MLB: Power Ranking All 30 Teams 5 Years from Now
With the recent conclusion of the 2011 MLB Draft, each organization selected players to groom into the major leagues while also preparing the future of their ball club for the foreseeable future.
Over the course of the next five years, you may be surprised as to which teams are loaded in regards to their farm system and which are struggling to fill the spots of their retiring veterans, free agents and star players who will be switching teams in the coming seasons.
With that in mind, here is a ranking of each team's talent based on their farm system, major league caliber prospects and the future of those players currently on their 25-man major league roster.
No. 30: Florida Marlins
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One of the Marlins' most promising prospects, pitcher Chad James, has struggled mightily while playing in the minors, and although the team remains confident in his abilities, they cannot place too much confidence in his play based on the numbers he's put up so far.
In addition to James' struggles, a 50-game suspension to prospect Dan Jennings and an injury to one of their best Triple-A players, Matt Dominguez, has sidetracked the Marlins' plans for their minor leaguers.
They still have a lot of confidence in hard-throwing pitcher Jose Urena, as well as their recent first-round draft pick pitcher Jose Fernandez, but, like the Brewers, a depleted farm system has their future in a bit jeopardy because, after the 2013 and 2014 season, players such as Hanley Ramirez and Josh Johnson may no longer be in Miami.
No. 29: Milwaukee Brewers
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The Milwaukee Brewers cleaned out their minor league systems last offseason, so that they could acquire pitchers Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum, leaving their farm system depleted at best.
When Greinke landed on the DL before the start of the season, the team was forced to fill his spot in the rotation with Marco Estrada, who was not even invited to the team's spring training this season. Although Estrada performed well filling in, the fact that the team's best starter was someone not in camp this spring speaks loudly to the depletion of their minor league pitching.
In hopes to restock their farm system, the team used two first-round picks to draft pitchers Jed Bradley and Taylor Jungmann, but they need to do more in order to provide more pitching depth for their starters.
In regards to their current roster, the Brewers did manage to lock up Ryan Braun through the 2021 season, but are facing many questions about where Prince Fielder will end up after this season and only have Greinke and Corey Hart locked up for another one and two years, respectively.
No. 28: Oakland Athletics
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The past few years haven't been kind to the Oakland Athletics' farm system.
They've had top prospects, Jemile Weeks in particular, become frequent to injuries, seen slow starts and struggles by highly touted prospects such as Chris Carter, Michael Taylor and Max Stassi and had to deal with the sudden retirement of Grant Desme.
The Athletics' farm system still has a lot of potential, as prospects Michael Choice and Tyreace House appear to be on the verge of breaking through, but the team's farm system seems to always be plagued by injuries and has a history of coming up short when called upon.
In regards to current Athletics, the only players who appear to be signed for the long run are Kurt Suzuki (2014 option) and Grant Balfour (2013 option), further jeopardizing their future.
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No. 27: Houston Astros
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The Houston Astros' farm system is not very deep in terms of pitching and power hitting, which is why they've landed so low on this list. The have a lot of good hitters in the minors, just not any who can fill Carlos Lee's shoes, for example, as he moves ever closer to retirement.
The team has also had to deal with the struggles of prospect Jose Vallejo, who is now in his seventh year in the minors, pitcher Carlos Quevedo, who had a terrible season in rookie ball and Koby Clemens, Roger Clemens' son, who has a power bat but is taking much longer to make his way to the majors then the team initially expected.
With current Astros slugger Carlos Lee only signed through 2012 and trade speculation surrounding Hunter Pence, this depleted farm system may be called upon sooner than the team's front office would like.
No. 26: Chicago White Sox
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Gordon Beckham's quick rise to the majors has left the White Sox without many players on ESPN's yearly list ranking the top prospect among all big league organizations.
While researching for this slide show, I stumbled upon multiple White Sox message boards that said the team's best draft picks over the past decade or two were Jack McDowell, Mark Buehrle and Joe Borchard, which immediately dropped them to the lower third of this list.
Currently, White Sox top prospects Jordan Danks and Dayan Viciedo are not hitting on a regular basis, and there are not many power bats in the team's farm system to help the struggling team recover from its hitting woes and aging players.
