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2024 Arizona Fall League: Zyhir Hope Among 6 Dodgers Prospects On Glendale Desert Dogs Roster

Blake Williams
5 Min Read
Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports

Rosters for the 2024 Arizona Fall League were announced and six Los Angeles Dodgers prospects were selected to participate for the Glendale Desert Dogs.

Zyhir Hope is the most notable Dodgers prospect to participate, and he’s joined by Jake Gelof, Alex Makerewich, Kelvin Ramirez, Jerming Rosario and Eriq Swan.

The AFL is a prospect developmental league that begins play on Oct. 7, following the Minor League season, and runs through Nov. 14 before the playoffs begin the following day. The championship game this year will be held on Nov. 16 at Salt River Fields, where the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies hold Spring Training.

The league also includes a home run derby on Nov. 8 and the Fall Stars Game on Nov. 9, which will both be played at Sloan Park, Spring Training home to the Chicago Cubs.

The Arizona Fall League is made up of six teams, including the Desert Dogs, Mesa Solar Sox, Pecoria Javelinas, Salt River Rafters, Scottsdale Scorpions and Surprise Saguaros.

All teams are composed of prospects from five MLB organizations each. The Desert Dogs feature prospects from the Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds and Chicago White Sox.

Dodgers prospects playing in Arizona Fall League

Zyhir Hope

Hope, a 19-year-old outfielder, is one of the more intriguing players in the Dodgers’ system due to his elite speed and above-average power.

He’s ranked as the No. 11 prospect in the system by MLB Pipeline, which says he has 30-30 upside with the ability to play plus defense in center field.

He was acquired by the Dodgers from the Chicago Cubs as part of their trade of Michael Busch, which also brought the high-upside left-hander Jackson Ferris to the organization.

Jake Gelof

Gelof was selected in the second round by the Dodgers in the 2023 MLB Draft after he broke the University of Virginia home run record.

The 22-year-old third baseman has yet to fully display his power in the Minor Leagues, but he still projects to be a solid hitter at the Major League level.

Alex Makerewich

Makerwich was another pick by the Dodgers in the 2024 Draft, being delected in the 13th round.

The 22-year-old right-handed pitcher struck out 89 hitters during his final season in college, giving him the eighth-best mark in single-season history at Northeastern State.

His strikeout ability has translated to the Minors as he’s struck out 45 in 32 innings.

Kelvin Ramirez

Ramirez was signed by the Dodgers as an international free agent out of Venezuela in 2021.

The 23-year-old right-hander has appeared in 101 games in the Dodgers’ Minor League system, all but three as a reliever. He’s posted a 4.81 ERA over that time, but has shown a strong ability to get strikeouts.

Jerming Rosario

Rosario was signed by the Dodgers as an international free agent in 2018 out of the Dominican Republic.

He’s another right-hander who has shown high strikeout stuff, with 443 over 371.2 career Minor League innings, but the 22-year-old has struggled to prevent runs with a 4.77 ERA.

Eriq Swan

Another player selected in the 2023 MLB Draft with the 137th overall pick out of Middle Tennessee State, Swan is a high-upside right-hander with a fastball that reaches the triple digits.

Like the other arms on this list, Swan has shown great strikeout stuff, but he is a raw prospect that needs a lot of development.

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Blake Williams is a journalist from Reseda, Calif., who is currently the Managing Editor for Dodger Blue. He previously worked as a Managing Editor for Angels Nation, as a staff writer at Dodgers Nation, as the Managing Editor and Sports Editor for the Roundup News at L.A. Pierce College, and as an Opinion Editor for the Daily Sundial at California State University, Northridge. Blake graduated Cum Laude from CSUN with a major in journalism and a minor in photography/video. He is now pursuing his master's degree from the University of Alabama. Blake is also always open to talk Star Wars with you. Contact: Blake@mediumlargela.com