Athletics' Teen Phenom Takes Next Big Step Toward the Major Leagues

De Vries is the No. 3 prospect in baseball, as ranked by MLB Pipeline, and holds the No. 6 ranking from Baseball America.

The San Diego Padres signed De Vries, from the Dominican Republic, to a $4.2 million international deal in 2024. He spent his first pro season at the Arizona Fall League and Single-A Lake Elsinore, with the Padres promoting him to High-A Fort Wayne to start the 2025 season.

The Padres, who have operated this season with a World-Series-or-bust attitude, were aggressive at the trade deadline. They sent De Vries and three right-handed pitching prospects to the Athletics for All-Star reliever Mason Miller and left-hander JP Sears.

The A’s assigned him to High-A Lansing, where he appeared in 14 games before the promotion. He hit .250 with two homers and 12 RBIs. In this past three games against High-A Dayton (Cincinnati Reds affiliate), he was 7-for 12, with two homers, seven RBIs and 11 total bases.

Between the two stops this season, De Vries hit .246 with 10 home runs and 58 RBIs. He also had 21 doubles and seven triples.

The Double-A regular season has about a month left, concluding Sept. 14. Fans in Midland will get their first look at De Vries when the RockHounds open a six-game series Tuesday against Wichita (Minnesota Twins affiliate). The Athletics’ front office will be watching, too.