Ex-Padres prospect Leo De Vries closes out MiLB season with absurd numbers

The San Diego Padres knew back in July that they traded a potential MLB superstar to acquire Mason Miller and JP Sears from the Athletics. With all due respect to Eduarniel Núñez, Henry Baez, and Braden Nett, the sparkling prize of the package sent to the Athletics from San Diego was 18-year-old Leo De Vries. And after a very brief cold stretch to begin his career in the Athletics organization, De Vries has done nothing but remind everyone that he is a generational talent.

Naturally, some Padres fans have cringed as De Vries has caught fire lately. When San Diego signed De Vries in January of 2024, most people assumed he’d represent the Padres in many future All-Star games. Now ranked the No. 3 overall prospect in baseball, De Vries has delivered on his potential so far in his young career, but he’s not doing it in a Padres uniform these days, thanks to San Diego’s ultra-aggressive, win-now mindset at the deadline.

Of course, if the Padres win or even reach the World Series this season, it’ll be hard to find a fan complaining about trading away De Vries. On the other hand, the phenom is doing a fabulous job recently of making no one associated with the Padres forget about him.

Athletics' Leo De Vries finishes MiLB season in dominant fashion

De Vries quickly convinced the Athletics front office this season that he was too advanced for High-A, and he was bumped up to Double-A Midland RockHounds on August 19. Well, it turns out that De Vries may be too good for Double-A, too.

Over his final 10 regular-season games for the RockHounds, De Vries slashed a torrid .383/ .420/ .851 with five home runs, 11 extra-base hits, and an impressive 18 percent strikeout rate in 50 plate appearances.

This amazing stretch gave De Vries eye-opening numbers in his 21 Double-A games for the RockHounds in 2025, especially for an 18-year-old: .281/ .359/ .551 with 13 extra-base hits, five homers, and a 19.4 percent strikeout rate in 103 plate appearances. 

It’s not an exaggeration to say that De Vries’ end to the MiLB season vaulted him to the top of the mountain as arguably the most exciting prospect in MLB heading towards 2026.

It also means that the Athletics could have a tough time keeping him away from the majors as early as 2026, as crazy as that might sound.

Not to take anything away from Miller and Sears, but the Padres may have given away a franchise player at the trade deadline. It’s still far too early to make any definitive assessments about De Vries to that extent, but the forecast isn’t looking great for San Diego.

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