Tampa Bay Devil Rays Top 20 List

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 12:42 PM EST in News

Delmon Young (on the right) and his older brother Dmitri

Delmon Young, OF A-
Scott Kazmir, LHP A-
Jeff Niemann, RHP B+
Wes Bankston, 1B-OF B+
Chad Orvella, RHP B+
Elijah Dukes, OF B
Reid Brignac, SS B
Jason Hammel, RHP B-
Joey Gathright, OF B-
James Houser, LHP B-
Seth McClung, RHP C+
John Barratt, LHP C+
Gabby Martinez, 1B C+
Andy Sonnanstine, RHP C+
Chris Seddon, LHP C
Matt Diaz, OF C
Jonny Gomes, OF C
Jason Pridie, OF C
Jarod Matthews,RHP C
Shawn Riggans, C C

The Devil Rays are a very "tool-oriented" organization, similar to the Braves or Twins. Done properly, this approach to building a farm system can work as well as any other approach. Done poorly, it will leave you with a bunch of great athletes and no actual baseball players. After a slow start following the establishment of the franchise, the D-Rays have made major progress.
There is little controversial about the early names on my list. One guy to watch real close is Elijah Dukes, who is rather anonymous unless you're a D-Rays fan. He has tremendous tools and hit .332/.416/.540 last year in the California League, although there are questions about his plate discipline and his "fiery" makeup. Joey Gathright may be the fastest man in professional baseball, but his extreme lack of power may delegate him to a bench role in the long run. Power-hitting outfielders Matt Diaz and Jonny Gomes showed a lot of pop in Triple-A last year. Diaz gets a Grade C because he is 27, Gomes because he struck out 136 times in 114 games. If you want to weight "immediate help" more heavily, move them up the list.
As usual, feel free to comment and critique. It keeps me sharp.
UPDATE: Reader Dave Cameron points out that Elijah Dukes was recently arrested for attacking his sister. ANOTHER UPDATE: Matt Diaz was released a few days ago. He can certainly help someone!

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Comments

Re: Bankston

I think Bankston is more of a 'B' to me. Repeating the SALLY (low A) and being a 1B/OF I'd have to put him a notch below the 'B+' that Swisher recieved.

by natsfan2005 on Feb 18, 2026 12:50 PM EST reply actions

Age

Bankston was still only 19 when he did that. Even repeating the league those were impressive numbers.

by Jim Wisinski on Feb 18, 2026 2:49 PM EST up reply actions

a 'B' for Bankston

Bankston was still only 19 when he did that. Even repeating the league those were impressive numbers.
They were good numbers for age 19. I still think you discount for repeating in the lowest form of full season A-ball just a bit. Therefore, when I look at John's other B+ outfielders (Swisher,Sizemore,etc.), I have no doubt I'd trade Bankston for them.

by natsfan2005 on Feb 18, 2026 2:55 PM EST up reply actions

Dukes

Moreso than questions about Elijah Duke's makeup are whether or not he can stay out of jail. He was arrested a month ago for assaulting his sister and charged with domestic battery. He was arrested twice in December of '03, once for assault (charges dropped) and once for obstructing an officer.

He missed three weeks during the year after the Devil Rays sent him to anger management classes. Saying there are questions about his makeup is a bit of an understatement. Dukes is bordering on Milton Bradley-type status.

He's some kind of athlete though. Built like a middle linebacker.

by david cameron on Feb 18, 2026 12:54 PM EST reply actions

dukes

Sounds worse than Bradley. Milton has a temper, but he's yet to beat anyone up.

by fernandomania on Feb 21, 2026 5:13 PM EST up reply actions

temper

roid rage?

by Bobo2 on Feb 21, 2026 6:19 PM EST up reply actions

questions

Yeah, I'd say that would certainly qualify as "questions".

