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MLB Top Prospects: Farm System Rankings for all 30 teams

By Benjamin Chase

MIAMI, FL - JULY 9: Members of the World Team are seen on the base path during player introductions prior to the SirusXM All-Star Futures Game at Marlins Park on Sunday, July 9, 2017 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL - JULY 9: Members of the World Team are seen on the base path during player introductions prior to the SirusXM All-Star Futures Game at Marlins Park on Sunday, July 9, 2017 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /
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MLB Top Prospects
MONTREAL, QC – MARCH 27: Toronto Blue Jays infielder Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) pitches the ball during the St. Louis Cardinals versus the Toronto Blue Jays spring training game on March 27, 2018, at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, QC (Photo by David Kirouac/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

17. Toronto Blue Jays

2017 Ranking: 9
Prospects in the top 150: 5
Projected starters 25 and under: 2

Many were curious this offseason what direction the Blue Jays may take the team. The team had their long-time franchise icon headed to free agency in Jose Bautista, and there didn’t seem to be any desire for a reunion. The team’s current top player, Josh Donaldson, is headed to a big free agency pay day after the 2018 season, likely with another organization, and he would be joined in free agency by two of the team’s top starting pitchers.

The Blue Jays chose to push in for one more season of competitiveness, at least until July, signing players like Curtis Granderson, Jaime Garcia, and Tyler Clippard as one-year fills rather than either making trades for a rebuild or signing long-term commitments. That does give the organization the flexibility to sell in July and head into a rebuild while also giving fans some hope of a competitive 2018.

At the top of the system, few teams have a better 1-2 prospect punch than the Blue Jays with Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. and Bo Bichette. Nate Pearson is one guy who has climbed heavily all spring and if he isn’t in Toronto already by mid-season, he could be a top 20-30 prospect in the entire game by that time. The issue is the regression and lack of depth behind those top studs as a number of the talented players that led me to rank the Blue Jays so highly in 2017 struggled mightily, and many of them in such a way that it leaves their long-term future in question.

If the Blue Jays do indeed end up selling off some pieces like Donaldson, Marco Estrada, JA Happ, or even Marcus Stroman at the deadline or in the offseason, Jays fans should be excited that the next chapter of the organization wlll be headlined by some of the top prospects in the entire game. Now the team needs to work on surrounding those guys with talent that is reaching its ceiling as well (or at least near-ceiling).

MLB Top Prospects
SCOTTSDALE, AZ – FEBRUARY 26: Colorado Rockies shortstop Brendan Rodgers (65) makes a throw to first base for an out during the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks on February 26, 2018 at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick. (Photo by John Leyba/The Denver Post via Getty Images) /

16. Colorado Rockies

2017 Ranking: 13
Prospects in the top 150: 5
Projected starters 25 and under: 4

Colorado Rockies fans were treated to a playoff run in 2017, and it was done on the back of one of the most-underrated pitching development systems in the league. While many see some of the big-name guys that have come to Colorado and struggled on the pitching side, the amount of arms that have blossomed within the Rockies organization is impressive and a sign of the positive direction the organization is heading.

Seeing multiple young arms fill into the 2017 rotation showed how the Rockies have worked to develop pitchers with premium velocity, location, and an ability to handle a rough outing and bounce back, something vital in the thin air of Colorado.

The organization is heading into a 2018 season where some big decisions will need to be made in the offseason regarding starting second baseman DJ LeMahieu and star outfielder Charlie Blackmon, both of whom will be free agents, along with franchise face Nolan Arenado, who is likely to make $20 million-plus in his final season of arbitration. There are some outfield reinforcements in place that could help ease the loss of Blackmon, and the emergence of a few middle infield options could help ease the loss of LeMahieu, but losing all three, including Arenado, in a pair of offseasons could set back the franchise significantly, so the team will need to make decisions that could end up impacting how certain current prospects are also handled within the system.

While the depth in Colorado is very impressive, there is a significant question or two, seemingly, with every top Rockies prospect, which puts them at this place for now, but they have seen a number of those same “significant question” players turn into leaders of their organization, so it’s entirely possible that this ranking looks low as soon as next year!

Next: #14/15

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