Prospects to watch: From the high school son of a former MLB All-Star to the next Mets ace

The 2026 World Baseball Classic is loaded with household names, but the event also provides a unique opportunity to get a glimpse at some of Major League Baseball's stars of tomorrow.

One of the most intriguing is Joseph Contreras, the 35th-ranked prospect in the 2026 MLB draft, a prep right-hander in Georgia and the son of former big league righty Jose Contreras. Jose is best known for his time with the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox. Jose was born in Cuba, but Joseph's mother, Isabel, was born in Brazil.

That's why Joseph is pitching for the Brazilian team in the WBC, an incredibly rare situation for a top high school pitching prospect.

On top of that, Brazil plays the United States in pool play on March 6, so Joseph has a chance to face some of the best hitters on Earth. For scouts, getting to see him in that kind of setting is helpful, but for evaluators, getting Statcast data of his pitches while throwing a major league ball in a major league stadium months before the draft is also key.

This is especially notable for Contreras, because the biggest question about his profile is the quality of his primary breaking pitch. He mostly threw a mid-80s slider over the summer, but is now throwing an 88-91 mph cutter that he hasn't thrown much against top competition and with ball-tracking technology in use.

I scouted Contreras a few weeks ago as his preseason outings were creating late-first-round buzz -- and rightfully so. He opened the game sitting at 94-98 mph and hitting 99, mixing his signature combo of a changeup and splitter. For me, the splitter is better and is a 65-grade pitch. Contreras checks the boxes for a seven-figure prep righty: he has a clean arm stroke, projection in his 6-foot-5 frame, and the delivery and athleticism components to project starter traits. His fastball shape is just OK, due in large part to his short stride to the plate (some teams really target big extension in young pitchers for this reason), and his command still comes and goes, as you'd expect from a young fireballer.

The industry is still split on Contreras to a degree, depending on if an evaluator falls in love with the positives -- great frame/arm action/athleticism combination, standout arm speed, a knockout off-speed pitch, and big league family history -- or focuses on the negatives -- a lack of extension, mediocre fastball shape, command that requires projection, a breaking ball that will likely be his third-best offering even with work -- and opts to turn to a safer profile for a top pick. Contreras' look in the WBC (and the data he generates) could help unmuddy this picture a bit.

Here are five more prospects, some of whom have major league experience, worth watching closely in the WBC, plus others of note from teams across the tournament.

Nolan McLean, RHP, USA (New York Mets)

Top 100 rank: No. 13

Why he's worth watching: McLean has dynamic stuff as he showed in a big league audition last season. The main question is whether he can keep performing at that level and become a front-line starter.

What we can learn from his WBC performance: Seeing McLean in high-pressure situations against elite hitters before the regular season starts can give us a glimpse of the development path he might be headed down.

Travis Bazzana, 2B, Australia (Cleveland Guardians)

Top 100 rank: No. 23

Why he's worth watching: The former first overall pick is knocking on the door of the big leagues and has a plus in-game power and patience combo.

What we can learn from his WBC performance: There is a question about how good Bazzana's bat-to-ball ability will be in the big leagues (merely fine vs. quite good) and this high-pressure environment might give us a preview of his big league outlook.

Michael Arroyo, 2B, Colombia (Seattle Mariners)

Top 100 rank: No. 62

Why he's worth watching: Arroyo is an excellent performer, but scouts have some questions about his upside. He's on the second base/left field defensive spectrum and his stocky 5-foot-8 build, shorter arms and funky setup make evaluators question what he'll be in the big leagues.

What we can learn from his WBC performance: I'm on the bullish side with Arroyo and think he's just a quirky-looking performer who will get it done. Still, just 56 games above A-ball are not enough for me to know that's the case.

Owen Caissie, OF, Canada (Miami Marlins)

Top 100 rank: No. 77

Why he's worth watching: The headliner of this winter's Edward Cabrera deal made the top 100 list because of his absurd left-handed raw power, above-average speed and above-average arm. He's not higher because his bat-to-ball ability is a real question.

