Rays Prospect Slugging Way Near to of Organizational Rankings

The Tampa Bay Rays prospect rankings features a new player near the top.

Jun 18, 2024; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Ecole Secondaire Notre Dame High School catcher Nathan Flewelling during the MLB Draft Combine at Chase Field. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Rays have an exciting group of young players moving their way through the minor league system.

One of their top-ranked prospect coming into the year, shortstop Carson Williams, has graduated from prospect status, which means their rankings have been shaken up. Remaining atop the rankings at No. 1 is outfielder Theo Gillen.

But the biggest surprise is who has come in behind him at No. 2. Making a meteoric rise up the rankings is catcher Nathan Flewelling. In the latest prospect rankings shared by Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, the 2024 third-round pick out of St. Joseph High School in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada, has gone from unranked to near the top.

In the May edition, Flewelling was one of two prospects, along with shortstop Cooper Flemming, who just missed out on being in the top 10. Both have made their way into the June edition of the rankings, surpassing outfielder Slater de Brun.

Nathan Flewelling shooting up Rays prospect rankings

Jun 18, 2024; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Ecole Secondaire Notre Dame High School catcher Nathan Flewelling during the MLB Draft Combine at Chase Field. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Flewelling, unsurprisingly, was the prospect McDaniel highlighted as the riser to know in the Rays organization.

“His exit velos have improved only a smidge, but he's making more in-zone contact, has more loft in his swing, and is making contact out front more often. Essentially, he learned how to tap into his power. Gray is also worth noting and has been so good in a short look at Single-A that I put him in over de Brun, who has yet to play a pro game,” McDaniel wrote.

After making a cameo at High-A Bowling Green in 2025, Tampa Bay decided to start Flewelling in 2026. He has taken his game to another level, realizing some of the immense potential that led to him being selected in the third round two years ago.

In 45 games and 198 plate appearances, he has produced a .271/.384/.512 slash line. He already has 10 home runs this year after hitting only six in 461 plate appearances during his professional debut last year.

.@JustBB_Media Top 100 Prospect update

Five Rays included on the list:
-OF Theo Gillen (No. 19)
-RHP Brody Hopkins (No. 49)
-C Nathan Flewelling (No. 54)
-INF Cooper Flemming (No. 68)
-1B Taitn Gray (No. 74)pic.twitter.com/jXf56FCnl7

— Rays The Roof (@RaysTheRoofTB) June 3, 2026

Eight doubles and one triple have been added to his ledger as well, showcasing some real power potential in his second year as a pro. He has recorded 31 RBI while striking out 47 times and drawing 27 walks.

Defensively, Flewelling is also showing improvements. His Range Factor per nine innings and Range Factor Per Game are both up in 2026. He has a 9.79 and 9.47, respectively, after recording an 8.89 and 8.64 in 2025.

The only area of his game that looks to have regressed is throwing out base runners. He has thrown out only 13 of 63 runners attempting to steal a base, which comes out to 21%. That is a drop from the 28% he recorded last year, throwing out 39 runners with 101 successfully swiping a bag.

Essentially, since their inception, catcher has been an issue for the Rays. But that is changing with Flewelling and Caden Bodine solidifying the position in the pipeline.