Under is an evaluation of the prospects within the farm system of the Tampa Bay Rays. Scouting stories have been compiled with info supplied by business sources in addition to our personal observations. That is the fourth yr we’re delineating between two anticipated reduction roles, the abbreviations for which you’ll see within the “place” column under: MIRP for multi-inning reduction pitchers, and SIRP for single-inning reduction pitchers. The ETAs listed typically correspond to the yr a participant needs to be added to the 40-man roster to keep away from being made eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Guide changes are made the place they appear applicable, however we use that as a rule of thumb.
A fast overview of what FV (Future Worth) means might be discovered right here. A a lot deeper overview might be discovered right here.
The entire ranked prospects under additionally seem on The Board, a useful resource the location presents that includes sortable scouting info for each group. It has extra particulars (and up to date TrackMan knowledge from numerous sources) than this text and integrates each staff’s checklist so readers can evaluate prospects throughout farm methods. It may be discovered right here.
Different Prospects of Observe
Grouped by kind and listed so as of choice inside every class.
Shane Baz ReplaceBaz’s final massive league look was in July of 2022 (he misplaced rookie eligibility that yr) earlier than a Tommy John surgical procedure prompted him to overlook the rest of that season and all of 2023. Up to now in 2024 he’s been pitching as a starter in Durham, however he’s set to re-enter the large league rotation tomorrow after the current Aaron Civale commerce. Baz’s fastball has been working 94-98 mph with the identical plus driving life that bullied hitters previous to his surgical procedure, and whereas his command has been spotty all through his 10 Triple-A begins, the life on the four-seamer continues to be able to masking his lower than surgical precision. His 85-89 mph tilting slider continues to be routinely plus, however his really feel for finding it hasn’t been fairly as constant. He’s nonetheless mixing in a 80-84 mph vertical curveball and a 87-91 mph energy changeup, which has refined motion. Baz is throwing his total combine with conviction and appears prepared from a stuff standpoint, however he’s rusty from a pitch execution standpoint. How he tendencies all through the remainder of the season is extra vital than how he seems to be in his debut.
Strikeout-Heavy School BatsRyan Cermak, OFBrock Jones, OFJalen Battles, 2B
Jones and Cermak have been the sixty fifth and 71st total picks within the 2022 draft, two school outfielders with massive energy and questionable hit instruments. Each are placing out a few third of the time at Bowling Inexperienced. Battles was a 2022 fifth rounder and has but to hit since leaving the school ranks, placing out at a 27% clip as a professional. He has good defensive fingers, is strong at second base, and will deal with the recent nook as effectively.
Place Participant DepthWooyeoul Shin, 1B/LFTristan Peters, LF/RFTanner Murray, 2BCarlos Colmenarez, 2B/3BDru Baker, OF
Shin grew up in Korea however got here to the U.S. late in 2019 to pursue baseball. He ended up at Miami Dade Group School, the place he realized English from scratch in a few yr and hit .407 with 15 homers in his second season. He dedicated to Miami however as a substitute signed for $150,000 as a sixteenth rounder. He’s doing okay as a 22-year-old at Low-A, and we’d prefer to see Shin carry out in opposition to extra superior arms although it is sensible to have prevented a JUCO to Excessive-A leap. Shin’s fingers create a number of energy in a brief distance. He’s a squat 6-foot, 220 kilos and continues to be studying to play protection at this degree.
Peters has a strong hit software, however he’s but to point out sufficient recreation energy to warrant his nook outfield defensive profile and has additionally seen his strikeout price inflate in opposition to Triple-A pitching. He’s a mean defender who has some on-base skill, however he lacks each the flexibility to play a premium place and defensive versatility. Murray has really feel to hit and sprays his contact across the discipline. He’s a strong defender at second base however lacks the extra-base influence to hold a second base-only defensive profile. He’s gotten a while at shortstop, the place he seems to be satisfactory, however he’ll want to enhance there to have true up/down worth. Signed for $3.2 million in 2022, Colmenarez is swinging and lacking at an untenable price and has seemingly moved off of shortstop nearly fully (although he’s an excellent 2B/3B defender). Baker has maintained a top quality hit software, however he’s been utterly void of energy in opposition to Double-A pitching, and he isn’t a ok defender for his bat to be punchless.
Depth Arms with Reduction ProfilesEnmanuel Mejia, RHPCesar De Jesus, LHPGerlin Rosario, RHPAdam Boucher, RHPDuncan Davitt, RHPEngert Garcia, RHPGarrett Acton, RHPHaden Erbe, RHP
Mejia was a part of that massive Pirates minor league Rule 5 draft exodus of a pair years in the past. He’s been sitting 94-98 with a mid-80s slider and poor command at Durham. His MiLB participant web page signifies he was levied a three-game suspension final week. De Jesus is a 20-year-old lefty who was sitting 93-96 with a plus slider on the advanced earlier than he was promoted to Charleston, the place issues got here completely unraveled for him. He has a lefty reduction ceiling if he can reclaim one thing approaching viable command. Rosario is a big-framed 22-year-old righty with a nasty splitter and slider. He’s a excessive arm slot man whose fastball solely sits about 90 and he lacks nice fastball command, however hitters don’t appear to see both of his secondary pitches and he dominated in a protracted reduction position this yr till his walks acquired uncontrolled extra not too long ago. The 6-foot-5 Boucher was the membership’s tenth rounder out of Duke final yr. He has a driving fastball as much as 96 and a fairly nasty slider/cutter mixture, however imbalance in his decrease half causes the consistency of his supply to interrupt down.
