Image credit: Guardians OF Jaison Chourio (Photo by Mike Janes/Four Seam Images)

Brewers outfielder Jackson Chourio rose to prominence as a prospect two years ago, highlighted in part by winning Best Batting Prospect and Most Exciting Player in Baseball’s 2022 Best Tools voting in the Low-A Carolina League.

This year, his younger brother Jaison Chourio won the same categories in the same league in the same exercise. The junior Chourio, one of the Guardians’ top prospects, won two additional Carolina League categories: Best Strike Zone Judgment and Best Defensive Outfielder.

Winning four categories in a 12-team league sounds impressive, but what does it tell us about future potential?

For the Chourios, it tells us a lot.

Winners of the Best Batting Prospect and Most Exciting Player categories in minor league Best Tools voting have gone on to produce more big league WAR than other category winners. But as Baseball America readers know, the minor leagues are not monolithic. Full-season minor leagues vary in size from six to 20 teams. They differ significantly in age, experience level and overall maturity of constituents, just as they vary in proximity to the big leagues.

One underrated difference between minor leagues is the size of its geographic footprint. The Triple-A International and Pacific Coast leagues span multiple time zones. The High-A South Atlantic League contains North and South divisions that comport with their descriptors.

All that is to say that not every minor league is created equal, just as not every Best Tools category is created equal. To level out some of the inherent differences between leagues and categories, let’s take a look at distinguished winners in minor league Best Tools history, which stretches back to 1983.

We will focus on the top Best Tools vote-getters—with weights applied to category wins that correlate with WAR—at each full-season level.

Low-A

Top 2024 Vote-Getter

Jaison Chourio, OF, Lynchburg (Guardians)
2024 Carolina League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Strike-Zone Judgment, Best Defensive OF, Most Exciting Player

Chourio is a 19-year-old, switch-hitting center fielder who first jumped on the prospect radar a year ago in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League. This year, he has shown off his batting eye with a Carolina League-leading walk total and more free passes than strikeouts. Chourio also ranks among the league leaders in OBP, doubles and stolen bases, painting a nice picture of his upside.

Top Historical Vote-Getters

Andruw Jones, OF, Macon (Braves)
1995 South Atlantic League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Power Prospect, Best Baserunner, Best Defensive OF, Most Exciting Player

Playing all season as an 18-year-old, Jones turned in a season that instantly turned him the No. 1 prospect in baseball heading into 1996. His totals are mind-boggling for a player so young and so gifted defensively: 25 home runs, 41 doubles, 56 stolen bases, 70 walks, 104 runs and 100 RBIs in 139 games.

Adrian Beltre, 3B, Savannah (Rangers)
1996 South Atlantic League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Power Prospect, Best Defensive 3B, Best Infield Arm, Most Exciting Player

The Dodgers incurred a fine and one-year scouting ban in the Dominican Republic for signing Beltre when he was 15, a year before he was eligible. It might have been worth it. Beltre played the entire 1996 season as a 17-year-old and reached High-A in the second half. While at Low-A, he batted .307/.406/.586 with 16 home runs in a cavernous Savannah home park, all while showing off defensive chops that would make him a Gold Glover.

Other Huge Low-A Best Tools Seasons

Willie Ansley, 1989, Asheville (Astros)
Rafael Furcal, 1999, Macon (Braves)
Mike Trout, 2010, Cedar Rapids (Angels)
Josh Hamilton, 2000, Charleston (Rays)
Alex Escobar, 1998, Capital City (Mets)
Prince Fielder, 2003, Beloit (Brewers)
Carlos Gonzalez, 2005, South Bend (D-backs)
Alex Rodriguez, 1994, Appleton (Mariners)

High-A

Top 2024 Vote-Getter

Cole Carrigg, OF, Spokane (Rockies)
2024 Northwest League
Best Defensive OF, Best Outfield Arm, Most Exciting Player

Kyle Karros, 3B, Spokane (Rockies)
2024 Northwest League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Defensive 3B, Best Infield Arm

Caveat: It’s easier for Northwest League players to win Best Tools categories because there are just six teams. Regardless, these two Rockies 2023 draft picks—second-rounder Carrigg out of San Diego State and fifth-rounder Karros out of UCLA, where his father Eric also starred—are off to strong starts in pro ball. Karros has a shot to win the NWL triple crown, while the switch-hitting Carrigg has locked down center field while getting on base, hitting for power and stealing bases.

