There’s no one secret ingredient to the Tampa Bay Rays’ success in developing prospects. The Rays have utilized a mixture of approaches to produce baseball’s top farm system.
Over the past several years, the Rays have done well in the draft, identifying talented prospects like two-way player Brendan McKay and outfielder Josh Lowe (2016 first-round pick), among others. Players such as shortstop Wander Franco, second baseman Vidal Brujan and catcher Ronaldo Hernandez were brought in via the international scouting team led by vice president of player development and international scouting Carlos Rodriguez. Tampa Bay’s front office also does an excellent job at securing prospects via trade, i.e: shortstop Xavier Edwards and pitcher Shane Baz.
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Between position players and pitchers, the Rays are loaded at every level of the minors. Tampa Bay added to that stockpile of talent with six selections from this year’s draft, including top pick and right-handed pitcher Nick Bitsko. With new talent flowing into the organization, here’s our latest edition of “State of the Farm System,” in which we rank the franchise’s top prospects.
1. Wander Franco, SS
2019 stats: .327/.398/.487, 139 hits, 9 HRs, 53 RBIs (Single-A Bowling Green and Advanced-A Charlotte)
Franco, 19, is baseball’s top overall prospect and it isn’t hard to see why. He has incredible discipline and his hand speed and patience at the plate are top-notch, making him one of the best hitters in the minors. His strikeout rate of 7 percent (56 walks vs. 35 strikeouts) was seventh-lowest among minor leaguers in 2019, according to FanGraphs. The Rays want to protect Franco at all costs — he wasn’t included on this year’s spring training roster, but he was exposed to major-league opposition, appearing in several exhibition games — and remain patient with his development. It’s unclear how the stoppage, including the cancelation of the minor-league season, will affect Franco, who already clearly fits in among the major leaguers. He was likely to begin the 2020 season with Double-A Montgomery and discussions of a possible major-league debut later this season was a hot topic throughout spring training. If he does make his debut within the next year, he might need to slide over and play third base with Willy Adames already starring as the club’s everyday shortstop.
2. Brendan McKay, LHP/DH
2019 minor-league hitting stats: 58 games, .200/.298/.331, 29 hits, 5 HRs, 19 RBIs, 17 walks, 51 strikeouts (Double-A Montgomery, Triple-A Durham)
2019 major-league hitting stats: 18 games, .200/.273/.500, 2 hits, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts
2019 minor-league pitching stats: 73 2/3 IP, 1.10 ERA, 42 hits, 10 runs, 102 strikeouts, 18 walks
2019 major-league pitching stats: 49 IP, 5.14 ERA, 53 hits, 32 runs, 56 strikeouts, 16 walks
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McKay, Tampa Bay’s 2017 first-round pick (fourth overall), fell just an inning short of losing his rookie eligibility last year, and he enters the 2020 season as a Rookie of the Year award candidate. The two-way player flew through Montgomery and Durham, striking out opponents at an elite rate while inducing plenty of swing-and-misses. McKay made his big-league debut last June, retiring the first 16 batters he faced to set a club record. McKay is known most for his command but struggled following his debut. He nearly abandoned his changeup, an above-average pitch, throwing it just 3.6 percent of the time. During spring training, McKay vowed to implement his changeup more into his arsenal, and the Rays said their No. 1 priority with him was getting him ready to be a pitcher. The club hasn’t abandoned McKay’s hitting, which fell off once he reached Triple-A, and he’s still working out around a schedule focused on both hitting and pitching. With a loaded starting rotation, the Rays have afforded themselves some patience with McKay, who is undoubtedly a key part of the club’s future.
