Rays' Newly Acquired Prospect Can Make Positive Impact in 2026

Will a new prospect for the Tampa Bay Rays make an impact in 2026?

Aug 16, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; A Tampa Bay Rays helmet sits in the dugout before the game against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Rays have had a busy winter, and the team will be looking forward to getting back on the field for spring training. 

This is going to be an interesting year coming up for the franchise following new ownership taking over and coming off another year in which they missed the postseason. The Rays are a team that has always been able to be a solid contender despite a low payroll, and a major reason for that has been their ability to have a strong farm system. 

Unfortunately, that farm system hasn’t been as strong in recent years, and it was a goal of the team to improve in that area. Tampa Bay certainly did that this offseason with the decisions to move on from Brandon Lowe and Shane Baz. 

While trading Lowe wasn’t surprising, moving Baz, who was under team control, was. However, with a plethora of prospects coming back in return, the Rays have reloaded the farm system with quite a bit of depth. 

Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report recently wrote about the best prospects traded this winter, and Rays’ Jacob Melton was named as one of the Top 15 moved. 

Melton Can Thrive With Tampa Bay 

Houston Astros center fielder Jacob Melton | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Of the players that the Rays brought in from their trades this winter, Melton is certainly the best prospect. The talented slugger from the Houston Astros got his feet wet in the majors last year, but the results weren’t great. 

However, in the minors, he was a really good player and could make an impact for Tampa Bay. This was a team that had a desire to improve their outfield, and they tried to do so in free agency with some veterans. The hope will be that Cedric Mullins and Jake Fraley can help in that area, but Melton could be in the mix as well. 

Even though they brought in some new faces, Melton is clearly part of the plan for the future, and if he has a good spring, there is no reason why he shouldn’t be on the team to start the year. 

While all eyes are on top prospect Carson Williams at shortstop to see if he can win the starting job, Melton very well could do the same in the outfield. As the Rays start to plan for the future, seeing Melton and Williams playing significant roles for the team would be ideal.