Rays Prospects Well Represented in Rankings
Over the last two weeks, MLB.com revealed its Top 10 prospects at each position, before unveiling its Top 100 prospects at the end of last week. Tampa Bay Rays prospects were seen throughout, as Blake Snell, Richie Shaffer and Jake Bauers were all named a Top 10 prospect at their position, while Snell, Brent Honeywell and Willy Adames all cracked the Top 100.
Snell, coming off a historic 2015 campaign, will be fighting for a spot in the Rays rotation when pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in three weeks. After posting a miniscule 1.41 ERA a season ago, the 23-year-old southpaw was ranked the №2 left-handed pitching prospect in the game, and №14 overall.
Shaffer, who burst on to the Triple-A scene with Durham in May of last season, was tabbed the №8 third base prospect in the game. After spending two stints with Tampa Bay in 2015, he’s another guy that will go in to Spring Training looking to make the big league roster.
Although just 20 years old, Bauers could make his way to Durham in 2016 coming off an impressive 2015 season. After opening the year in Advanced-A Charlotte, he earned a midseason promotion to Double-A Montgomery where he hit .276 and tallied 36 RBI over 69 games. A first baseman, the former 7th-round draft pick was ranked the №7 prospect at his position.
While he couldn’t crack the list of top-ranked right-handers, Honeywell came in at №43 in the Top 100. The 72nd overall pick in the 2014 draft has made a name for himself with an effective screwball, and combined to go 9–6 with a 3.18 ERA in 24 starts between Single-A Bowling Green and Advanced-A Charlotte a year ago.
Acquired by Tampa Bay in the David Price trade of 2014, Adames is the №81 ranked prospect in the Top 100. In his first full season in the Rays organization, the 20-year-old hit .258 over 106 games with Advanced-A Charlotte.