As of June 16, the Sox had locked up Adam Dunn through 2014, Alex Rios though 2015 (option) and Alexei Ramirez through 2016 (option), but with questions surrounding the contracts of star players Buehrle and Carlos Quentin, they have found themselves fairly low on this list.
No. 25: Detroit Tigers
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If this list was a ranking of minor league relievers, the Detroit Tigers would likely find themselves inside the top five, however, it's a ranking of each team's full future, so they've landed in the bottom third because they lack nearly everything expect power relievers.
As of late, the Tigers have traded away many of the prized prospects for strong major league players already on another team's 25-man roster rather than stock up and develop their farm system.
A lack of depth on the team's major league roster has also cost the Tigers' farm system, as the team's front office has been forced to call up many minor league players before they are ready due to injury and ineffectiveness.
The good news for the Tigers is that, barring trade and injury, both Justin Verlander and Victor Martinez are locked up through the 2014 season and Miguel Cabrera will be in Detroit through 2015. However, if any of the Tigers' starting nine land on the DL, the lack of talent in the team's farm system will likely hinder the team from achieving success.
No. 24: New York Mets
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Many of the international prospects that former general manager Omar Minaya drafted during his tenure had a hard time adjusting to his system, so when Minaya was replaced by Sandy Alderson, a cloud of unknown surrounded the team and whether or not the players would better adapt to Alderson or continue their struggles.
Although that feeling of uncertainty has landed the Mets so far down on this list, they are also the team most likely to move up (or down) out of all 30 organizations in this slide show because, if Alderson is really the answer to the Mets' problems, the organization will likely return to prominence.
A bright side for Mets fans is that they have ace Johan Santana and slugger Jason Bay locked up through 2014, but with their effectiveness in question and the constant trade speculation surrounding Jose Reyes and David Wright, I expect them to continue to struggle in the near future.
No. 23: Arizona Diamondbacks
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A day after firing then-manager A.J. Hench and then-general manager Josh Byrnes, Arizona Diamondbacks managing general partner Ken Kendrick said one of the major factors that led to the firings was the lack of top talents throughout the team's farm system.
To show just how depleted the team's farm system is, look no further than their top prospect. For the past three seasons, right-handed pitcher Jarrod Parker, has been named the team's top prospect despite having Tommy John surgery in late 2009 and missing the whole 2010 season.
In this year's draft, however, the team used their first round picks to select Trevor Bauer and Archie Bradley, both top-tier pitchers. Look for the Diamondbacks farm system to be on the way up, but they will still need a few years to groom all of the players they select in the next few years' drafts.
No. 22: Baltimore Orioles
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Many of the Baltimore Orioles' top prospects have struggled the past two years in the minors, earning them a low ranking on this last as well.
Brandon Snyder, the team's top pick in 2005, was asked to give catching another try in order for the team to give him a roster spot out of Spring Training, Matt Hobgood, the team's No. 5 pick in 2009 draft, has fallen victim to a shoulder injury that has kept him from performing over the course of the past few years, and Billy Rowell, the team's ninth overall pick in 2006, has yet to make it out of Single-A because of a lack of both power and consistency.
The team has struggled to sign top overseas talent as well, meaning that the Orioles still have a long way to go before they give the rest of the AL East a run for their money.
No. 21: Pittsburgh Pirates
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The Pittsburgh Pirates have been trying to trade away some of their veterans and All-Star players for prospects in order to rebuild their farm system, but are still a little ways away from having a top-tier organization.
In the past year, the team has called up Jose Tabata, Pedro Alvarez and Neil Walker, all of which have been moderately successful in the big leagues, yet the team's offensive struggles have continued. Currently, the team's farm system has two to three more power arms that are almost ready for a call-up, but after that, it seems to be lacking depth.
Also, top draft picks such as Jordy Mercer, Quinton Miller and Robbie Grossman have struggled in the minors so far, furthering jeopardizing the team's future.
No. 20: Seattle Mariners
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A few of the Seattle Mariners' top prospects are off to hot starts in the minors this season, but some of the team's early picks in previous drafts are struggling as well, which is why the Mariners have landed in the bottom-middle of this slide show.
