We’re two-plus weeks into the 2026 Arizona Fall League season. It’s been a good ride for many of late, including Rangers infield prospect Sebastian Walcott. And in some MLB-adjacent news, 2027 Giants closer candidate Randy Rodriguez pitched this past week in the AFL.
Walcott among hitters who went deep
Thirteen hitters went deep at least once this past week, and Sebastian Walcott was one of them.
Walcott, who missed almost all of the AFL season in 2025, plus most of the 2026 MiLB campaign, drove in six and stole four bases for Surprise this week. It’s a continuation of what’s been a very good end to 2026 for the Rangers infield prospect.
Zion Rose, Carter Johnson, Core Jackson, Alex McCoy, Colby Shelton, and Kevin Bazzell also had a home run down in Arizona during the second full week of the season.
There were three who had multiple home runs: Caleb Bonemer, Matthew Ellis, and Jack O’Dowd.
O’Dowd, a Rockies prospect, has been one of several players to make a ton of significantly loud contact in 2026. As of the end of play on October 18, O’Dowd ranked second in Barrel% (21.4%) in the AFL, second-highest behind Chase Harlan (who had a great Week 1, as we noted).
Cold spells for several hitters
Several notable names, though, have gotten off to rough starts in Arizona.
Ty Harvey, who missed a good chunk of time in 2026, slashed .125/.300/.125 with 12 strikeouts over eight games. He’s taken his walks, as seen during his time in Low-A. However, there’s been an awfully large amount of swing-and-miss, too.
The hitter atop the Whiff% list is Blue Jays outfield prospect Jake Casey. As of October 19, Casey slashed .111/.273/.259 with 13 strikeouts over eight contests.
John Peck has made good contact in the AFL. However, the Tigers infielder hasn’t been rewarded for much of anything. Peck went 2-for-27 with 10 strikeouts in his first 10 games down in Arizona.
Rodriguez returns to real action
Welcome back to action, Randy Rodriguez.
The Giants reliever tossed a scoreless inning on October 14, his first real action in a game in well over a year. A 2025 NL All-Star, the 27-year-old missed all of this past year recovering from elbow surgery. Rodriguez struck out Brandon Butterworth and induced fly-ball outs from both Tai Peete and Ike Irish.
He mostly threw fastballs in his lone outing, ranging from as low as 94 MPH to as high as 96 MPH.
Strong week for several arms
Patrick Reilly of the Orioles continued his strong fall with seven strikeouts over four scoreless frames for Peoria.
Reds prospect Luke Holman struck out six over three scoreless innings for Peoria.
Another early impressor has been Mets prospect Irving Cota, who struck out five over three scoreless innings for Surprise.
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