Padres Top Prospect Wins Major Award As Red-Hot Season Continues

Fort Wayne TinCaps shortstop Leo De Vries has been named Midwest League Player of the Month for his performance in April.

The 18-year-old, who the Padres signed as an international free agent out of Azua, Dominican Republic in 2024, is the youngest player in the Midwest League, and the first TinCap to receive the honor since Joey Cantillo in June 2019

De Vries slashed .306/.378/.625 throughout the month, and led the league in slugging, OPS and triples. He also led his team in hits (22) and RBIs (19) during the stretch. His .306 batting average and 45 total bases were both good for third in the league.

“El Mutante” hit for the cycle with two home runs on April 22 at Lansing, a game in which the TinCaps won, 15-14. He tallied 14 total bases and eight RBIs, which tied a single-game franchise record.

“It was really cool,” De Vries said of his record-tying performance. “The biggest thing is I’m glad it helped the team win.”

The five hits on the evening set a new career high. He fell a triple shy of the cycle a week later in Dayton, going 3-for-3 with three RBIs.

The Dominican is the Padres’ No. 1 ranked prospect and the No. 16 ranked prospect in MLB, and is projected to reach the majors in 2027.

De Vries has carried his momentum into May, extending an on-base streak reaching back to April 20 to 12 games.

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