Yoervis Medina, a starting pitcher currently on the Mariners' 40-man roster, is off to a bad start in Class-A Advanced this season, as he is currently 0-5 with a 6.30 ERA. Also, pitchers Edward Paredes (10.80 ERA) and Brian Moran (allowed 12 runs in seven innings) have been ineffective this season at the Triple and Double-A levels, respectively.
Despite the struggles of some of their top prospects, strong performances by young players Erasmo Rodriguez and Jimmy Gilheeney have the Mariners excited about what may happen in the next few seasons.
No. 19: San Francisco Giants
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The San Francisco Giants' farm system, also known as the least successful farm system in baseball between 1990 and 2003, is very bottom heavy, and many baseball writers don't expect the team's top prospects to be major league-ready anywhere in the near future.
I just don't see Brandon Belt and Thomas Neal as the answers to the Giants' problems nor the future of the team, and struggles by prospects playing on all levels of the Giants' minor league system likely has the team's front office seeking to send out their major league players to bolster their farm system.
The team also has to deal with the soon to expire contracts of Cody Ross and Jonathan Sanchez, and Tim Lincecum will have the opportunity to become a free agent in 2013, a year in which he'll likely receive a hefty payday, so questions surrounding their contracts has landed the Giants fairly low in this list.
No. 18: Los Angeles Dodgers
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The state of the Los Angeles Dodgers' farm system is unknown at best, which is why, in respect to the next five years, they have landed near the middle of the pack on this last.
The team is still unsure what the can expect from John Ely and Carlos Monasterios because they have had their ups and downs, and their best minor league reliever last season, Kenley Jansen, was a catcher the year earlier. Also, the team learned that reliever Ronald Belisario wouldn't receive a visa this year.
Star players Rafael Furcal, James Loney Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp all have contracts that expire within the next couple of years as well, further jeopardizing the team's future.
No. 17: Chicago Cubs
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Last January, when MLB.com put out its list of the top 50 prospects in baseball, the Chicago Cubs only had one player on that list, Brett Jackson, and he occupied one of the last five spots on that list. The team's lack of major league-ready players has put the future of the Cubs, at least somewhat, in jeopardy.
Now, looking ahead to the next five years, the Cubs aren't going to be in bad shape, it just appears that many of their prospects have stalled out a bit in the minors and will need more time to develop than initially expected.
Matt Szczur hit .192 after being promoted at High-A ball late last season and the highly touted Josh Vitters, who has been unable to hit the ball in Double-A for the past two seasons, has seen his ranking drop nearly 30 spots over the past three years.
No. 16: Los Angeles Angels
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The Los Angeles Angels have been ranked fairly low in regards to their farm system, but after some trades, promotions and rapid development of players such as Tyler Chatwood, the team is on the rebound.
The team's top prospect, Mike Trout, is tearing up the Texas League and likely on the way up towards the majors. The Angels are in need of an impressive top prospect because only one of the their previous top prospects since 2006 remains on the team - Hank Conger, who is a career .225 hitter. Their top prospect from 2006-2008, Brandon Wood, is now on the Pirates, Nick Adenhart was tragically killed and Conger is struggling.
No. 15: Texas Rangers
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The Rangers farm system was ranked No. 1 in both 2009 and 2010, but, after an abundance of call-ups and trades, dropped towards the middle of the pack this season. Some of the team's top prospects, especially Jurickson Profar and Martin Perez, have exceeded expectations and will likely be competing for a spot on the Rangers' roster within a couple of years.
However, of all of the Rangers' current roster, the most effective player they have locked up for the long run is Adrian Beltre, who they signed through 2015 with an option in 2016. Star players Josh Hamilton and Ian Kinsler's contracts run out in 2012, followed by Michael Young, if he lasts that long, in 2013.
No. 14: Washington Nationals
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By locking up Jayson Werth for the foreseeable future, the Washington Nationals have earned a spot inside the top 20 of this slide show.
However, outside of Werth, there are many questions surrounding the future of the team. For example, the status of Stephen Strasburg post-Tommy John surgery is unknown and Bryce Harper is still too young to assess, although he is performing well in the minors as of late.
Some of the worst news for the Nationals comes from outside their own system, however, as the division rival Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves are both ranked highly on power rankings and farm systems, meaning their young roster of the future may still have a long way to go before the Nats are a force in the NL East.
