BA Top 10 Prospects: Tampa Bay Rays

Doesn’t say a whole lot for the guy they drafted in the first round a couple of years ago solely on the strength of his power, though . . .

Inconceivably so almost. I think he rises quickly in the estimations of many this Spring & I’d have had him third here.

We like Bortnick some, as well as Dietrich.

Always hesitant to put this year’s draft picks on a Top Ten list, but Guerrieri and Mahtook both look pretty good.

Has Beckham spent his credibility and can Hak-Ju Lee actually hit?

Luke Bailey at catcher in 2015 is a real stretch.

Interesting system.

I agree that there is a drop off from Moore and Lee. Of course there is a big drop off from Moore to Lee as well.

The strength of the Rays system is in depth with potential. Having 13 first round picks the past two years and not signing your 1st and 2nd round picks from two years ago will do that of course.

There are a lot of question marks in this system, though.

Didn’t expect to see Taylor Guerrieri so high. Freakin stacked system as usual.

Moore and to a lesser degree Lee if he hits enough are the only two top 50 overall prospects - with Moore probably in the top 3 overall.
The rest of this system lacks sure-thing prospects but a tremendous amount of depth & potential. While there´ll be a high attrition rate, the odds that this system produces multiple impact players seem significantly higher than for a system that may have a handful of top 75 overall prospects and thus more than the Rays but lesser depth.

To me, the Rays definitely have a top 10 overall system because they probably have 50 legitimate players who have the realistic upside of meaningful major league careers. Does it feature the most probable future All Stars ? Certainly not. Though if I had to choose as a smaller market team, I´d always go for the depth while trying to keep my few select star players - like they´ve smartly done with Longoria or Moore and otherwise hope enough of the young talent sticks and comes through.

Finally, a Tim Beckham question: Wouldn´t he be a logical candidate for an eventual shift to 2b ? The Rays lack a longterm player there and while he may not have the range for SS, he should project as a solid 2bman if the bat indeed plays.