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 12:56 PM EST reply actions

Niemann

John,

In a recent Baseball American chat on the San Francisco Giants, John Manuel ranked Niemann the #4 RHP prospect in the minors behind only Hernandez, Miller, and Cain. I believe you ranked him #29 among RHP prospects. Why such a big difference?

by AaronMullen on Feb 18, 2026 1:00 PM EST reply actions

data

I want to see some professional data before ranking Niemann that high. That's my stathead side showing through.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 1:05 PM EST up reply actions

Niemann

Fair enough. What MLB pitcher do you think Niemann most closely resembles?

by AaronMullen on Feb 18, 2026 1:09 PM EST up reply actions

niemann

That's a toughie. How many 6-9, 260 pound righthanders are there? Jeff Nelson comes to mind but Niemann is a starter and a little bigger.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 1:12 PM EST up reply actions

B.J. Upton

I know that Upton can no longer be considered a rookie, but I have a question about him. Are the Devil Rays REALLY going to move him to 3B longterm? That seems like a HUGE mistake to move such a talent off of a position he will probably be able to adjust to.

by AaronMullen on Feb 18, 2026 1:03 PM EST reply actions

"Tools-oriented" organizations

I love the idea of the statistical oriented approach, but I think some clubs go a little too far with it. It seems to me, for instance, that some clubs -- the Blue Jay come to mind -- don't even give some of the best prospects a chance just because they are high school guys. Also, I routinely hear the Angels, Twins, Indians, Braves, and Dodgers mentioned as consistantly having the best farm systems. It seems that most of those teams take a traditional tools-oriented approach. Even the Dodgers, with Depodesta as GM, seem to have an awful lot of tools kind of players in their system.

by AaronMullen on Feb 18, 2026 1:23 PM EST reply actions

tools

I don't think that's quite fair to the Blue Jays. Brandon League was a high school guy and they are very high on him. Same thing with Dustin McGowan before he got hurt. Alexis Rios was a high school guy. True, the new braintrust is drafting lots of college players, but I don't see any evidence that they aren't giving their high school guys a chance.

The Indians are a "mixed" system that does do some sabermetric stuff in addition to traditional scouting. Same with the Dodgers and even the Braves to some extent. It isn't an either-or thing for most teams.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 1:28 PM EST up reply actions

tools

Actually, it probably is a fair assessment.

All of those toolsy, non-college prospects you mentioned were drafted during the GordAsh/TimWilken regime. HS/International bonus babies tend to have a higher ceiling than college players, but they also have a higher rate of flaming out. Which is a risk less weatlthy teams (like current version of the Jays) feel they can't take very often.

Ironically enough, Tampa Bay is where Wilken ended up.

Also, the Jays aren't complete wallflowers at this dance. Last year, they coughed up 800K to sign 18 year-old Taiwanese pitcher Chi-hung Cheng.

by slackerjack on Feb 19, 2026 11:55 AM EST up reply actions

Injury Consideration

John,

I was just wondering what, if any, role potential injury plays into your rankings. I've heard from a number of places that Kamir's mechanics make it seem like he is destined for arm trouble. Does this affect your ranking of him?

by Rob Assalino on Feb 18, 2026 1:23 PM EST reply actions

depends

It depends. Some guys will get downgraded a bit because of injury concerns. Case by case.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 1:28 PM EST up reply actions

Mechanical concerns

I'm still waiting for one of those people that downplays Kazmir's potential because of injury risk to explain exactly WHAT it is that is such a problem. Watching him last year his pitching motion is very smooth and doesn't seem to take an inordinate amount of effort. I have never seen any adequate explanation of why he is an injury risk, just people saying that he is.

by Jim Wisinski on Feb 18, 2026 2:45 PM EST up reply actions

Kazmir's mechanics

I think that perception may be in part based on Biomechanics Guru Rick Peterson's apparent dislike for Kazmir. Kazmir was among the pitchers taken to Birmingham to have their motions analyzed last winter. I'm not aware of Peterson ever publicly saying he thinks Kazmir is an injury risk, though.

