Spring Breakout takeaways: Expand next season, ABS system is great

Major League Baseball introduced its Spring Breakout prospect showcase last week. The four-day event featured the top prospects from all 30 MLB clubs competing head-to-head over 16 games, allowing fans to catch a glimpse of the game's future stars on the field together. Here are our takeaways from the event.

Make it a tournament next year

The players clearly enjoyed the increased exposure from this year's event.

"It's a neat event," Jackson Holliday said, according to Jake Rill of MLB.com. "I think they'll be able to run with it and get a little bit more stuff into it as long as the years go. It's really cool to be able to go out here and compete against these guys."

MLB's No. 1 prospect is on to something.

The league needs to create its own mini version of March Madness. Rather than play a handful of virtually meaningless games, create a single-game elimination bracket-style tournament that crowns a winner at the end.

Our proposed tournament will feature all 30 MLB organizations, with the top two seeds receiving a bye. Fifteen teams will play in Arizona's Cactus League, with the other 15 playing in Florida's Grapefruit League. The final will be staged in either Florida or Arizona and feature the winner of each league. Since this is an MLB-sanctioned event, base the organizational seeding on MLB Pipeline's farm system rankings. Games will be seven innings and take place on alternating days to help pitchers recover. The prospects on the winning organization take home a cash prize.

The seeding, based on this season's rankings, would look something like this:

The tournament grants exposure to the league's next wave of talent, allows the players - who are scattered across different minor-league levels - to play competitively for something as an organization, and creates a March Madness-type excitement in the early days of the MLB season.

Skenes is electric

Paul Skenes needed one batter to show why the Pittsburgh Pirates selected him with the first pick in the 2023 draft.

The 21-year-old struck out the Baltimore Orioles' No. 6-ranked prospect Enrique Bradfield Jr. on three pitches - 100.6-mph four-seam fastball, 101.1-mph sinker, 101.7-mph four-seam fastball - to open his Spring Breakout start.

Skenes followed that up with a six-pitch strikeout of Holliday, which featured a pair of swinging strikes and a nasty 90.4-mph changeup.

The Pirates already let Skenes know that he'll start the season in the minors as he still needs to check some boxes in terms of his development. With how important he is to the success of the organization, it makes sense not to rush him. But it also wouldn't be a shock to see the right-hander pitch in the majors at some point this year.

The challenge system is great

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said last summer that the automatic ball-strike system (ABS) won't be used in the majors in 2024, but we were able to get a glimpse into how the challenge system operates during Spring Breakout.

Spoiler alert: It's awesome.

During the second inning of the Orioles-Pirates game, the umpire ruled a pitch a ball, making the count 3-1. Catcher Silas Ardoin disagreed with the call and tapped his head to signal that he'd like to challenge the pitch. The ABS system, displayed on the scoreboard, showed that the catcher was right, and the count changed to 2-2.

Arizona Diamondbacks top prospect Jordan Lawlar demonstrated the impact the challenge system can have on the outcome of a game. Lawlar was called out on a slider that he believed was off the plate. He immediately challenged it, and the call was overturned. Lawlar then doubled off the wall and eventually scored the go-ahead run.

If MLB doesn't want to fully implement an automated strike zone in which the umpires wear earpieces and are told what calls to make, the challenge system seems like a solid compromise. The league would have to limit how many challenges can be made per contest - maybe start with three per team - but this seems like a solid way to ensure we're getting the most accuracy without slowing down the game.

Top performers

Jace Jung, Tigers

The Detroit Tigers' No. 4 prospect (No. 60 in MLB) hammered a pair of solo home runs to go with a walk in three plate appearances. Jung was the No. 12 pick in the 2022 draft.

Spencer Jones, Yankees

The towering outfield prospect showed exactly why New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman was reluctant to include him in any trade talks this offseason. New York's No. 2 prospect went 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBIs against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Brock Selvidge, Yankees

Jones wasn't the only Yankees prospect turning heads. Selvidge allowed just one hit and no runs across four innings while striking out eight. The 21-year-old was a third-round pick in 2021 and is New York's No. 11-ranked prospect.

Xavier Isaac, Rays

Isaac hits the ball extremely hard. The No. 4 prospect in the Tampa Bay Rays' system went 3-for-3 with two home runs, a double, and a walk. The 20-year-old's hits had exit velocities of 103.6 mph (double), 110.4 mph (home run), and 101.7 mph (home run).

Ceddanne Rafaela, Red Sox

Rafaela's strong spring training likely landed him a spot on the Opening Day roster. The Boston Red Sox No. 4-ranked prospect clubbed a towering three-run home run. While Boston's Big Three of Kyle Teel, Roman Anthony, and Marcelo Mayer get a lot of the headlines, Rafaela could be a major piece for the club.