No. 13: Minnesota Twins
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This season, many of the Minnesota Twins' rookies have been unable to fill in the holes for the countless number of starters who have all, at some point, landed on the Disabled List.
That being said, Trevor Plouffe, Luke Hughes and Rene Tosoni can't be expected to be struggle for long after some gaining at least some experience in the majors, and any team that can lock up their best player, in the Twins' case, Joe Mauer, is going to win games.
However, Carl Pavano, Michael Cuddyer, Jason Kubel, Delmon Young and Jim Thome all have contracts expiring within the next couple of years which jeopardizes the team's future at least somewhat. The Twins need to hope some of the top prospects can continue to develop to fill the holes that will surely be created by the departure of at least some of the aforementioned players.
No. 12: Cleveland Indians
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Although the Cleveland Indians' farm system isn't loaded with top prospects, they do have a lot of depth and what is likely to be many above-average major league players. Other than Lonnie Chisenhall, who will be in Cleveland within a couple of years at most, questions do surround their possible big league players such as Nick Hagadone, and Alex White, who, despite making three starts this season, is unproven down the stretch.
Many of the players that make up the Indians current roster, including Orlando Cabrera, Shin-Soo Choo, Asdrubal Cabrera, Jack Hannahan and Justin Masterson are in the last years of their contracts and star player Grady Sizemore only has a club option for 2012 remaining before he becomes a free agent. This leaves much of the immediate future of the Indians in a bit of question, although, for a team that came out of no where to dominant much of this season, I wouldn't rule out the future of this team.
No. 11: Colorado Rockies
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The heart of the Colorado Rockies' lineup, Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez, are signed through the 2021 and 2017 seasons, respectively, ensuring that the ball club's best two players will still be playing in Coors Field for the foreseeable future. The organization also has a club option for ace Ubaldo Jimenez for the 2013 and 2014 seasons.
Also, the team has a lot of depth in their minor league system, as prospects Wilin Rosario and Tyler Matzek have already showed the club that they are its players of the future. The only downside to the Rockies' farm system is that Christian Friedrich, the team's top pick in the 2008 draft, struggled a bit last season.
No. 10: San Diego Padres
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At the conclusion of this season, many of the San Diego Padres' key players will need to be resigned in order for the team that missed the 2010 postseason by one game to continue to field a strong team in the near future.
Some of the players with expiring contracts include Luke Gregerson, Mat Latos, Ryan Ludwick and Heath Bell, provided he doesn't get shipped out of San Diego before the trade deadline arrives. That being said, the Padres have a lot to look forward to in the faces of Casey Kelly, Anthony Rizzo and Reymond Fuentes, who will each provide a much needed spark assuming some of the team's best players may not be returning to San Diego after this season.
No. 9: St. Louis Cardinals
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When St. Louis Cardinals' ace Adam Wainwright went down before the season even started, and then Nick Punto, Matt Holliday, Gerald Laird and David Freese landed on the Disabled List not long after, the team's farm system was called upon to not only fill in for the injured major league players, but also keep the team in first place in the NL Central, which they've done so far.
Strong performances by Allen Craig, as well as recent call-ups Matt Carpenter and Mark Hamilton have proven the Cardinals' farm system, which is often ranked low on baseball writers' lists each season, is better than expected.
With strong prospects, including Shelby Miller and Zack Cox, being groomed to arrive in the majors in the near future, the team's farm system is finally beginning to turn around after a rough couple of years. That being said, the team can't even come close to cracking the top five on this list because of the unknown factor surrounding soon-to-be free agent Albert Pujols.
No. 8: Toronto Blue Jays
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Jose Bautista has gotten a lot of attention after having what appears to back-to-back seasons of 40-plus home runs for the Toronto Blue Jays and currently owns a starting spot for this year's All-Star game in Phoenix. The good news for the Jays is that Bautista is signed through 2015, with a club option for 2016, meaning he'll likely be a Blue Jay for the foreseeable future.
In addition to the hot hitting Bautista, the team has also locked up Adam Lind and Aaron Hill for the next few years. It may be a year or two before it happens, but the Jays do have some serious major league talent poised and ready to make a big impact in Toronto. Players such as Adeiny Hechavarria and Zach Stewart are playing well in the minors, while, with a little more experience, players such as Kyle Drabek and J.P. Arencibia will improve the Blue Jays as well.