by jeck on Feb 18, 2026 5:20 PM EST up reply actions

I agree

the real reason Mets traded him was not for lack of talents. I dont think they really like Zambrano that much either even though their PR/Peterson says otherwise. I've heard that Kazmir did not respond well with their coaching staff and it was up to the point where either they put in new coaches or Kazmir walks. Obviously, we all saw the outcome.

by Bobo2 on Feb 18, 2026 7:03 PM EST up reply actions

Gathright

Omar Moreno, Otis Nixon, Vince Coleman or Juan Pierre?

by Flynn Blake on Feb 18, 2026 1:40 PM EST reply actions

Gathright

Sports Weekly ran a piece last spring about Joey Gathright, I read it on the airplane on my way to Florida for a week at Spring Training. The article said he could jump over any car, door to door, and had frequently, until shortly before the article, taken bets to do so. I'm pretty sure it also said Gathright might be the fastest center fielder ever.

The very next day I watched him play the Indians at Winter Haven. He grounded out to third and second, routine plays both times, and his speed didn't even really make the plays close. It made me wonder if the difference between being fast and having blazing speed is really all that important.

by Kyle Lobner on Feb 18, 2026 1:44 PM EST reply actions

Gathright

When Gathright signed, they put a clause in his contract prohibiting him from car jumping.

It's hard to say where he'll end up, but my guess is somewhere between Coleman and Pierre. Yes, a lot of his game is dependent on batting average, but he also draws a fair number of walks, although his drop in this area as he's moved up the ranks is a bit concerning. Still, he's improved upon one aspect of his game every year, and his OBP would still be respectable even if he wasn't batting mid-.300's. In Tampa, he's probably a 4th outfielder at best, even if he does turn into Juan Pierre. They've already got CC and Baldo (and soon Delmon), and with that front office (and manager), they're not going to play a guy with zero power even if he has a .500 OBP.

As far as his speed goes, he'll have to learn to get better jumps out of the batters box and in center; because at lower levels it wasn't a problem, he didn't focus on improving that aspect so much, but now that other areas have gotten better, he may look to that.

In an interview with RaysBaseball last year, he said his yearly goals are .300 BA, .400 OBP and 100 SB. Obviously, he's never hit all three yet, but if he can approach those numbers, he'll be a valuable player somewhere...

by Brickhaus on Feb 18, 2026 2:14 PM EST up reply actions

Re: Gathright OBP

If you have no extra base pop then a pitcher should challenge you. As he goes up the ladder and faces pitchers with better command that is what is happening. Hence the OBP decline.
In the majors he may be able to draw some walks off Colby Lewis and Victor Santos types but he'll have problems vs top pitching. So he doesn't seem like a guy who can start on a playoff team to me. But, the devilrays are in a position that they can atleast afford to test him out and see what happens... a team like Boston would not.

by natsfan2005 on Feb 18, 2026 2:19 PM EST up reply actions

No kidding...

They REALLY put a clause in his contract saying "no carjumping" when he signed? I've heard of weird riders, but that has to take the cake.

A pro-artificial turf, pro-designated hitter baseball fan.

by Harold on Feb 18, 2026 2:33 PM EST up reply actions

Car Jumping

A buddy of mine who played in the Phillies system was out with Gathright, Floyd and Upton last spring in Florida and saw him jump over an S10/Sonoma from front to back. Most amazing athletic feat he has ever seen he said.....

by CalLeaguer on Feb 18, 2026 8:16 PM EST up reply actions

Re: jumping over an S10/Sonoma

[I]A buddy of mine who played in the Phillies system was out with Gathright, Floyd and Upton last spring in Florida and saw him jump over an S10/Sonoma from front to back.[/I]

Why even bother with baseball if you can do that? I'd use that gimic to try to get a date with Jenn Schefft.

by natsfan2005 on Feb 18, 2026 8:25 PM EST up reply actions

Hamilton

Is Josh Hamilton officially off of the radar now?

by Ienpw on Feb 18, 2026 1:48 PM EST reply actions

yep

Yeah, I think so.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 1:49 PM EST up reply actions

Kazmir

How is Kazmir getting along with TB coaching staff?

by Bobo2 on Feb 18, 2026 1:48 PM EST reply actions

Jorge Cantu

Just curious what you think of him, and where he'd rank had he qualified...

by fargocraig1971 on Feb 18, 2026 1:53 PM EST reply actions

Over at the BAY

It seems Kazmir has been great kid. Hamilton recently married and is said to have turned it around in his life. He is off 40 man roster on the suspended list, and word is that his suspension will last through this year.

