While it was a disappointing year for the Tampa Bay Rays from a win-loss perspective, their farm system continued to prove why it’s one of the most reliable sources of talent. Several players took considerable steps forward in 2024 and now are viewed on the precipice of being Top 100 prospects in the league.
In addition to homegrown talents, the Rays also traded for a glut of athletes who should knock on the doors of the majors in 2025 and 2026. The trading of Randy Arozarena and Isaac Paredes will sting, but the returns for those two players help secure a competitive landscape in Tampa Bay for the foreseeable future.
DEVELOPMENTS
The biggest development in the Rays system, without question, is the breakout of right-handed pitcher Gary Gill Hill. A sixth-round pick in 2022, Hill blows cheese past hitters and projects to add more velocity as his frame matures.
Hill played the entire season as a 19-year-old at A-Ball, but struck out 105 hitters in 108 innings, issuing just 27 walks. His 3.15 ERA and 3.24 xFIP ranked among the best in the Rays system this season. Hill’s full arsenal includes a fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup, all of which flash average or better. Next season could be a full showcase of his talents.
Outfielder Chandler Simpson has always been a speed merchant, but his hit tool was on full display in 2024, too. He hit .355 across High-A and Double-A all while snagging 104 bags in just 110 games played.
Simpson profiles as a top-of-the-lineup utility man who can roam centerfield and handle second base as necessary.
QUESTIONS
The Rays acquired right-hander Dylan Lesko from the San Diego Padres in exchange for right-handed bullpen arm Jason Adam in hopes they can recapture some of his exceptional pre-draft value. It’s been tough sledding for Lesko coming back from April 2022 UCL surgery. His struggles continued to new heights after the trade.
Next year likely serves a critical barometer for the trajectory of his career. He’ll be 21 years old.
It was also a difficult first full-season go of things for 2023 Comp-A pick Adrian Santana, a switch-hitting shortstop. He’s still searching for his first professional homer after 113 games and posted a .240/.300/.305 slash in 2024. Santana does have speed to burn and showed it with 51 bags in 103 games this season.
Santana was drafted as a glove-first infielder, but scouts want to see his game blossom more than it did this year in 2025.
ADDITIONS & SUBTRACTIONS
Where to begin? The Rays added a lot of talent in the 2024 Draft, led by CF Theo Gillen (1st round), 2B Emilien Pitre (2), and C Nathan Flewelling (3), all exceptional talents with different skill sets. The club also added some high-floor college arms in right-handers Jacob Kmatz (5), Janzen Kiesel (6), Ryan Andrade (7) and Nate Knowles (4). All four feature metrics that should lend well toward development.
On the trade market, the Rays bolstered an already-healthy system with the likes of Lesko, as well as helium types such as OF Aidan Smith and RHP Brody Hopkins from the deal with Seattle (Arozarena), and RHP Jackson Burmeister and OF/3B Mac Horvath (Baltimore, Zach Eflin).
Tampa’s farm isn’t what it once was in terms of depth and impact at the top, but it should reclaim that label before the end of the 2025 season.
Prior to the season, Tampa acquired LHP Joe Rock from the Colorado Rockies for SS Greg Jones.
GRADUATIONS
Shane Baz, RHP
Jonny DeLuca, OF
Junior Caminero, 3B
Curtis Mead, IF
Manuel Rodriguez, RHP
Edwin Uceta, RHP
Caminero projects as a big piece moving forward, filling out the Rays’ infield after the club moved Paredes at the deadline.
Mead has a good track record in the minors, showing off good on-base ability and above-average raw power that’s yet to blossom.
BIG-LEAGUE RADAR (yet to debut)
Xavier Isaac, 1B
Chandler Simpson, OF
Ty Johnson, RHP
Dominic Keegan, C
Yoniel Curet, RHP
Ian Seymour, LHP
Joe Rock, LHP
Trevor Martin, RHP
Brody Hopkins, RHP
Isaac is lined up to be the heir apparent to Yandy Diaz at first base, and Keegan is the club’s next No. 1 backstop, and there isn’t a stalwart in front of him so it’s just about when he’s ready.
SCOUT SAYS
“The one thing you never do with this organization is jump to conclusions; don’t assume what you see is what you will get, even if it’s a player one step from a call-up. It’s a unique operation from top to bottom. Player roles, positions, strengths, weaknesses, and their ultimate value is never close to a done deal since they have to fill gaps differently than anyone else. They think a day ahead, a week ahead, a month ahead, a year ahead, two years ahead, three years ahead, five years ahead.
“It’s a remarkable process that starts with goal setting, planning with finances, and then their execution from the time the player signs until they are no longer with the club determines their big-league chances as a franchise. They’ll try things most orgs won’t. It’s one of the most organized developmental approaches in baseball, a distinct set of goals with a quite peculiar process that’s worked for them for a long time, and it’s evolved year to year.”
ASHMORE: Rays’ High-A prospects shine