No. 7: Cincinnati Reds
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Gold Glover Brandon Phillips, Scott Rolen and reigning National League Most Valuable Player Joey Votto are signed through at least 2012, with Votto guaranteed a spot in Cincinnati until 2013, so the Reds will likely be a thorn in the sides of the rest of the National League for years to come.
In fact, not only to the Reds have Votto to look forward to, they also have pitcher Aroldis Chapman signed through 2015, so, once he gets his control issues down, he will be a lights out reliever, or starter for that matter, in Cincinnati.
The team's farm system is loaded as well, with players such as Billy Hamilton, Yasmani Grandal and Yonder Alonso all on the verge of breaking through.
No. 6: Tampa Bay Rays
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The face of the Tampa Bay Rays, Evan Longoria, has club options intact through the 2016 season, ensuring that he will be fielding ground balls at third for years to come. While Longoria instantly makes any team better, the fact they the Rays have Wade Davis, James Shields, David Price and Ben Zobrist locked up for at least a couple more years doesn't hurt either.
The Rays are loaded with young talent as well, as players such as Chris Archer, Matt Moore and Alex Colome are poised for success with prospects Desmond Jennings and Josh Sale not far behind them.
No. 5: Kansas City Royals
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We've already gotten a taste of how strong the Kansas City Royals' farm system is this season, as early-season call-ups Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas have made a huge impact for the team already this year.
The team also has players such as Mike Montgomery, John Lamb and Danny Duffy as farm system headliners, meaning the Royals will be a force to be reckoned with in not only the AL Central but the whole American League as well.
In addition to their top prospects, the team also has Billy Butler and Jeff Francoeur locked up for a couple of years as well.
No. 4: Boston Red Sox
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This past offseason, the Boston Red Sox traded three of their top prospects - Casey Kelly, Anthony Rizzo and Reymond Fuentes - to the Padres in order to acquire first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, who has been nothing short of brilliant this season.
Even despite the blow to the team's farm system, they have a lot of depth, especially in the back end of their farm system, and are expecting lots from their 2010 picks Kolbrin Vitek and Anthony Ranaudo. Also, the Sox have offseason acquisitions Gonzalez and Carl Crawford locked up for at least the next five years, so they will be a force in AL East for years to come.
No. 3: New York Yankees
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Alex Rodriguez is signed through 2017, C.C. Sabathia through 2015, Mark Teixeira through 2016 and Derek Jeter has a player option for 2014, so, in short, the heart of the Yankees lineup and rotation are in place for as long as they want to be in New York.
For what it matters, the Yankees' farm system is deep as well. With players like Jesus Montero, Manny Banuelos and Andrew Brackman, to name a few, they have the capability to beat any team on any playing field, which is bad news for the rest of baseball.
No. 2: Atlanta Braves
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The Atlanta Braves have one of the best farm systems in all of baseball, and in it, some of the top ranked prospects as well. The future of the Braves looks bright, as pitching prospects Randall Delgado, Arodys Vizcaino and top prospect Julio Teheran are all poised to perform well in Atlanta when the time comes.
It's looking like the Braves' abundance of top minor league pitchers may have to wait at least a few more years before earning a spot in the rotation, as Derek Lowe, signed through next season, and Tim Hudson, signed through 2012 with a 2013 option, still have a few years left with Atlanta.
The Braves' bats are set as well, provided Dan Uggla, who is signed through 2015, starts hitting. Both Chipper Jones and Brian McCann have options through the 2013 season.
No. 1: Philadelphia Phillies
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The heart of the Philadelphia Phillies' rotation will be a force to be reckoned with for the next few years, as both Roy Halladay, signed through 2014, and Cliff Lee, signed through 2016, will be taking the mound in Philly for a while. In addition to Halladay and Lee, Phillies slugger Ryan Howard is signed through 2017 and third baseman Placido Polanco will likely be in town through 2013.
The Phillies also have prospects like Brody Colvin, Jarred Cosart and Jonathan Singleton to look forward to in the coming years, all of which are currently projected to be better-than-average major league players after undergoing a little more development.
The Phillies, who have been a force in all of baseball for the past three years, will continue to be a well-rounded bunch over the course of the next five years.
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