Live Looks Report: Inland Empire 66ers (Seattle Mariners) vs. Ontario Tower Buzzers (Los Angeles Dodgers)

There is nothing I love more than sitting at the ballpark, getting some live looks at prospects, and chopping it up with scouts behind home plate, and that was exactly what I did when the Dodgers Single-A affiliate played the Mariners Single-A squad. This series was not filled with any top-50 prospects, but there were some interesting names, headlined by Emil Morales, who is one of the five to ten best Dodgers prospects.

Live Looks Recap: Inland Empire 66ers vs. Ontario Tower Buzzers

Emil Morales, SS Los Angeles Dodgers, 21

Emil Morales is a very fun player to watch. He is a solid average defensive shortstop prospect who could end up being an above-average defender at that spot, and he has some interesting power and is going to be someone who steals a few bases. Not because of tremendous speed, as he is an above-average runner, but there is some baserunning savviness here that goes beyond the stolen base/caught stealing equation that your average model-based fantasy analysis will not care about, because they do not go to the game and are more concerned with walk rate and age relative to level.

Emil Morales has the tools to be an interesting fantasy player, but there are some hit tool concerns I want to bring up. I saw 17 plate appearances, and before I come across as extremely reactionary or hot takey, I acknowledge that he is hitting .377/.443/.669 on the season, but I do not think he can hit soft stuff down in the zone. Watching him from behind home plate and the open side, I was shocked at the amount of swing and miss low in the zone. I saw all his work during that series and he struck out six times, most of them coming on soft stuff down in the zone, like changeups and sliders with vertical bite.

He is striking out one out of every five plate appearances on the season, and normally that is not such a bad thing, but I am worried about this strikeout rate because the state of California League pitching is down more than normal. I know some are clamoring for him to be called up to High-A, but I think he is going to be a slower burn. If my eyes see issues with off-speed low in the zone, what do you think the Dodgers see?

The fantasy ceiling is still very high, but I think there are some hit tool risks here that need to be acknowledged. He is a smooth athlete who can smash a few batted balls, but will pitchers start to bury more stuff down in the zone against him, especially pitchers who have some idea of where their stuff is going? That is part of the question, and how he adjusts is the bigger one.

Korbyn Dickerson, OF, Seattle Mariners, 21

I remember around the time of the draft there were people who thought Korbyn Dickerson was a first-round talent, and clearly major league teams did not think so, because he signed for less than half a million dollars as a fifth-round pick. He is a really good athlete, and if you squint, it is the idea of a fourth outfielder, but there is a tremendous athlete here with some bat speed. It is more of an approach-over-hit profile, and I think a lot of that is because I do not know if he can make consistent contact.

He has some holes in his swing especially away, but if a pitcher leaves a hanging breaking ball he can attack it, but he did look overmatched by premium velocity, as Marlon Nieves (more on him later) was able to dice him up with 98 mph fastballs and two really good slider shapes.

Dickerson is a good athlete, as I mentioned, and he made some plays in center that were nice to see, but you do not see him run all that often on the basepaths. He has one stolen base on the season, and a lot of that is because of fine baserunning acumen. The upside is that of a Parker Meadows or James Outman type. The tools are clearly there for him to be a good fantasy prospect, but the lack of contact provides little floor going forward.

Cam Leiter, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers, 22

Cam Leiter was the Dodgers' second-round selection in the 2025 MLB Draft, and he has been slowplayed in the early going of his professional career. In the outing below there were some general command issues, and he and his catcher were not on the same page at points, which happens from time to time.

Leiter's fastball topped out at 96 in this outing, and he really struggled to throw strikes with any of his pitches. He had a hard 12-6 curveball and a slider that play well off the fastball, and a changeup was seldom thrown in this outing. He faced 12 batters and collected just six outs, lasting two innings.

There is a lot of reliever risk in this profile, and in shorter bursts he could be a nasty late-inning reliever who pitches leverage innings. If he lands in the right situation he could be an interesting closer who gets some saves, but for a team like the Dodgers the best we can hope for is someone who comes in and has value in SV+HD leagues or leagues where holds carry some weight.

