We are at the midway point of the Arizona Fall League, and while teams have played only around 10 games, a few players are already making waves. It’s important to remember a few essential things about the AFL. First, pitching is notoriously poor. Second, the environment significantly favors offense. And finally, some of these players have already played 100+ games this season, while others are in the AFL because they missed significant time due to injury. With all that in mind, it’s important to take these results with a grain of salt. Just because a player is dominating the AFL does not necessarily mean they’re great players or viable dynasty assets. The five players under the microscope today are all guys with legitimate value in dynasty leagues, and they’re improving that value with their recent performance.
Hitters
Esmerlyn Valdez, OF, PIT
For the second straight season, a star has been born in the AFL. Last season, it was Josue Briceño, who dominated from day one en route to the first-ever Triple Crown winner in the AFL. In 2025, it’s Esmerlyn Valdez, a rising star in the Pirates organization, who is in a class by himself out in Arizona. In his first nine games, Valdez already has eight homers, a 2.053 OPS, 18 RBI, and has walked 15 times against just five strikeouts. Nothing about his performance is fluky; Valdez was trending up well before he arrived in the Desert.
Valdez first popped off last season, mashing 22 homers with a .977 OPS as a 20-year-old at Single-A Bradenton. His power output was not a surprise, as he showed plenty of raw power that quietly translated into in-game power over his first two seasons in the DSL and Complex. The power came at the expense of batting average, as Valdez hit .226 with a 30.6% strikeout rate in 107 games in 2024, though he walked nearly 14% of the time. His contact skills improved this season, rising from 69.5% in 2024 to 72.4%. With improved contact has come even more average as Valdez hit .286 in 123 games, while also lowering his strikeout rate to 24.6%. Not to mention, he did this while climbing two levels, closing out the year at Double-A. His 26 homers led all Pirates’ minor leaguers as Valdez put together a .286/.376/.520 slash line adding 75 runs and 86 RBI.
Valdez is still just 21, but he played 51 games in AA and is gaining experience against higher-level pitching in Arizona. With Konnor Griffin, Valdez, and breakout prospect Edward Florentino, the Pirates finally have some offense to pair with their terrific young pitching. It wouldn’t shock me if Valdez got a cup of coffee in the Majors this season, but I wouldn’t anticipate more than that. For dynasty, he’s definitely a player on the rise and should be rostered in all formats where prospects are owned.
Esmerlyn Valdez unloads his EIGHTH AFL homer 💪
The @YoungBucsPIT prospect is slashing .545/.718/1.682 through nine AFL games 👀 pic.twitter.com/Kyqas6QXkY
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) October 22, 2025
Max Anderson, 2B, DET
With all the hype surrounding Kevin McGonigle—and rightfully so—23-year-old infielder Max Anderson has quietly pushed his way into the dynasty mix and is a very real option for the Tigers’ Opening Day roster in 2026. Success is nothing new for Anderson, a former second-round pick in 2023 out of the University of Nebraska. Anderson was the 2021 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and earned all Big Ten honors in each of his three seasons with the Cornhuskers. In his debut season (2024), Anderson climbed two levels, slashing .266/.315/.387 with 11 homers and 22 doubles, finishing at Double-A. An aggressive approach kept his walk rate just under 7%, but he struck out just 14% of the time thanks to outstanding contact skills. Anderson carried his skills over to 2025. He played his first 90 games at Double-A Erie before finishing the season with Triple-A Toledo. In 122 games, Anderson hit .296 with 19 home runs, 78 runs scored, and 88 RBIs. His OBP jumped 35 points to .350, while his strikeout and walk rates held firm. His approach remained unchanged, as he swung over 55% of the time, while also improving his contact rate by over 3%. Anderson is performing exceptionally well in the AFL, as he’s produced 13 hits in his first 25 at-bats, including three homers and four doubles. Like Valdez, Anderson has more walks (13) than strikeouts (7) and has an absurd .700 OBP and 1.740 OPS in the early going.
As for Anderson’s long-term outlook, there are pluses and minuses. I have some concerns about his aggression at the plate. Although he has yet to be ‘exposed’, Anderson’s chase rate of 33% and swing rate of 55% make him vulnerable to batting average woes, especially against MLB pitchers. That said, the bat-to-ball ability is strong and could continue to overcome the approach. There’s also some power potential in the profile. We got a small sample of Statcast data on him in AAA, which showed an average EV of 90.8 mph with a max of 107. Those numbers are fine for a second baseman, and when paired with the contact skills, I could see a path to Anderson getting to a 15-18 homer output as a pro. It’s interesting to note that Anderson is playing 2B in the AFL, while McGonigle is taking reps at 3B. With Gleyber Torres possibly leaving in FA, could Anderson be the primary 2B for the Tigers in 2026?
