The seventh week of the 2025 MiLB season officially concluded over the weekend. It saw the end of Jac Caglianone’s time in Arkansas, while several other prospects continue to tear it up in Double-A.

Former first-round picks shine

The past week saw some big-time performances from big-time picks.

Starting in the Eastern League, a trio of former first-round picks excelled. Altoona infielder Termarr Johnson (PIT) picked up eight hits, raising his OPS on the season to .803. Johnson’s had a strong year to this point, with five home runs and nine extra-base hits over 35 games.

Mets prospect Jett Williams missed most of 2024 and wound up back in Binghamton this season. Williams cracked two home runs and four extra-base hits. He’s been an extra-base hit machine with the Rumble Ponies, as he has 16 in 33 games.

Bryce Eldridge, the Giants prospect, had arguably the loudest week in the circuit, with three home runs for Richmond (AA).

Moving on to other leagues, 2022 first-rounder Sal Stewart hit .400 with 10 hits over the last week. Stewart raised his 2025 average to .319, with 46 hits over 38 games. And in the South Atlantic League, Mets prospect Carson Benge hit .350 with a home run and nine RBI.

Promotions & moves

The Cubs gave Matt Shaw a second crack with the big club, as he was moved back to the MLB level on May 19. He did very well in Iowa (AAA), as he hit six home runs and walked 17 times over 24 games with the I-Cubs.

Five of those home runs, by the way, came in his last six games with Iowa.

The Phillies, meanwhile, gave Mick Abel his first MLB start on May 18. He excelled but as promised, Philadelphia demoted him the next day to get Taijuan Walker back in the rotation.

In 2024 MLB Draft-related news, the Royals pushed Jac Caglianone to Triple-A Omaha on May 20 after he tore up Double-A. Caglianone left the Texas League as the 2025 leader in hits (49), and finished top-five in SLG (.553) and home runs (9). Not to mention, Caglianone didn’t strike out too much, with 37 over 38 games.

Another SEC superstar from yesteryear, Charlie Condon, finished his rehab in the ACL and returned to Spokane (A+). The goal for Condon is simple: watch the swing-and-miss. It’ll be a part of his game, no matter what, given his game. But in nine games in the ACL, he struck out 10 times.

Last season with the Indians, Condon was punched out 34 times over 109 plate appearances (31.2%).

As for other moves, former Royals first-rounder Frank Mozzicato was promoted to Double-A. Mozzicato struck out 37 over 36.1 IP and posted a 1.24 ERA with Quad Cities (A+).

Additionally, Brett Sears got his second promotion of the year, as the Braves prospect got moved up to Double-A Columbus. Sears, one of the best college pitchers last year as a 24-year-old, struck out 48 batters over 36.2 IP between Low-A and High-A this season.

MLB to experiment with checked swings

Did you see the new swing metrics added to Statcast tracking this past week? Major League Baseball has slowly rolled out new swing metrics, including bat speed and now, attack angles and swing path tilt, over the past few years.

While the league’s been heavily invested in rolling new numbers, tracking swings will become a key part of the game for one league in particular.

Starting on May 20, MLB will experiment with checked swing challenges. As of now, the experiment will be limited to the Florida State League, the only A-ball affiliate to have implemented Statcast tracking.

This marks yet another development in what could be several changes coming to challenges in MLB. During the 2025 Spring Training session, teams were able to use the ABS system to challenge balls & strikes, something previously and currently used in Triple-A and the Arizona Fall League.

Whether it becomes something that happens in the Majors soon remains to be seen.

Notable performers

Here’s a look at notable performers over the last week:

• INF Anthony Seigler (AAA/MIL): .538 AVG, three home runs, five extra-base hits over four games
• C Harry Ford (AAA/SEA): .435 AVG, two home runs and four extra-base hits over five games
• P Bubba Chandler (AAA/PIT): 15 strikeouts over 9.1 IP
• P Carson Whisenhunt (AAA/SFG): 0.00 ERA, 14 K over 14 IP
• INF Ryan Ritter (AAA/COL): 10 hits, nine RBI over five games
• P Noah Schultz (AA/CHW): 13 strikeouts over 8.1 IP
• OF A.J. Ewing (A+/NYM): .500 AVG, 1.331 OPS over five games
• OF Joshua Baez (A+/STL): 12 hits over five games
• SS Colt Emerson (A+/SEA): eight hits, eight RBI over four games
• INF Sean Keys (A+/TOR): six hits, two home runs over six games
• C Marco Dinges (A/MIL): .412 AVG, eight RBI over six games

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