Five breakout candidates for the 2025 MLB season

By Aidan Sinclair

Every year in baseball, surprise players emerge as valuable producers. This was the case in 2024, with Mark Vientos, Garrett Crochet, Ronel Blanco and many more breaking out and realizing their potential. Crochet, for example, had been a solid big league pitcher since making his debut in 2020, but it wasn’t until he was converted into a starting pitcher last season that he became dominant. He was an all-star, surpassed 200 strikeouts and was traded this past off-season from the Chicago White Sox to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for four high-level prospects. There are bound to be more in 2025, on the mound, in the field and at the plate.

Here are five breakout candidates for the 2025 MLB season. 

Colt Keith - 1B - Detroit Tigers 

At just 22 years old, Keith made his debut for the Tigers in 2024, after rising through the ranks since joining the organization in 2021. In 2023, between AA and AAA, he hit 27 home runs with a .932 OPS in just 126 games, proving to the Tigers he was ready for the big leagues in 2024. While he struggled in his first month of play, he demonstrated his talents in May, posting a .343 batting average with 25 hits in just 21 games started. His play took a dip in June before bouncing back with his best month of the season in July, hitting seven home runs with a 1.048 OPS. 

The narrative for Keith’s season in 2024 revolved around his inconsistencies in the major leagues, but with his proven track record and two quality months with the Tigers, he looks to be a favourable candidate to break out in 2025. Additionally, he will be switching from second base to first base, relieving him of the defensive woes that brought down his value last year. 

Vinnie Pasquantino - 1B - Kansas City Royals

Unlike the rest of the players on this list, Pasquantino already has three seasons of major league experience under his belt, though he is yet to play a full 162-game slate. In his first 264 games with the Royals, he has hit 38 home runs with a .780 OPS and looks to be a power threat for the up-and-coming team that made ALDS a season ago. In his healthiest year to date in 2024, he hit 19 home runs along with 97 RBI in 131 games, serving as the third-best hitter in the lineup behind recent break-out star Bobby Witt Jr and veteran Salvador Perez.

After cracking the postseason for the first time since 2015, Kansas City has a chance at the division title in 2025. With limited off-season additions, they will be relying on a healthy, productive season from Pasquantino to supplement their two solidified stars. It wouldn’t be surprising to see 30-plus home runs out of the Italian slugger this summer. 

David Festa - SP - Minnesota Twins 

The Twins feature a deep rotation with Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober and Pablo Lopez as their top three starters, yet Festa has a real opportunity to reach the level of Minnesota’s aces and potentially surpass them. Standing at 6-foot-6, his menacing frame allows him to get up to seven feet of extension down the mound, severely reducing the distance required to get the ball to home plate. This makes his fastball appear to opposing hitters that it is around 98 mph, compared to the 95-96 mph seen on television.

He certainly figured out how to use this to his advantage in the second half of his season in 2024. In his first two months in the majors last year, he gave up a .297 batting average, but quickly improved, bringing that down to just .227 in the last two months of the season. His strikeout numbers were strong, with 77 in just 64.1 innings in 2024. He is Spring Training numbers were dragged down by a bad outing or two, but he still struck out 11 over 11.1 innings. Look for Festa to emerge as one of Minnesota’s top pitchers by the end of the 2025 season. 

Jung Hoo Lee - CF - San Francisco Giants 

Lee came over to the Giants in the 2024 off-season on a six year, $113 million contract after spending seven seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization. While he looked to be one of the more promising pieces on the roster going into 2024, he played in just 37 games before suffering a shoulder injury, requiring surgery that ruled him out for the rest of the season. In his first stint in the MLB, he batted .262 with a pair of home runs—a decent showing, given the transition to America. Though he doesn’t profile as a power hitter, he does have slugging in his arsenal—back in 2022 in Korea, he hit 23 home runs with 113 rbi and a .996 OPS.

Going into a healthy 2025 with the Giants, Lee will yet again be expected to contribute as one of the more important hitters in the lineup and will provide defensive value in centre field. A revitalized Giants team with the likes of Matt Chapman and Willy Adames could propel Lee to an all-star calibre season in his first full year. 

Junior Caminero - 3B - Tampa Bay Rays 

Lastly, Caminero is the youngest of this group and has not been held back by injuries or poor performance to date. Entering his age 21 season in 2025, he brings a surprising amount of experience and pedigree. Thus far across two seasons in MLB, he has played a total of 50 games and hit seven home runs and nine doubles with a .708 OPS. Last year at AAA, Caminero hit 13 home runs with an .828 OPS. Breaking through to the highest level at 19 years old is a feat in its own, though this year he will be expected to make a leap as the Rays have taken serious hits to their offensive production. 

In recent years, they have lost out on consistent power hitters in Randy Arozarena, Isaac Paredes and Austin Meadows, not to mention their young budding star in Wander Franco, who may never play in MLB again due to legal proceedings against him. While the team will likely feel the effects of these losses, the room for Caminero to step in is a plus. Going into the 2024 season, he was ranked as the fourth best prospect in the game and this upcoming season, he will be given his first full opportunity to display his talents. If it goes well, he could be the Rays best hitter by the end of the season.