Walker Janek, C, HOU
2024 1st-rounder Walker Janek had a rough start to his pro career, struggling in a brief 25-game sample at High-A following his selection last summer. In that stretch, he hit just .175 with a near-30% strikeout rate and nothing to show offensively. His struggles with the bat weren’t all that surprising, as Janek has always been glove-first and was arguably the best defensive catcher in the 2024 class. This season, the 23-year-old backstop returned to High-A, and the bat made some strides. In 92 games, Janek hit .266 with 35 XBH (12 HR) and 30 stolen bases despite below-average speed. This fall, Janek has been an offensive standout. In ten AFL games, he’s already tallied 19 RBI, including a seven-RBI outburst last week in which he hit a grand slam in the first inning, his first as a pro. Of his ten hits, he has three homers and three doubles, and has already swiped three bases.
There are still significant concerns about swing-and-miss in his profile. Despite the early offensive onslaught in Arizona, Janek has 12 strikeouts in 33 at-bats and is coming off a regular season where he posted a 26.6% strikeout rate. As a fantasy asset, we can live with the potential drain on batting average from a catcher, specifically if they’re contributing power and sneaky speed output. His grand slam last week had an exit velocity of 104.1 mph, and his max EV for his career was 111.3mph, so there is some thump in the bat. With the bat making strides, there is a very viable fantasy asset here. The biggest question is whether Janek can make enough contact to tap into that raw power. If he can, Janek could push into the upper echelon of catching prospects and, with his defensive talents, become a primary catcher at the MLB level very soon.
Have a night, Walker Janek!
The @astros 2024 first-rounder becomes the first player since 2019 to deliver a 7-RBI performance in the @MLBazFallLeague. pic.twitter.com/WvVimGFOwN
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) October 18, 2025
Pitchers
Luis De León, SP, BAL
Quality pitching is typically hard to come by in the AFL. Despite having a few premium names, including Hagen Smith, De León has been the most impressive of any starter thus far. De León jumped three levels this season, including a three-start finish with Double-A Aberdeen. In total, he made 20 appearances (18 starts) with an ERA of just over 3.00, a 17.6% K-BB rate, and a swinging strike rate of 16.1%. Bat-missing is not a problem for De León, but command and control are. De León averaged four walks per 9 during the regular season, and he’s been spotty with his command in the AFL. The 22-year-old southpaw has made three starts in the AFL, pitching to a 3.18 ERA with 15 strikeouts and eight walks in 11 1/3 innings.
De León has two premium pitches in his arsenal. His sinking fastball routinely sits in the mid-90s with a ton of arm-side run that neutralizes right-handed hitters. The slider is also a plus pitch, sitting in the low-to-mid 80s with sharp breaking movement in on RHH. De León also deploys a changeup, and given his ability to create impressive movement on the ball, that could flash as a plus offering in time. De León will turn 23 around Opening Day in 2026 and figures to work his way toward Camden Yards at some point next season. Harnessing his high-octane, big-moving repertoire is something he’ll need to work on, but this is a pitcher with the stuff to be a SP2/SP3 in most MLB rotations.
Luis De León, LHP, Baltimore Orioles
De León was phenomenal yesterday: 4.1 IP/3 H/1 ER/2 BB/5 K/13 Whiffs
FB: 95-97
SL: 86-89
CH: 87-88
SPL: 83-85 pic.twitter.com/zGmH8RMvfz— Chris Clegg (@ChrisCleggMiLB) October 17, 2025
Luis Perales, SP, BOS
Forget the results, Luis Perales is back on the mound in Arizona and is working his way back to the top of the pitching prospect world. Perales was dominating early in 2024, climbing two levels in a month. The right-hander posted a 38.9% strikeout rate over 33 2/3 innings as he struck out 56 batters against just 12 walks. Unfortunately, an elbow injury led to Tommy John surgery, and he missed the next 15 months, returning in September 2025. Perales made just three appearances, including his final two at Triple-A. So far in Arizona, he’s logged 5 1/3 innings, yielding a 6.75 ERA with nine strikeouts and seven walks. The results don’t matter to me. Andrew Painter struggled in the AFL last season in his return from Tommy John; it happens.
The velocity is already back for Perales, who has touched triple-digits with his fastball on numerous occasions in Arizona. In addition to the heater and a cutter, the 22-year-old has a solid mix of breaking pitches, including a slider and splitter. The splitter is his best off-speed pitch, featuring impressive tumbling action and generating an equal amount of whiffs and groundballs. The slider is generally a plus offering, though it’s been the most inconsistent this fall. Red Sox brass has high hopes for Perales and believes he can make an immediate impact in their rotation, so much so that they considered bringing him back for the playoffs. While he likely starts the season in Triple-A to get fully stretched out, Perales makes a lot of sense as a mid-season call-up to a Red Sox staff that’s always lacking depth and talent.
