A's Colby Thomas and Mason Barnett Move into Team's Top Five Prospect Rankings

MLB Pipeline released their Top 30 prospects today for AL West teams, and the A's saw some serious movement.

Jun 1, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of an Oakland Athletics hat and glove on the field against the Atlanta Braves in the sixth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Two of the Athletics' highly touted prospects, No. 3 Colby Thomas and No. 4 Mason Barnett moved into the top three and top five in the newly released MLB Pipeline rankings, respectively.

Colby Thomas played in 73 games last season with Triple-A Las Vegas, hitting .272 and smashing 17 home runs. With the Premier12 USA Baseball team this winter, Thomas had two no-doubt home runs, continuing his outstanding 2024.

COLBY THOMAS LEAVES THE YARD!

1-0 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/SptUAHGQW3

— USA Baseball (@USABaseball) November 21, 2024

Thomas has had seven at-bats in Spring Training so far, where he has yet to record a hit; however, he has walked four times, recorded one RBI, stolen a base, and scored two runs. So while he has not been able to record a hit yet, he has shown an ability to impact the game in different ways.

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Thomas will most likely start the 2025 season with Triple-A Las Vegas but is not far from making his MLB debut. The 24-year-old tore it up last season, batting a combined .277 with a .342 OBP between Double-A and Triple-A. He also tacked on 31 homers and 92 RBI, with 73 of his 132 games being played with Las Vegas.

If he continues to perform like this, he could be with the A's by the summer.

Barnett, who was acquired in the trade that sent Lucas Erceg to the Kansas City Royals, appeared in two games this spring before being reassigned. Barnett is viewed as the A's best pitching prospect by MLB Pipeline and the A's coaching staff may feel the same way.

In an article by MLB.com's Martín Gallegos, Gallegos mentioned he will continue to prepare for the upcoming season at the A's Minor League complex. Gallegos also interviewed A's manager, Mark Kotsay, where the skipper mentioned that Barnett is "not far away" from making his big-league debut.

Barnett made a great first impression in the A's farm system with Double-A Midland, posting a 2.61 ERA in 41.1 innings with 52 strikeouts after being traded over. He could be assigned to Triple-A Las Vegas if the A's think he is ready, having pitched over 150 innings at the Double-A level with the Royals and A's combined.

If the A's decide to send him to Double-A Midland, he likely will not spend too much time there.

Both Thomas and Barnett have bright futures with the A's; it is just a matter of time before they both get their shots with the big-league club. Each is seen as being on the right track to making their debut at some point in 2025 with the A's in West Sacramento.

Next: Injury Updates on a Pair of Left-Handers, Impacts on Roster