Marlon Nieves, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers, 20

Marlon Nieves might not be the highest-profile watch on this Ontario Tower Buzzers roster, but he might be the most interesting pitcher of the crew. His fastball tops out at 98, and he attacks you with two distinct fastballs, a four-seamer and a sinker, as well as a sweeper and a more traditional slider.

When I saw him he went six solid innings, struck out six batters, did not allow a walk, and only gave up one hit. Nieves was mixing and matching his four-pitch mix, playing with batters' eye levels and generating some uncomfortable swings.

He is a fluid mover with a lot of projection remaining on his frame, which may unlock more velocity. I would not rush out to get him in your dynasty leagues because there is reliever risk here, especially given that he does not utilize a changeup at all. I heard scouts say that if he develops a changeup or a splitter he should remain a starter, so that will be worth monitoring.

Chase Harlan, 3B, Los Angeles Dodgers, 19

Chase Harlan was fun to get my first look at of the season. There is a lot to like, he has a great frame, and there might be plus power in the tank at the end of the day. But, there are some hit tool concerns here that need to be addressed for him to ever hit that ceiling. 

Chase Harlan hit a homer when I saw him, and it was nice to see him lift and pull a batted ball. He hits the ball rather hard, posting a EV north of 110 on the homer at the game I saw him at. If Chase Harlan is lifting and pulling on a more consistent basis then he can quickly fly up prospect rankings. 

The issue with him, is will he hit enough when he does move over to first-base because he is clunky at third-base. The baseline to be an interesting fantasy option at first-base is so high, and I have concerns he will hit enough to ever clear that offensive bar. He should be rostered in leagues where 300 prospects are rostered because the power is enticing, and he has a good approach that could make him an interesting OBP over AVG corner-infield type.

Landyn Vidourek, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers, 22

Vidourek, pronounced Vid-Der-ek is a very exciting prospect if you can look past some clear contact issues. He has easy plus power and is an easy plus runner. There is some James Outman in his game, as both are big-time power/speed gambles with alarming hit tool red flags.

Vidourek was able to get to his power in the video below, pulling a homer to left field and showing off what that bat can do. But the issue is the strikeout rate: in the four games I saw him, he struck out 10 times. There is ugly chase in his game, and sitting behind home plate I was able to see just how willing he is to expand the zone.

The fantasy ceiling is high, but if you want to roster him you have to know there is a chance he stalls out because of his hit tool. It is not quite a 20, but right now he is trending toward being a 30 hitter. If he ever cuts back on the chase-rate he could be a routine 20/20 threat.

Mason Estrada, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers, 20

Mason Estrada was someone I was excited to watch, get his pro debut after being drafted out of MIT in the seventh round. His fastball was in the mid 90’s and he has touched 98 in the past. He pairs that with a nasty two-plane slider that should get swings and misses when the command is on.

The issue in this outing was the command; he was not throwing a lot of strikes, and he was visibly frustrated. He was unable to find the strike zone, and this issue resulted in him being able to go three innings.

There is a chance he develops into a decent reliever, if the command takes a step forward. One of the more interesting I noticed when watching him is he sets up on the extreme third-base side of the rubber, and this creates a different angler hitters to deal with. I would not be shocked that someone who went to MIT and is in the Dodgers org is playing around with different ways to make his stuff play up. I have never seen a pitcher set up this far to any side of the pitching rubber.

Jaron Elkins, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers, 21

I walked away from my looks really impressed with Jaron Elkins. He still hovers around the fourth-outfielder bucket alongside players like Vidourek, but I am more confident he is going to hit. Elkins is a fantastic athlete who will provide real-life value as a defender, and he has interesting power, taking a homer deep to center field in this series.

He is striking out a bit much, and that could be early-season noise, as he swings at an acceptable rate and everything else under the hood looks good. He is someone I would go pick up in leagues that carry 300 prospects, because unlike some of his Dodgers compatriots at this level, I am more confident in his ability to hit, Emil Morales aside.

There is 20/20 upside here. He has the speed and the power to reach that ceiling. The Dodgers are slowplaying Elkins, as they will have to make a 40-man decision on him in 2027, and he has never seen a plate appearance above High-A. I would think he gets traded soon to an org where playing time is easier to envision and where he could get the requisite plate appearances to reach the ceiling I think he has.