Two Top Prospects Headline Chattanooga Lookouts Opening Day Roster

Collier had a down season in the power department compared to his previous campaigns to this point. The 21-year-old suffered a torn UCL in his thumb in March and did not start playing until May. Coming off of a season that saw him hit 20 home runs with a .798 OPS in 2024, Collier only hit four home runs, and his OPS dipped to .775. 

Collier is my dark horse candidate to be a quick riser in 2026. He is starting the season healthy and fully recovered from the injury that hampered him last season. The Reds will be playing him at first base and third base. He was selected with the 18th pick in the 2022 MLB draft at just 17 years old and won the Reds Minor League Position Player of the Year Award in 2024. 

Leo Balcazar

The Reds selected Leo Balcazar to the 40-man roster last offseason, protecting him from the Rule-5 Draft. While it may be surprising to see a player be protected and begin that next season in Double-A, the Reds had to make the move. The Reds have good depth at shortstop and second base with talents such as Edwin Arroyo ahead of him. He was more flexible last season, playing third, second, and shortstop. 

He was promoted to Double-A last season in July after beginning the season in High-A. He hit .263 with 12 home runs and a .720 OPS. With Arroyo as a potential call-up candidate at some point this season, it may not be long before Balcazar is promoted to Triple-A.

Notables

Austin Hendrick returns for his third season at the Double-A level. He played 121 games in 2024 and 93 games last season. He has a career OPS of .621 in Double-A to this point. The 2020 first-round pick is going into his sixth season in the organization and is still a long shot to reach Triple-A with the amount of talent ahead of him. This will be a make-or-break year for the 24-year-old who just hasn't found any consistency to this point in his minor league career.

Johnathan Harmon is making the jump to Double-A after returning from Tommy John last season and pitching in High-A. The 25-year-old was 1-0 with a 3.45 ERA in eight games, seven of which were starts. The Reds limited his outings as he was still recovering from the surgery, but he did get to pitch in the Arizona Fall League.

"Looking back at it, in the moment, I thought it was going to be the worst thing of all time." Harmon told us over the offseason, "I can't sit still, I'm a very high-energy guy, but being in that brace, you aren't doing anything for six weeks. Looking back at it now, reflecting on it, it's the best thing that's ever happened to me in my career. Being away from the game for so long kind of made me think I was taking things for granted a little. When I came back, I never enjoyed the game so much, and just being back on the field this year, it just brought me back so much joy and that competitive fire that I missed."

The Lookouts begin their season on Friday, April 3, at the Columbus Clippers. They make their home debut in their new ballpark on Tuesday, April 14. You can view the Lookouts' full Opening Day roster here.