We are more than halfway through the regular season and with that, Baseball America has updated their top 100 prospects in the game and their top 30 prospects within each team’s system.
The entire list is behind a paywall, but I will highlight the top 10 as well as some of the notable placements plus the highest risers and steepest falls on the rankings.
- Xavier Isaac (67)
- Theo Gillen (71)
- Carson Williams (75)
- Santiago Suarez
- Brody Hopkins
- Tre’ Morgan
- Trevor Harrison
- Brailer Guerrero
- Gary Gill Hill
- Brayden Taylor
Chandler Simpson at one time was a top 100 prospect, but has since graduated. Otherwise, the Rays core of position prospects haven’t exactly set the baseball world a flame this season. Meanwhile, Xavier Isaac showcased his power but also fragility as he has once again been placed on the Injured List. Tre’ Morgan is proving to be an on-base machine but has presented little to no power. Brayden Taylor, who looked like the safest bet among any of the Rays prospects at this point last season, has not been able to figure out Double-A (not an uncommon struggle) and currently has a 80 wRC+ over 389 PA since being promoted late last July.
Most notably, Carson Williams has seen his stock plummet. The stellar defender entered the season as a borderline top 10 prospect in all of baseball but offensive struggles have sent Williams spiraling down rankings. Meanwhile, Brayden Taylor, Gary Gill Hill, Tre’ Morgan, and Trevor Harrison have all fallen out of the top 100 completely.
A positive for the Rays has been the early success of 2024 first round selection, Theo Gillen. The 19-year old is currently hitting .277/.446/.407 with 5 HR and 28 SB over 52 games in Single-A this season.
The player that has risen the most in the Rays system this season is RHP T.J. Nichols, who currently sports a 3.84 ERA | 4.97 FIP with a 29.8 K% & 5.6 BB% over 75 IP at High-A for the Rays. Nichols was outside of Baseball America’s top 40 for the Rays entering the season but has risen all the way to 11th.
Another player that has risen in the system is Colton Ledbetter. The 23-year old outfielder is hitting .287/.363/.423 with 5 HR and 22 SB over 71 games in Double-A this season.
Meanwhile, Dylan Lesko still has a place on the top prospect list, squeezing in at 30th. At one point, Lesko was the 36th ranked prospect in the game but post injury command struggles have significantly derailed his career to the point that the Rays have assigned him to the Complex League to try and restore his career; Lesko still hasn’t thrown a pitch in a game since April 19th.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Noah Myers. A 30th round pick by the Blue Jays in 2019, Myers opted to continue his education instead and then went undrafted his senior year in 2022. Myers went to the Indy Leagues and the Rays took a flier on him. Since then, Myers has been among the better offensive performers in the Rays system, albeit at a much higher age than most of his competition. The 25-year old Myers is ranked 25th and is currently hitting .250/.409/.346 with 3 HR and 21 SB over 68 games in High-A.