Bankston put up some terrific numbers last year. He is my underrated pick of the group. Compare his numbers vs Delmon Young.

DRAYS BAY

by David Bloom on Feb 18, 2026 1:56 PM EST reply actions

cantu

Talk about coming out of nowhere. I'd pretty much written him off as a no-hit guy, then he suddenly turns into Nomar. I really don't know what to make of it.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 1:56 PM EST reply actions

Niemann and Depo

I agree that I would like to see some pro data on Niemann. That being said, BA ranked A-Rod as the 6th best prospect in all of baseball... right out of HS before he played ANY minor league games.

"Even the Dodgers, with Depodesta as GM, seem to have an awful lot of tools kind of players in their system."

The Dodgers used to be almost totally a scout-oriented team, Depo just got there a few years ago. I think he is doing some interesting things to merge the scouts and stat-heads.

by slurve on Feb 18, 2026 2:02 PM EST reply actions

Upton

I have read mixed reports, do you think he'll start the year at AAA? If not, what position will he play in the majors this year? Also in his stint with the D-Rays did he show you anything that makes you think he won't be a superstar?

by dirtyj76 on Feb 18, 2026 2:06 PM EST reply actions

Bankston v. Young

I don't think you can put those numbers in a vacuum like that. Delmon was putting up his numbers while being nearly 2 years younger. I like Bankston, but Delmon is head and shoulders above him IMO.

by slurve on Feb 18, 2026 2:07 PM EST reply actions

Niemann

I think John is overrating Niemann a bit with a B+ grade at this point. He hasnt pitched in a long time. No one knows if he can be back to 2003 form. He had a groin injury in 2004 and lost some velo. BA probably has his 2003 stuff in mind on top of projectability when they did rankings like that.

by Bobo2 on Feb 18, 2026 2:13 PM EST reply actions

Youth

Two prospects putting up similar numbers with age of one being "YOUNG"er of course shows more upside. We'll see this year if Bankston can hang with Delmon, or if he leaves him in the dust. Could it be that Wes is the benificiary of Delmons bat in the lineup.

DRAYS BAY

by David Bloom on Feb 18, 2026 2:33 PM EST reply actions

gomes

isn't he a better prospect than you are giving him credit for? i mean, it's as likely as not that if you gave him a major league job right now, he'd slug .500 or better, with a healthy number of walks too.

by jpahk on Feb 18, 2026 2:46 PM EST reply actions

TB Questions

I thought Matt Diaz had been released by Tampa?
Is Orvella strictly being relegated to relief?
If Dukes becomes Milton Bradley I would consider that a good thing. Milton may not be a super star but we in Los Angeles loved the way he played CF before Finley moved him to right.

Seems to me the Dodgers and DevilRays should get together. The Dodgers have a truckload of pitching prospects but not one really top notch OF prospect while TB seems devoid of top of the line starting pitching but have a plethora of OF prospects.

Patience is for those who die waiting for something to happen.

by Phil Gurnee on Feb 18, 2026 3:15 PM EST reply actions

Kazmir

Scott Kazmir and Jeff Niemann are pretty good. Their supply of arms isn't bad.

by Ienpw on Feb 18, 2026 3:17 PM EST up reply actions

next week's schedule?

