5. New York Yankees
2017 Ranking: 3
Prospects in the top 150: 8
Projected starters 25 and under: 6
When your organization is constantly being picked from in the Rule 5 draft, it’s a testament to just how loaded your farm system is. The Yankees have led the Rule 5 draft with players selected from their system over the last three seasons, and that’s likely to continue for at least a few more years.
The Yankees put together one of the more impressive pitching development programs that has seen a number of raw, loose arms go from throwers to pitchers with refined stuff, even if it’s just two-pitch stuff that turns into an elite reliever. That pitching pipeline will allow the Yankees to keep prices low on their total pitching costs as players work their way up to the majors. It also gives a constant supply of trade pieces for other organizations looking for big arms with secondary stuff that the Yankees seem to be able to develop at ease.
This ranking could take a dip next season with some of the elite prospects likely to graduate in 2018 as Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar will likely figure into the Yankee lineup by season’s end, but with the money the Yankees have invested into their development system, they shouldn’t fall too far.
4. Philadelphia Phillies
2017 Ranking: 1
Prospects in the top 150: 7
Projected starters 25 and under: 8
The future has come now for the Philadelphia Phillies, as evidenced by a league-high 8 starters 25 years old and younger. The Phillies are bringing their top players up to the major leagues, and many of the players on their prospect list in 2018 won’t be eligible any longer in 2017.
One of the reasons for the drop of the system was the attrition of a number of upper level prospects in the Philadelphia system this season. Few upper-level pitchers had a successful season in 2017, and while the amount of highly-impressive arms, especially from Latin America, in the lower levels of the Phillies system is still almost overwhelming, the fact that those arms still need to get to the upper levels and succeed makes it tough to get too excited about that depth.
The Phillies have nearly an entire roster of prospects that will be at the major league level this season, so the team will have a wide variant in its outcomes this year, especially with a first-time manager, but they should certainly be exciting to watch!
Next: #2/3