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MLB Minor League System Ranks – The Elite

By Benjamin Chase

Dec 7, 2016; National Harbor, MD, USA; A general view of stage microphones on day three of the 2016 Baseball Winter Meetings at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 7, 2016; National Harbor, MD, USA; A general view of stage microphones on day three of the 2016 Baseball Winter Meetings at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

5. San Diego Padres

The Padres have had a very odd path since hiring A.J. Preller, with him having a directive initially to spend the prospect capital needed to build an instant contender in San Diego, but when that didn’t work, he was directed to blow it all up and rebuild.

The Padres have gone all in on their rebuild, arguably getting as close to Houston Astros “scorched earth” tear down as any team has since the Astros did it. Their recent drafting of multiple Rule 5 picks in the Rule 5 draft at the winter meetings indicates that the 2017 Padres roster will not be a pretty one, to say the least.

That said, the Padres made an incredible investment in Latin America in 2016, and they also had one of the biggest draft budgets in the 2016 draft and used it well across their draft.

Elite prospects – I considered 6 of the Padres players for my top 125, but their system is more rich in guys who are likely to be elite in a year or two than are currently elite with the extreme depth at the lower levels.

System depth in legit prospects – Right now, the Padres do have some very solid prospects who have proven their floor, though they’re behind those guys who have elite ceilings right now.

Proximity to majors of legit prospects – Of the top 10, only three saw time in the upper minors, but two of them should be in the every day starting lineup in 2017, and they should see two other guys from their farm system claim starting spots in the rotation or starting lineup in 2017.

System reputation – The Padres have invested heavily in their farm system, and they’ve received very high marks for the work they’ve done with young arms thus far, getting tremendous production from arms that many didn’t see a big future for.

On the hitting side, one of the struggles the Padres have is properly evaluating their players as they work their players up in hitting-rich environments, which can lead to bad habits that get tough to break at the major league level.

The Padres will be getting to test that out this season, however, as at least 1/3 of their starting 9 on any given day in 2017 was a minor leaguer in 2016, so they’ll see how those guys adjust in 2017.

Top 5 Born 1991 or since (age 25 season this year)
1. Anderson Espinoza
2. Manny Margot
3. Adrian Morejon
4. Hunter Renfroe
5. Austin Hedges

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