What teams can we expect to see top 20's for next week?

by natsfan2005 on Feb 18, 2026 3:47 PM EST reply actions

schedule

6/19 Reds
6/20 Yankees
6/21 Giants
6/22 Mariners

after that I have not decided

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 3:55 PM EST reply actions

Question

For John:

You know on the top right, there are a few options, like creat account, post diary and stuff? Can you make one called perhaps "How i grade prospects" or something like that where you list what you did in some other top 20.

A: Player has a good chance of being a superstar

B: Possibility of being a superstar

That not exactly it, but something along those lines. It'd be great if we could refer back to that.

by ohad on Feb 18, 2026 4:00 PM EST reply actions

that's a good idea

That's a good idea. I will see if I can figure out how to do that.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 4:02 PM EST reply actions

Thanks

You can always contact Blez.

Appreciate it.

by ohad on Feb 18, 2026 4:31 PM EST up reply actions

A-?

How does a prospect recieve an "A". A- is not too shabby, but when the best prospect in the game gets one, maybe there should be some sout of curve. The only better hitting prospect is possibly Ian Stewert. Did he also recieve an A-?

by mrmetaa on Feb 18, 2026 7:07 PM EST reply actions

Stewart

Stewart got an A.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 7:09 PM EST reply actions

Stewart/Barton

John,
In your book you said if you were ranking on hitting alone, you would rank Barton in the top five. If you simply had to choose between Stewart and Barton based on offense alone, which one would you choose? I'm asking because it seems like Barton was ranked a little lower because he doesn't really have a set position.
Thanks.

by AaronMullen on Feb 19, 2026 8:33 AM EST up reply actions

hittign alone

Hitting alone, I would pick Barton...but it would still be close, Stewart is really good. Adding in defense Stewart pulls out ahead.

by John Sickels on Feb 19, 2026 11:22 AM EST up reply actions

Top Hitters

With that being said, out of all your A/A- players, which player, based on hitting alone, do you think has the most ability to post the highest OPS when he makes the show?

by AaronMullen on Feb 19, 2026 12:36 PM EST up reply actions

ops

do you mean highest PEAK OPS, or highest career OPS, or most consistent OPS?

by John Sickels on Feb 19, 2026 12:46 PM EST up reply actions

OPS

I meant highest peak, but since you mentioned it, it would be great hear your opinion on all three.

by AaronMullen on Feb 19, 2026 12:54 PM EST up reply actions

ops

Well, of course it is hard to say exactly because we don't know where all these guys are going to end up playing down the road.

I would say "most consistent OPS" could be Marte.
Highest Peak either Stewart or Barton. Best broad-range of skills...Guzman or Young. Best chance to be a multi-tooled superstar...Guzman or Young, although both have a higher risk of failure than Stewart.

by John Sickels on Feb 19, 2026 1:09 PM EST up reply actions

Re: Barton

I realize many who visit the site are intoxicated with Barton. He should be real good. But if one were to say he's the best bat in the minors I would hope he projects to have many 35 homer seasons in addition to the lovely OBP. At 5'11" does he project to have that much power and if a player that size develops big time power would it likely be at the sake of some average?

by natsfan2005 on Feb 19, 2026 12:43 PM EST up reply actions

thats a pretty good point

some guys never developes power. but, according to mr. canseco there's nothing a little cream wouldnt fix. :-)

by Bobo2 on Feb 19, 2026 9:54 PM EST up reply actions

bell curve

so who are the "A"s ??

by Bobo2 on Feb 18, 2026 7:12 PM EST reply actions

as

Andy Marte, Joel Guzman, Stewart, Felix Hernandez, Adam Miller, Jeff Francis.

Note that "closeless to the majors" counts for a lot here. Marte and Guzman have proven themselves at higher levels. Young, for all his undoubted physical tools, is less polished as a hitter than Stewart. Young ranks right behind Stewart.

I realize not everyone will agree with these ratings, but Young still has some flaws in his swing and an impatient approach. If he makes even small improvement in 2005 he'll be a pure Grade A.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 7:16 PM EST reply actions

ESPN list

I'm looking at your ESPN list. There are only 2 hitters ranked ahead of Stewart and Young. I think you said you only have six grade-A cant-miss prospects.

