumni represented in this year’s event. 2024 Appy League Player of the Year Callan Moss will suit up for the Pittsburgh Pirates squad. Carlos Lequerica (DET) and Noah Mendlinger (STL) also appear on Spring Breakout rosters after playing in the 2026 World Baseball Classic with Team Israel earlier this month.
After nine representatives in 2024 and 19 in 2025, the Appy League has 30 alumni represented across 22 Major League organizations. The St. Louis Cardinals roster features three alumni, while six organizations have two alumni each. The Kingsport Axmen lead the way with five representatives; the Burlington Sock Puppets, Elizabethton River Riders and Pulaski River Turtles all have four.
Magnus Ellerts (CLE), Aiden May (MIA), Brendan Jones (MIA), Culpepper (MIN), Kavares Tears (SD) and Sam Petersen (WSH) all return to this year’s event after appearing on rosters a year ago. The complete list of Appy League alumni in this year’s Spring Breakout is listed below.
For the complete viewing guide of Appy League alumni on Spring Breakout rosters, click here.
% Indicates 2025 Spring Breakout Roster
Arizona Diamondbacks
OF Avery Owusu-Asiedu - Elizabethton 2022 (ARI No. 29 prospect)
Athletics
OF Cameron Leary - Pulaski 2021 (ATH No. 29 prospect)
Atlanta Braves
SS Cody Miller - Johnson City 2023
Boston Red Sox
RHP Jay Allmer - Bluefield 2022
RHP Marcus Phillips - Elizabethton 2024 (BOS No. 9 prospect)
Chicago White Sox
RHP Nick Weyrich - Pulaski 2023
Cincinnati Reds
C Ryan McCrystal - Burlington 2022-24
Cleveland Guardians
RHP Magnus Ellerts - Danville 2021 %
Colorado Rockies
RHP Fidel Ulloa - Bristol 2022
Detroit Tigers
RHP Carlos Lequerica - Pulaski 2021
UTL Woody Hadeen - Princeton 2022
Miami Marlins
RHP Aiden May - Kingsport 2022 (MIA No. 28 prospect) %
OF Brendan Jones - Elizabethton 2022-23 (MIA No. 19 prospect) %
Milwaukee Brewers
RHP Michael Fowler - Bristol 2021
Minnesota Twins
SS Kaelen Culpepper - Bluefield 2022 (MLB No. 52 prospect, MIN No. 2) %
New York Mets
2B D’Andre Smith - Burlington 2021
New York Yankees
SS Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek - Bluefield 2023
Pittsburgh Pirates
INF Callan Moss - Johnson City 2022, Danville 2023-24
OF Will Taylor - Greeneville 2022
San Diego Padres
RHP Clay Edmondson - Pulaski 2023
OF Kavares Tears - Kingsport 2023 (SD No. 27 prospect) %
San Francisco Giants
RHP Marques Johnson - Johnson City 2021
SS Maui Ahuna - Burlington 2021 (SF No. 20 prospect)
Seattle Mariners
3B Austin St. Laurent - Burlington 2022
St. Louis Cardinals
RHP Tanner Franklin - Kingsport 2023 (STL No. 11 prospect)
UTL Noah Mendlinger - Bristol 2021
3B/1B Deniel Ortiz - Kingsport 2023 (STL No. 24 prospect)
Texas Rangers
SS/RHP Josh Owens - Elizabethton 2025 (TEX No. 6 prospect)
Toronto Blue Jays
OF Eddie Micheletti - 2021
Washington Nationals
OF Sam Petersen - Kingsport 2022 (WSH No. 22 prospect) %
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.