3. Vidal Brujan, 2B/SS
2019 stats: 99 games, .277/.346/.389, 106 hits, 4 HRs, 48 RBIs, 37 walks, 61 strikeouts (Advanced-A Charlotte and Double-A Montgomery)
The shortstop position offers plenty of talent and promise behind everyday starter Adames. Brujan, 21, has wicked speed on the bases, finishing with 48 stolen bases between Montgomery and Durham last season — and is a switch-hitter with great contact skills and sneaky pop from the left side. Brujan is already a plus-second baseman, however, and his speed and agility will allow him to be tested at center field. Brujan appeared on the Rays’ spring training roster and seemed to already be jelling inside the clubhouse with his bright personality. Brujan won the Rays’ annual version of “American Idol” during spring training when he belted out his best Bad Bunny impression. The national attention might surround Franco, but Brujan isn’t far behind him.
4. Xavier Edwards, 2B/SS
2019 stats: 123 games, .322/.375/.396, 162 hits, 1 HR, 43 RBIs, 44 walks, 54 strikeouts (Single-A Fort Wayne, Advanced-A Lake Elsinore)
The Rays scooped up another excellent athlete in Edwards when they traded Tommy Pham to the Padres this past winter. Edwards, selected by San Diego with the 38th overall pick in the 2018 draft, is capable at both middle infield spots but had leveled off in the Padres’ system favoring second base. His strikeout rate in Single- and Advanced-A last year was less than 10 percent, placing him eighth out of 359 full-season Class-A hitters in 2019. The only knock against Edwards, 20, is his lack of power, but scouts believe there’s still potential for “warning track” pop in his bat. Between Franco, Brujan, Edwards and Greg Jones, the Rays have plenty of switch-hitting middle infielders.
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5. Shane Baz, RHP
2019 stats: 81 1/3 IP, 2.99 ERA, 63 hits, 30 runs, 87 strikeouts, 37 walks (Single-A Bowling Green)
As one high-ranking AL official said: “(Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh) could’ve called it even with just Baz and Archer.” Baz was acquired, along with Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow, from the Pirates in the Chris Archer trade, which has turned out splendidly for the Rays. They’ve already received All-Star level contributions from Meadows and Glasnow, and looming in the minors is Baz, who possesses electric stuff as a starter and hit 100 mph in the Arizona Fall League’s Fall Stars Game. Baz pairs his fastball with a mid-80’s slider, curveball and changeup. He showed glimpses of dominance but also struggled with command during his first full season with Single-A Bowling Green.
6. Joe Ryan, RHP
2019 stats: 123 2/3 IP, 1.96 ERA, 77 hits, 34 runs, 183 strikeouts, 27 walks (Single-A Bowling Green, Advanced-A Charlotte, Double-A Montgomery)
Ryan was dominant last year, boasting the highest strikeout rate of any minor-league starter. His fastball sits in the mid-90s, but he has got solid command and creates deception with a good changeup. Ryan, 24, appeared in a few spring training games in Port Charlotte after climbing the minors at a rapid rate last year. He might have even been a candidate to make his major-league debut in 2020 under normal circumstances. “He commands with multiple pitches, and there’s something about his fastball that’s really unique with hitters,” Rodriguez told The Athletic’s Keith Law in February. “We are really, really working with him on continuing to refine his breaking ball, which has been fantastic this spring. His makeup is off the charts.”
7. Randy Arozarena, OF
2019 minor-league stats: 92 games, .344/.431/.571, 118 hits, 15 HRs, 53 RBIs, 37 walks, 71 strikeouts (Double-A Springfield, Triple-A Memphis)
2019 major-league stats: 19 games, .300/.391/.500, 6 hits, 1 HR, 2 RBIs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts
Arozarena was the main piece in the trade that shipped pitching prospect Matthew Liberatore to St. Louis and it hasn’t taken him long to showcase his skills. Arozarena shined as one of the club’s most impressive players throughout spring training and earned praises from manager Kevin Cash in hitting .400 (8-for-20) with six RBIs, eight runs and three stolen bases. Arozarena, 25, is a speed threat but that hasn’t necessarily translated between the basepaths, although his agility is pretty clear from the outfield position. Arozarena, along with Manuel Margot, are both likely candidates to slot into center field if the team decides to part ways with Kevin Kiermaier before the three-time Gold Glove winner’s contract concludes in 2022.
