Could Red Sox promote Roman Anthony for playoff push? Plus more prospects who could make MLB debut this season

The end of Major League Baseball's season wouldn't seem like a happening time for debuts, especially not in the age of the 28-player expanded roster. Yet the past week or so has seen a fair share of notable call-ups. Among them: Kumar Rocker ( Rangers ), Luisangel Acuña ( Mets ), Thomas Saggese ( Cardinals ), and Seth Johnson ( Phillies ). It would be within reason, then, to assume that a few more are coming down the pipe.

There are various benefits to bringing up a player this late in the season. For the player, this is an opportunity to get acclimated to the big-league life and the increased level of competition -- it's like receiving the next grade's reading list on the final day of school. As for the teams themselves, they don't have to worry about a move now having meaningful service-time implications. Oh, and if the team is out of contention, they can give their fans a reason to pay attention through the final out of the final game.

With that in mind, we here at CBS Sports decided to highlight five players who could -- and we stress could -- make their way to The Show before the last train leaves the station. This exercise is more of an art than a science, so bear that in mind.

Let's get to it. (Do note the players are presented in alphabetical order.)

1. Roman Anthony , OF, Red Sox

The Red Sox are in that awkward position where they're still alive in the playoff race, but only until they have another bad series. At that point, the Red Sox might decide it's worth looking forward to the future. If and when Boston's front office does that, they'll have plenty of options to promote to the big-league roster. Chief among the talented players stationed in Worcester is outfielder Roman Anthony.

Anthony, 20, is an athletic outfielder with good strength and a keen eye. He hit .327/.431/.504 with nearly as many walks as strikeouts in his first 29 Triple-A games. Anthony has already posted an exit velocity of 112.5 mph, which would put him in the same neighborhood as big-league stars Freddie Freeman , Francisco Lindor , and Marcus Semien . Given Anthony's youth, that's an awfully encouraging sentence.

Some other members of Worcester's roster worth keeping track of include infielders Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell and former first-round catcher Kyle Teel .

2. Bubba Chandler , RHP, Pirates

The Pirates' rotation contains two of the best young starters in baseball in Paul Skenes and Jared Jones , yet Pittsburgh has some more impressive hurlers coming. Chandler, who just celebrated his 22nd birthday, is the most promising of the bunch.

Chandler has performed well in four starts at the Triple-A level, amassing a 1.59 ERA and a 3.54 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He pairs a 97 mph fastball with a slider that has generated a 33% whiff rate to date. It's worth noting that Chandler has already established a new career high in innings pitched, working three frames more than he had at any prior point. In theory, anyway, that number is within the range where the Pirates could justify giving him an abbreviated start or two to close out his year.

Another player to watch is second baseman Nick Yorke , who was obtained from the Red Sox at the trade deadline. He's hit, hit, and hit some more at the Triple-A level this season. The Pirates owe it to themselves to see if he can be part of their 2025 lineup.

3. Jacob Misiorowski , RHP, Brewers

The Brewers are cruising toward the National League Central title. If they wanted to, they could add another imposing figure to their bullpen ahead of the playoffs.

Misiorowski, a gangly 6-foot-7 right-hander, has pitched almost exclusively out of the bullpen during his time in Triple-A. He's taken to that role just fine, compiling a 2.87 ERA and striking out 11.5 batters per nine innings. It's long been an open question as to whether or not he had the command to start. What Misiorowski does have is a deceptive delivery (including a low release point) and a fierce 98 mph fastball-breaker pairing.

As with Chandler, we'll note that Misiorowski is over his previous career high in innings. Unlike Chandler, Misiorowski is well over that threshold, by more than 20 innings. We could see the Brewers opting against pushing him harder.

4. Chase Petty , RHP, Reds

The Reds already promoted one notable right-hander when they brought up Rhett Lowder late August. Could they repeat that trick with Petty?

The best argument against it, once again, has to do with innings. Petty has thrown 132 frames to date, or nearly double his amount from the 2023 season. The Reds did just bump him to Triple-A, however, suggesting they're open to letting him work beyond his comfort zone in more ways than one.

Even if Petty doesn't crack the majors this month, he should be in line to do so sometime next spring. He relies heavily on a mid-90s sinker and a slider.

5. Matt Shaw , INF, Cubs

We'll conclude this piece by highlighting Shaw, the Cubs' first-round pick in 2023 who torched his way to Double-A late last year. The Cubs kept him at that level for most of this season, promoting him to Triple-A to begin August. He subsequently missed some time because of a back issue, but he's been on fire since returning to begin September. Indeed, as of this writing, Shaw has notched seven multi-hit games in 11 tries.

Figuring out how Shaw fits on this Cubs infield is a chore. The Cubs have middle infielders Dansby Swanson and Nico Hoerner contracted for years to come, and they only just traded for third baseman Isaac Paredes . They seem unlikely to want to play Shaw (or anyone else just named) at the cold corner, meaning that other moves (perhaps involving Hoerner?) could be coming between now and next spring.

Whatever the case, Shaw is a nifty, well-rounded player to have around. Once they're official out of the playoff race, the Cubs could use the season's final days to let Shaw get acclimated to the level he should spend most of the 2025 season at.