What we can learn from his WBC performance: Seeing him face some big-league-caliber arms before spring training gets into high gear will let us know if Caissie might have a path to grabbing an every-day job in the first half of this season.

Harry Ford, C, Great Britain (Washington Nationals)

Top 100 rank: No. 82

Why he's worth watching: The headline return from Seattle in the Jose Ferrer deal this winter might break camp with Washington as its starting catcher, fueled by above-average on-base skills and raw power.

What we can learn from his WBC performance: The questions about Ford's defense are more in the framing and running game area, so I'd keep an eye on those things as a guide toward his early-season big league playing time.

Other position player prospects of note

Canada: Tyler Black (Brewers)

Colombia: Dayan Frias (Guardians)

Great Britain: B.J. Murray (Cubs), Matt Koperniak (Cardinals), Kristian Robinson (Diamondbacks), Ian Lewis (Marlins)

Israel: Cole Carrigg (Rockies), Jake Gelof (Dodgers), Zach Levenson (Cardinals), R.J. Schreck (Blue Jays)

Italy: Sam Antonacci (White Sox), Andrew Fischer (Brewers), Nick Morabito (Mets), Dante Nori (Phillies)

Mexico: Jared Serna (Marlins)

Netherlands: Druw Jones (Diamondbacks)

Panama: Leonardo Bernal (Cardinals), Enrique Bradfield Jr. (Orioles)

Puerto Rico: Edwin Arroyo (Reds)

Taiwan: Hao Yu Lee (Tigers), Jonathon Long (Cubs)

As you'd guess, most of the top teams have big leaguers filling out their lineups and bench, so this group is mostly from the teams not expected to make it into the final few rounds. Bernal made the back of the top 100, Bradfield and Fischer made the Nos. 101-200 list, and Antonacci, Lee and Nori just missed. Schreck and Long are nice sleepers to keep an eye on for possible big league impact in 2026.

Other pitching prospects of note

Canada: Adam Macko (Blue Jays), Matt Wilkinson (Guardians), Antoine Jean (Rockies)

Great Britain: Gary Gill Hill (Rays), Owen Wild (Rays), Brendan Beck (Yankees), Najer Victor (Angels)

Israel: Harrison Cohen (Yankees), Daniel Federman (Orioles)

Italy: Sam Aldegheri (Angels), Dylan DeLucia (Guardians)

Mexico: Luis Gastelum (Cardinals)

Netherlands: Antwone Kelly (Pirates)

Taiwan: Wei-En Lin (A's), Po-Yu Chen (Pirates), Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang (A's)

Again, prospects are filling out the rosters of these good-but-not-great teams. Gastelum is a great sleeper because his plus-plus changeup, early-spring buzz and his team help give him a path to big league saves in the second half of this season. Lin is another big riser during the winter rankings process who could be in the A's rotation as soon as September. Kelly is on the starter/reliever spectrum and could debut in the second half, as well.

NPB/KBO targets for free agency

Cuba: LHP Livan Moinelo, RHP Raidel Martinez

Korea: 3B Do Yeong Kim, OF Hyun Min Ahn, SS Ju Won Kim, 3B Si Hwan Roh

Japan: IF Shugo Maki, OF Shota Morishita, RHP Hiroto Takahashi, LHP Hiroya Miyagi, RHP Atsuki Taneichi, RHP Taisei Ota

Taiwan: RHP Jo-Hsi Hsu

These players won't be on a prospect list because if they come to the United States, they'll come at ages 25-plus as MLB free agents. But they should be of interest to readers as non-big leaguers who could be of impact in the future -- thus prospects in spirit. Kim and Morishita were honorable mentions in the best by birth year list. Moinelo and Martinez are NPB stalwarts who always have some level of buzz. Hsu moved from Taiwan's CPBL to NPB this winter and could join some of the native Japanese arms as the next potential big money free agent pitchers to come over. Ahn is 22 years old and had a huge KBO debut (22 homers, more walks than strikeouts) in 2025. Roh is 25 and has hit 87 homers over the past three seasons. There's a chance he comes to MLB next winter.