Top Historical Vote-Getters

Jose Offerman, SS, Bakersfield (Dodgers)
1989 California League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Baserunner, Fastest Baserunner, Best Defensive SS, Best Infield Arm, Most Exciting Player

Before playing his way off shortstop and then washing out with the Dodgers, before finding success with the Royals and Red Sox, before attacking an opposing player with a bat in an independent league game in 2007, Offerman was one of the top prospects in baseball. He ranked No. 10 on the inaugural Top 100 Prospects lists in 1990, fresh off a good season the year before. He spent half of 1989 in the California League, hitting .307 with 37 stolen bases in 62 games.

Adrian Beltre, 3B, Vero Beach (Dodgers)
1997 Florida State League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Power Prospect, Best Defensive 3B, Best Infield Arm, Most Exciting Player

After his incendiary 1996 season, Beltre turned in an incredible encore in the Florida State League. As an 18-year-old, he slugged 26 home runs and stole 25 bases in 123 games, while compiling a .968 OPS in an extreme pitcher’s league. He walked 67 times, one more time than he struck out. By 1999, Beltre was an everyday big leaguer at age 20 and on his path to the Hall of Fame.

Other Huge High-A Best Tools Seasons

Jackie Bradley Jr., 2012, Salem (Red Sox)
Joey Gallo, 2014, Myrtle Beach (Rangers)
Eric Hosmer, 2010, Wilmington (Royals)
Elly De La Cruz, 2022, Dayton (Reds)
Zac Veen, 2022, Spokane (Rockies)
Travis Lee, 1997, High Desert (D-backs)
Hak-Ju Lee, 2011, Port Charlotte (Rays)

Double-A

Top 2024 Vote-Getter

Carson Williams, SS, Montgomery
2024 Southern League
Best Defensive SS, Best Infield Arm, Most Exciting Player

Williams is a lockdown defensive shortstop with a Three True Outcomes batting profile. He will rack up walks and strikeouts while hitting 25-plus home runs in his best seasons, a la Dansby Swanson. The Rays’ shortstop situation is unsettled, opening the door for the 21-year-old Williams when he is ready.

Top Historical Vote-Getter

Vladimir Guerrero, OF, Harrisburg (Expos)
1996 Eastern League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Power Prospect, Best Defensive OF, Best Outfield Arm, Most Exciting Player

Guerrero began the 1996 season in High-A, but quickly hit his way to the Eastern League after just 20 games. He was presenting himself as a 20-year-old at the time but was actually a year older. What Guerrero accomplished for Harrisburg was impressive at any age. He hit .360/.438/.612 with 32 doubles, eight triples, 19 home runs and 17 stolen bases in 118 games. He walked more than he struck out and logged 13 outfield assists in right field. It all added up to a September callup to Montreal, setting the stage for a Hall of Fame career.

Other Huge Double-A Best Tools Seasons

Mike Moustakas, 2010, Northwest Arkansas (Royals)
Jay Payton, 1995, Binghamton (Mets)
George Springer, 2013, Corpus Christi (Astros)
Walker Buehler, 2017, Tulsa (Dodgers)
Paul Goldschmidt, 2011, Mobile (D-backs)
Miguel Cabrera, 2003, Carolina (Marlins)
Kris Bryant, 2014, Tennessee (Cubs)
Delmon Young, 2005, Montgomery (Rays)

Triple-A

Top 2024 Vote-Getters

James Wood, OF, Rochester (Nationals)
2024 International League
Best Power Prospect, Most Exciting Player

Shay Whitcomb, SS, Sugar Land (Astros)
2024 Pacific Coast League
Best Power Prospect, Most Exciting Player

Wood was the top prospect in baseball when the Nationals called up the 21-year-old on July 1. He is a 6-foot-7 lefthanded hitter with the towering power potential to match. Whitcomb, in contrast, was the final pick in the five-round 2020 draft and is already 25 years old and only now receiving his first callup to Houston. His path to a big league role is dependent on hitting for above-average power and maintaining the versatility to play all over the infield plus the outfield corners.

Top Historical Vote-Getter

Elly De La Cruz, SS, Louisville (Reds)
2023 International League
Best Batting Prospect, Best Power Prospect, Fastest Baserunner, Best Infield Arm, Most Exciting Player

De La Cruz required just 85 games in the upper minors before he made his MLB debut. Thirty-eight of those games came with Louisville in 2023, in the months preceding his June 6 MLB debut. During his short time in the International League, De La Cruz made a big impression by winning five Best Tools categories while hitting .298/.398/.633 with 12 home runs and 11 stolen bases. This season in Cincinnati, he has a chance to hit 30 home runs and reach 80 stolen bases, a threshold not crossed in MLB since 1988.