8. Josh Lowe, OF
2019 stats: 121 games, .252/.341/.442, 113 hits, 18 HRs, 62 RBIs, 59 walks, 132 strikeouts (Double-A Montgomery)
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Lowe enjoyed the best season of his career last year with Montgomery, plus a visit to the Arizona Fall League. However, he felt discomfort in his throwing shoulder during the offseason and needed right shoulder debridement surgery. The procedure, which is described by the team as a cleanout, was expected to sideline Lowe until late May. With no minor-league season in place, Lowe, 22 — the younger brother of Rays first baseman Nate Lowe — continues his rehab and could compete for the Rays in whatever form of late-season instructional training is mandated if/when baseball returns.
9. Greg Jones, SS/OF
2019 stats: 48 games, .335/.413/.461, 64 hits, 1 HR, 24 RBIs, 22 walks, 56 strikeouts (Short-Season Hudson Valley)
Jones, selected by the Rays in the first round of the 2019 MLB Draft, is another switch-hitting middle infielder who is also expected to play in center field as he begins climbing the farm system. Jones got off to a slow start with Hudson Valley last season because of nagging injuries from college, but he finished strong at the plate, along with 19 stolen bases. “He can really run and has the ability to be a plus defender,” director of minor league operations Jeff McLerran said of Jones in April. “Greg has great bat speed, and we think there’s more power in there.”
10. Nick Bitsko, RHP
2018 and 2019 high school stats: 33 IP, 1.27 ERA, 68 strikeouts
Bitsko, ranked 18th overall in Law’s Big Board, was projected to be the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2021 draft by Baseball America. Instead, he was selected by the Rays in the first round of this year’s draft. About 1 1/2 weeks following the draft, Bitsko is still unsigned, but the team remains optimistic about getting a deal done. Bitsko reclassified as a senior this past winter and is now on the verge of joining the professional ranks after playing just two years on varsity for Central Bucks East. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound righty possesses top-end velocity, reaching 99 mph in a recent bullpen session before the draft, and a developing breaking ball with plus-spin production. He turned 18 this past week. “His arm action, delivery, size, athleticism, arm strength, ability to spin the ball — we thought all those attributes fit for somebody we could develop as a young starting pitching prospect,” said senior director of amateur scouting Rob Metzler.
Other notables: RHP Brent Honeywell suffered another setback in his recovery from elbow surgeries, undergoing a decompression procedure on his right ulnar nerve last month. Honeywell hasn’t pitched in an actual game in two-plus years due to injuries. In 2017, he went 13-9 with a 3.49 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 172 strikeouts over 136 2/3 innings between Double- and Triple-A. C Ronaldo Hernandez, 22, who was added to the 40-man roster before the Rule 5 Draft, joined Franco in representing the Rays at the 2019 All-Star Futures Game in Cleveland. 3B Kevin Padlo, also added to the 40-man roster this past winter, is coming off a career-best season, leading Rays minor leaguers in doubles (31), home runs (21) and extra-base hits (53). RHP JJ Goss, the 36th overall pick in 2019, possesses a mid-90s fastball, a plus-slider and a developing changeup. SS Lucius Fox‘s 39 stolen bases in 2019 between Montgomery and Durham ranked second among Rays minor leaguers behind Brujan. Fox tied for second in triples (9) and eighth in walks (59). OF Garrett Whitley was Tampa Bay’s first-round pick in 2015, but injuries have slowed his development, including a shoulder injury that sidelined him for all of 2018. Whitley also suffered multiple face fractures while sitting in the dugout during a spring training game in Sarasota when he was struck in the face by a bouncing foul ball. LHP Shane McClanahan, selected 31st overall out of South Florida in the 2018 MLB draft, flashed a 100-mph fastball during spring training.
(Top photo of Wander Franco: Michael Reaves / Getty Images)