Arizona Fall League Daily: October 8
By Riley Thompson ·
Orioles outfielder Vance Honeycutt stood out on the field Thursday, going 1-for-1 with a solo home run, four walks, and one RBI in Peoria's lopsided win. That followed an earlier home run in his AFL stint. While three games is too small a sample to build anything on, the contact-rate concern that defines his 35 hit grade was nowhere to be found: pitchers could not get him to chase, and when they threw a strike, he hit it 101.4 mph at 43 degrees into the left-field seats, per Statcast. His 80Grade evaluation grades him as a potential up-down center fielder for the Orioles whose future hinges on raising the contact floor, and one controlled Thursday afternoon does not move that needle, but it is the right pattern to show.
Peoria Javelinas 10, Glendale Desert Dogs 2
The game was over by the middle of the second inning. Emmett Olson, a left-handed pitcher for Miami, walked into trouble and never walked out: a DeCriscio HBP opened the scoring, then Orioles infielder Brandon Butterworth cleared the bases with a grand slam at 97.6 mph exit velocity off Olson, and Ike Irish followed with a solo home run at 98.8 mph. By the time Honeycutt took Olson deep for a solo shot in the third, Peoria led 7-1 and the outcome was settled. Olson went 2.2 innings and allowed seven earned runs on three home runs. Chase Harlan, the Dodgers' third baseman, gave Glendale its only meaningful response: a solo home run at 102.5 mph in the second and a sacrifice fly in the eighth. Harlan's power grades at 60 and both plays confirmed he can generate that exit velocity at this stage of his development. On the Peoria pitching side, Orioles right-hander Patrick Reilly went three innings and struck out six, leaning on a four-seam fastball that averaged 96.2 mph and touched 97.7. His command remains the primary knock on his profile: his walk rate has been erratic this season across levels, and even in a winning effort he gave up a 102.5-mph home run to Harlan. The 95-98 fastball gives him a real avenue in relief, and Thursday confirmed the velocity translates to the AFL.
Salt River Rafters 4, Mesa Solar Sox 3
Salt River built a 3-0 lead in the first inning on a pair of home runs: Yankees shortstop Dax Kilby led off with a solo shot to right at 94 mph, and after Demetrio Crisantes walked and two outs, Twins outfielder Yasser Mercedes hit a two-run blast at 98.5 mph, 403 feet. Mesa chipped back with Jake Munroe's solo homer in the fourth and a wild-pitch run in the fifth, then Mason White tied it with a 104-mph homer to right center in the eighth. The tie held until the ninth, when Kyle West lined a 110.1-mph single to right against Red Sox reliever Harry Blum to score Yasser Mercedes and end it. It was a walk-off that came down entirely to contact quality: Blum got hit, and West gave Salt River the 4-3 final. For Mercedes, the two-run homer represents the raw-power moment his 50 power grade projects as possible, though his 40 hit grade and persistent contact concerns remain the evaluation's main obstacle heading into 2027. Kilby, ranked No. 36 by 80Grade, had the first home run and six RBI across four AFL games; his 55 hit grade and feel for the strike zone are the foundation, and the AFL stint will give scouts a look at whether the bat-first approach holds against different pitching environments.
Scottsdale Scorpions 4, Surprise Saguaros 1
Scottsdale put the game away in the third inning, scoring four runs on a Braylon Payne triple at 107.9 mph, a Nehomar Ochoa Jr. triple, and a wild pitch, all charged to Surprise starter Aidan Major. Payne's triple to right traveled 349 feet off the bat and scored two; Ochoa's line drive to center scored a third before Major uncorked the wild pitch that made it 4-0. Major finished at 44 pitches across three innings with all four runs unearned, but the inning was still three hits and a fielding error that spiraled past control. Texas Rangers right-hander Mason McConnaughey was the most notable arm out of the Surprise bullpen: he threw 2.1 innings, struck out five, generated eight whiffs on 41 pitches, and his slider averaged 83.7 mph with the four-seamer touching 95.0. McConnaughey's 55 slider grades as his best present weapon, and Thursday's whiff output backed that up. His 2026 regular season at Single-A Hickory was modest across games, so the AFL is a chance to show the stuff in a more competitive setting. Paxton Kling drove in Surprise's lone run with a single in the fourth, while San Francisco's Darien Smith got the win with three innings of four-strikeout relief.
Scouting Notes
Mason McConnaughey, RHP (Texas Rangers): McConnaughey's slider averaged 83.7 mph and generated eight whiffs on 41 pitches in 2.1 innings Thursday, a strong showing for a pitcher the 80Grade report grades at 55 for the pitch. His 2026 regular-season time at Single-A was limited, so the AFL workload adds meaningful developmental reps.
Vance Honeycutt, OF (Baltimore Orioles): Honeycutt drew four walks and hit a ball 101.4 mph at a 43-degree launch angle Thursday, the disciplined plate appearance his 35 hit grade does not yet guarantee consistently. His last 2026 assignment was at Double-A; if that patience holds, it changes the contact calculus even when the hit tool lags.
Yasser Mercedes, OF (Minnesota Twins): Mercedes hit a 98.5-mph, 403-foot home run to left center in the first inning, and the walk-off that scored him came because he reached base and ran. His 80Grade profile grades him as quad-A risk given a 40 hit grade, but the power tool at 50 showed up in a real game situation Thursday. He is Rule 5 eligible this December, which adds organizational urgency to the AFL evaluation.
Dax Kilby, SS (New York Yankees): Ranked No. 36 by 80Grade and No. 1 in the Yankees system, Kilby hit a 94-mph home run to right field and has driven in six runs across four AFL games. His 2026 season was shortened by a hamstring injury, with FCL rehab before he returned to Single-A Tampa, so consistency of contact and approach over an extended AFL look is more significant than any single swing.
Mason White, 2B (Boston Red Sox): White's eighth-inning home run came off the bat at 104 mph and traveled 406 feet, the hardest-hit ball in that game. His power grades at 55, but a below-average hit grade keeps the projection modest. The AFL will test whether the power plays without the approach vulnerabilities that emerged at Double-A.
Up Next
Three games are scheduled for Friday, October 9. The Glendale Desert Dogs visit the Salt River Rafters, where Braves left-hander Briggs McKenzie, ranked No. 238 by 80Grade, starts for Glendale against Diamondbacks right-hander Patrick Forbes, No. 357, for Salt River, who lead the AFL at 4-1. Tekoah Roby of the Cardinals starts for the Javelinas against the Saguaros, with Peyton Prescott of the Mets taking the ball for Surprise. The Mesa Solar Sox visit Scottsdale, where Fernando Perez of the Blue Jays faces Marcus Johnson of the Rays.