Far from the major-league spotlight and under Arizona sunshine, a fresh crop of Reds prospects is making headlines in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League. The club opened its season this month and, entering Thursday, carried the circuit’s best run differential at +38 — a figure inflated in part by a 30-4 victory on May 19, one of only seven 30-run games across the Minors since 2005. That outing highlighted a roster that has combined power and speed in the early going and set the tone for a team generating offensive fireworks at the organization’s complex in Goodyear.
A Cincinnati prospect pauses on the field before an Arizona Complex League game in Goodyear as the ACL Reds continue their strong start to the season.
A handful of players have stood out during the early weeks, both among the club’s own prospect lists and within the league. At the top of that group is Steele Hall, the ninth overall selection in the 2025 draft and one of the younger members of his class. After a 3-for-19 beginning to his professional career, Hall heated up dramatically, stringing together an 11-game hitting streak from May 12 through Tuesday. He also produced a six-game run from May 16 through Saturday in which he collected at least one extra-base hit in each outing, totaling nine extra-base knocks in that span. Hall’s early numbers across 85 plate appearances place him near the top of the ACL in several offensive categories: he was leading the league in extra-base hits with 14, and he ranked among the leaders in total bases (43) and OPS (1.077), while contributing nine stolen bases to his line. One of Hall’s batted balls — his first professional home run — registered a 110.9 mph exit velocity, among the 10 hardest-hit balls recorded in the circuit this year.
Steele Hall (No. 3) of the Arizona Complex League Reds rounds the bases during a game in Goodyear, part of the hot stretch that has powered the ACL club’s early-season surge.
On the mound, Aaron Watson has drawn attention as a high school arm the organization invested in heavily last summer. The club signed Watson out of high school with an overslot bonus of $2.75 million after selecting him, making him the franchise’s first high-school pitcher taken in the opening two rounds since 2018. Watson has provided extended outings to start his ACL career, tossing at least four innings in each of his first four appearances. His heater has sat 92-94 mph and shows notable sink, a quality amplified by the near seven feet of extension he generates from his 6-foot-5 frame. At this early stage his best secondary pitch is a slider in the 84-86 mph range that has ticked up in velocity since his high school days.
Outfielder Adolfo Sanchez arrived in the organization as a key piece of Cincinnati’s 2024 international class and has begun his stateside career after rebounding from a difficult initial stint in the Dominican Summer League. Sanchez, a left-handed hitter ranked among the club’s top international prospects, recorded a modest 1-for-13 start in the U.S. but then warmed up, producing a seven-game hitting streak that included a pair of homers. Through the early slate of ACL play he was running a 26.3 percent line-drive rate — the highest on the club entering Wednesday — and maintained a .395 on-base percentage, indicators of both contact quality and plate discipline in his transition to U.S. competition.
Eli Pitts, a fifth-round selection in 2025, represents another young bat the organization views as having long-term upside. Pitts’ senior season in high school was interrupted by a hamstring injury, but the 19-year-old has hit the ground running in pro ball. Over his first five contests he stole two bases and produced four extra-base hits, including his first professional home run. On the defensive side, Pitts has seen all of his reps in center field through the early schedule, a deployment that reflects an emphasis on his speed and range as the club plans his development path.
Juan Brown, an 18-year-old who signed in January 2024, has provided early power for the ACL club. Brown, who is a cousin of veteran big leaguer Xander Bogaerts and signed for a $300,000 bonus, did not post eye-catching numbers during two separate DSL stints but has shown increased pop since moving to stateside play. His four home runs are tied for second in the circuit, and Brown’s quality of contact has been notable: four of the Reds’ 14 hardest-hit balls tracked this season — each 102.6 mph or harder — have come off his bat, with a top exit velocity of 110.7 mph. That figure, the data notes, had been exceeded by only five Major League Reds this year. Brown began his career as a pitcher in Aruba before converting to position play; he spent time at third base and in the outfield last year and has been handling first base defensively this season.
Together, these five players have contributed to a lineup and pitching staff that has combined for big innings and a robust early run differential. The ACL season is still in its infancy, but the short-term explosive performances — from Hall’s hitting streak and hard contact to Watson’s extended appearances and Brown’s raw exit velocities — have been central to the team’s success through the first weeks. At the Goodyear complex, those pieces are the most visible in a group that has provided both individual bright spots and collective potency during the campaign’s opening chapter.