The Red Sox farm system is now ranked ninth in all of baseball
Baseball America’s farm system rankings are held in very high regard. So it’s made it a little harder to defend the Boston Red Sox farm system over the last few years. Personally, I think they’re very deep. The issue was, they didn’t have a lot of “star power”. This led to them being ranked in the 20s.
On Monday, their midseason rankings came out – and with it some very positive news. The Red Sox have made a pretty significant jump, all the way into the top 10 – sitting at number nine.
The main reason for this is the sudden influx of stars. Triston Casas only continued to make his case as a future superstar with a strong showing in the Olympics. Jarren Duran is struggling a bit in the Majors but has shown signs of turning it all around. More importantly, he absolutely dominated in Triple-A this year. Finally, Marcelo Mayer somehow fell to the Red Sox at number four in the draft this year.
Those three are all in the Top-100. In fact, they’re all in the Top-50. Actually, Mayer is the lowest ranked at number 32. Duran is 22nd overall and Casas sits at number 20.
The elite talent at the top definitely helps to give a serious boost. However, it comes back to the depth as well. Notice Bryan Mata wasn’t mentioned, absolute ace potential from him. Jeter Downs is having a rough year, but should still be considered an elite-level prospect.
Jay Groome has looked dominant after a rough start to the year. Gilberto Jimenez continues to impress in Low-A and Nick Yorke is right there with him, looking much more mature than 19. Blaze Jordan has a lot of hype as well.
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- Red Sox invited group of players you’ve probably never heard of to Spring Training
- Jeter Downs’ official departure will continue to haunt Red Sox
Then there are the prospects that don’t get the love they deserve, but prove just how deep the system is. Kole Cottam is a catching prospect that I can’t rave about enough, with great offense and rapidly improving defense/game-calling. Chris Murphy has elite stuff on the mound, so does Brayan Bello.
Cameron Cannon has an incredible offensive game at shortstop, Tyreque Reed has been a pleasant surprise, and Joe Davis and Stephen Scott can’t stop mashing. Meanwhile, anyone that reads the weekly Prospect Watch probably gets tired of me raving over the terrifyingly exciting prospect that is Ceddanne Rafaela.
I could keep going, but you get the point.
The Boston Red Sox farm system is finally getting some recognition. You have to tip your cap to Chaim Bloom for that. Not only did he rebuild Boston back into a contender, but he did so while bolstering the farm system nicely.
A lot of that has to do with the top talent. Three players in the Top-32 is incredibly impressive. But it has just as much to do with the depth. Boston has a few players that have to be at least close to knocking on the door of that Top-100. And a lot of players that might not get there, but have the tools too. They could become stars.
For the last few years, we’ve heard a lot of trash talk when it comes to the Boston Red Sox system. Now it’s time to bask in the glory (Keith Lee style) of one of the best farm systems in all of baseball.