In a prelude to his top 100 prospects, Scouts, Inc.’s Keith Law has released his top minor league systems (ESPN Insider Link) for the 30 teams in MLB and we find the Boston Red Sox as the 11th best team. The Kansas City Royals are the top team followed by the Tampa Bay Rays, Atlanta Braves, Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelhia Phillies.
All things considered, this isn’t so bad as the Red Sox lost three of their top prospects in the trade with the San Diego Padres for Adrian Gonzalez.
Here’s what Law had to say about the Red Sox farm system:
The Sox traded away their top two prospects for Gonzalez, but boosted on the back end with three first-round talents added in the 2010 draft (their actual first-rounder, Kolbrin Vitek, plus Anthony Ranaudo and Bryce Brentz). As usual, their low-minors teams were strong, with the Greenville rotation quietly loaded with intriguing arms.
And those prospects, Casey Kelly, Anthony Rizzo and Reymond Fuentes, helped the Padres move up six spots in Law’s rankings.
The Red Sox should be able to boost their farm system even more as the 2011 draft class is deep and the Red Sox right now hold two first round picks plus two supplemental round picks. They could get another one if Felipe Lopez signs with another team.