Davitt is a low-slot sinker/slider starter whose supply seems to be like a number of Giants prospects. He’s having A-ball success as an old-for-the-level starter. An undersized 24-year-old righty, Garcia has been as much as 97 as a starter at Charleston and might be a reliever if he can discover a second good pitch and a few mechanical consistency. A former A’s prospect who debuted after which was launched in 2023, Acton signed with the Rays and is at the moment on the total season injured checklist. His funky, short-armed supply creates nasty motion in on the fingers of righties. He regarded like an excellent fastball/slider reliever whereas wholesome in Oakland’s system. Erbe has a driving 94-97 mph fastball that he throws from a excessive three-quarters slot and struggles to harness within the zone. There’s additionally a tough cutter with a little bit of depth and a fading changeup in his arsenal, however he’s vulnerable to wildness with these as effectively. He’ll want to search out the zone extra often to be trusted to have even up/down worth.
Strike-Throwing Starter DepthCole Wilcox, RHPNathan Wiles, RHPSean Hunley, RHP
Wilcox signed for a record-setting $3.3 million bonus within the third spherical in 2020, then was dealt to the Rays as a part of the Blake Snell deal. His stuff has backed up. His fastball sits within the low-to-mid-90s and he enhances it with a brief mid-80s slider and a changeup that struggles to supply constant motion. His strike-throwing file has been strong since getting into the professional ranks, and he can present size if wanted, however he isn’t lacking bats or getting an enormous price of groundballs. Wiles instructions his 90-94 mph fastball effectively and his 84-88 mph cutter stays off barrels with its late chew. He throws his changeup to each left- and right-handed hitters and his finest ones present important depth. Hunley is gentle on velocity however he fills up the zone together with his 88-90 mph sinker, a slider with massive depth, a mid-70s curveball, and a fading changeup. There isn’t a pitch within the arsenal that’s able to producing constant whiffs, however Hunley sprays his combine within the zone and produces weak contact.
Altered by AccidentsNick Bitsko, RHPJJ Goss, RHP
Bitsko has had such an odd and unlucky profession thus far. In case you recall, he was initially presupposed to be within the 2021 draft however reclassified as a 2020 not lengthy earlier than the pandemic, which made him robust for groups that hadn’t prioritized underclass seems to be to judge in any respect. Bitsko nonetheless went within the first spherical, however he started having damage points nearly instantly and people have endured to today. He returned from his newest ailment in Might however solely made two rehab appearances earlier than he was shut down once more. Goss ran an ERA over 5.00 final yr. This season, he has shifted to the bullpen, the place his velo (sitting 93-94 mph) and skill to overlook bats has rebounded some. He’s nonetheless utilizing all of his pitches from when he was a starter and may be capable of junkball his means into a protracted reduction position.
System Overview
As soon as once more one of many easiest methods in baseball, the Rays have a high-end mixture of massive time influence expertise on the very high of their org to go along with total depth. As is often the case, their professional scouting division has had a huge effect on the farm system, partly as a result of the Rays are a extremely transactional staff that tends to maneuver a giant title participant each few years as a consequence of their budgetary limitations. A willingness to amass high-variance gamers within the decrease ranges of the minors has helped them commerce for just a few of the influence prospects on the checklist. A number of of the professional commerce acquisitions are not too long ago drafted school pitchers who the Rays then develop, generally for some time. Almost 5 years handed between after they acquired Jacob Lopez and when he debuted.
The Rays additionally have a tendency to try an upward shift in position as soon as they draft or purchase a participant. There are various pitchers within the system who have been school relievers however are being developed as starters in professional ball, or gamers who’re taking part in a harder defensive place than they did as amateurs. That applies to a few of the highest 10 gamers within the system.
The large league staff started the season behind the eight ball due to pre-existing accidents to Jeffrey Springs (who rehabbed in opposition to in Durham yesterday), Shane McClanahan, Drew Rasmussen, and Shane Baz (who was within the tail finish of his rehab). The Rays have suffered by disappointing performances from too lots of their hitters (particularly Randy Arozarena) to beat this. They’ve simply traded away Aaron Civale, a beginning pitcher in whom they invested fairly a bit to amass final yr. It feels just like the Rays will take a vendor’s posture on the deadline and that this method may get foie gras’d with prospects. There’s a lot depth at third base, particularly, that they might must be concerned in offers wherein they half with prospects to keep away from an enormous 40-man crunch within the close to future.
