Rays Top Prospect Surprisingly Misses Top 10 of Positional Rankings
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The Tampa Bay Rays' long-term outlook is very strong with a strong farm system that was augmented with even more talent this winter.
Two blockbuster trades were made this offseason with a focus on adding prospects. In a three-team deal that included the Pittsburgh Pirates and Houston Astros, the Rays added outfielder Jacob Melton and right-handed pitcher Anderson Brito.
From the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for Shane Baz, Tampa Bay received outfielders Slater de Brun and Austin Overn, catcher Caden Bodine, right-handed pitcher Michael Forret and a draft pick.
Virtually all of those players should be featured in the first edition of the Rays' top 30 prospects in 2026. It will be interesting to see where they slot in compared to some of the other highly-touted players already in the organization, such as shortstop Carson Williams.
Where is Carson Williams ranked amongst shortstop prospects?
A first-round pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, he was the No. 1-ranked player in the organization in 2025. His arm, fielding and power scouting grades are all excellent, providing a high ceiling to achieve.
Williams was also a top 100-ranked player in all of baseball in 2025, coming in at No. 50. He should retain a spot inside the top 100 in 2026, but his standing compared to his peers at shortstop seems to have dipped a little bit.
Over at MLB Pipeline, prospect positional rankings have started to be released. Shortstop was the latest top 10 revealed, and Williams didn’t crack the list, which speaks volumes to how deep the position is.
Coming in at No. 1 is Konnor Griffin of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who will likely be the No. 1-ranked prospect in the sport. Kevin McGonigle of the Detroit Tigers, Jesus Made of the Milwaukee Brewers and Leo De Vries of the Athletics round out the top four and could conceivably be the top four in the top 100 as well.
Carson Williams has elite tools to develop
JJ Wetherholt of the St. Louis Cardinals, Sebastian Walcott of the Texas Rangers, Colt Emerson of the Seattle Mariners, Eli Willits of the Washington Nationals, Aidan Miller of the Philadelphia Phillies and Ethan Holliday of the Colorado Rockies round out the top 10.
While not seeing Williams in the top 10 will disappoint some people, it doesn’t put any kind of damper on his long-term outlook. He has elite tools, looking like a potential future All-Star in multiple facets of the game.
His defensive ability alone provides a strong floor to build upon. Once he starts improving his pitch recognition and cutting down on his strikeout rate, which he has already shown signs of, he will begin moving toward reaching his ceiling.
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Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. Previously, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.