Take 4 from the pitching list?

by Bobo2 on Feb 18, 2026 7:17 PM EST reply actions

my bad

thought u said Stewart was a A-.

Thanks for the response.

by Bobo2 on Feb 18, 2026 7:18 PM EST up reply actions

Delmon/Stewart/Milledge

Since we're on the subject...

What's your take on the other lo-A stud Lastings Milledge?

I believe Milledge actually had a higher SLG% than Delmon in Sally league.

by Bobo2 on Feb 18, 2026 7:35 PM EST reply actions

lastings

AWESOME tools.....needs to lay off pitches outside the zone. Grade B prospect with higher potential.

by John Sickels on Feb 18, 2026 7:36 PM EST reply actions

amazing

I agree that Lastings has awesome tools.

He definitely needs to work on his strikezone judgement, which should be interesting to watch this year in FSL. There is a lot of upside in this guy because the K:BB ratio is the only knock on him right now, he has all the other tools to succeed.

I believe BA has him ranked in the top 10 just by tools alone. He did have a .330 BA in Sally league where Delmon and Stewart made their marks. His stats dropped in 86 at bats in FSL but on the bright side he did improve on K:BB after the promotion.

by Bobo2 on Feb 19, 2026 9:59 AM EST up reply actions

Will Delmon play in the bigs, this year?

Does Delmon young have a chance to make the team out of ST or is the TB organization just looking at a Sept. callup?

by dexter on Feb 18, 2026 9:49 PM EST reply actions

My guess...July 4th

If I had to choose between getting the job during ST or last season call-up, I'd chose the latter.

by The Rocc on Feb 19, 2026 12:38 AM EST up reply actions

Matthews and Jaso

I'm surprised Matthews doesn't get better press. At 21 he was easily one of the better pitchers in the SL for the first half. Is it just the lack of fastball that causes him the hype?

And how about John Jaso? Is he has good a prospect as Riggans, especially with Riggan's continous elbow problems. He had a great season with HV is my favorite sleeper in the system. Thanks.

by JayBradley on Feb 18, 2026 9:52 PM EST reply actions

Brazelton

I know he is no longer considered a prospect; but what are his chances of having a good year in 2005. He pitched great at home; but just couldn't really put it together on the road in 2004. Is he a legit young gun or just an average pitcher with no real ceiling?

by RandyKutcherHair on Feb 18, 2026 11:05 PM EST reply actions

dewon

AL East is tough on pitchers. I wouldnt be surprised if his stuff is better than his numbers indicate. I saw him pitch a couple times last year. From what I've seen he has two pretty good changeups. One is straight and the other one with a downward bite. Its hard for hitters to make a good read on his changeup, but his fastball barely touches 90-91mph.

I dont know about the ceiling thing but I dont think he is projected to add anymore velocity. He actually lost some the past few years.

by Bobo2 on Feb 19, 2026 10:05 AM EST up reply actions

Ehhh...

Is he a legit young gun or just an average pitcher with no real ceiling? Below average with a chance to become average but with no significant upside visible at the moment. His performance record is mediocre throughout his professional career. He looked great coming out of MTSU but has never shown good command or strikeout ability in the majors or minors. His stuff is pretty good so he might surprise and improve a lot but I wouldn't count on it.

by Jim Wisinski on Feb 19, 2026 3:02 PM EST reply actions

Argh

Not only do I fail to format HTML correctly, I don't even reply to the comment I was replying to! Hooray failure!

by Jim Wisinski on Feb 19, 2026 3:03 PM EST up reply actions

Matt Diaz

Baltimore claimed him off the release waivers.

by kingofthehobos on Feb 22, 2026 9:29 PM EST reply actions

Diaz...

Matt Diaz refused the Orioles' claim on him (that can happen with release waivers) and is now a FA

by kingofthehobos on Feb 23, 2026 6:36 PM EST up reply actions

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