2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Prep: Ranking the Fantasy assets for the Rays with Brent Honeywell going down

• Draft Prep Tiers: C | 1B | 2B | SS | 3B | OF | SP | RP
  
• Heath's Sleepers | Breakouts | Busts 
  
• Scott's Top 100 prospects | Sleepers | Breakouts | Busts | Dynasty Top 100 
  

The Rays are like everybody's least favorite part of the Moneyball movie: just a little bit caught in the middle.

They haven't made the playoffs in four years, finishing right around .500 in three of them (worse than that in the other). And though they've sold off some big-name parts during that time, hoping to extend the window of their "glory years," they've mostly failed in that endeavor. It might be time for a full-blown rebuild, and in dealing off Evan Longoria and Steven Souza and designating Corey Dickerson for assignment, they're at least flirting with the idea. 

And yet ... look at their starting pitching. So much promise there with purported (though not totally substantiated) ace Chris Archer, a slow-to-develop Blake Snell and a quick-to-develop Jacob Faria. Yes, you could see them all emerging at just the same time, giving the Rays a starting five to rival Cleveland's.

But that's rarely how these things play out, and anything less probably isn't enough to compete in a division once again ruled by the Yankees and Red Sox. One reason why: The Rays don't have a single hitter in my top 150 -- and that was true even before their late-February makeover.

Rays in Scott's Top 300

Player	Roto Rank	H2H Rank	Roto Pos Rank	H2H Pos Rank
Chris Archer TB SP	#51	#47	#15	#15
Alex Colome TB RP	#136	#141	#13	#13
Kevin Kiermaier TB CF	#161	#209	#40	#45
Wilson Ramos TB C	#168	#170	#8	#8
Jake Faria TB SP	#174	#138	#45	#45
Blake Snell TB SP	#177	#143	#48	#48
C.J. Cron TB 1B	#300	NR	#34	#35

Players in Scott's Top 100 Prospects

Things to Know

• If the Rays decide to punt on 2018, Chris Archer would obviously be their biggest trade chip, but Alex Colome is the most likely to be traded. Shoot, it may happen before the start of the season, as much as his name comes up. Even though he led the majors in saves last year, there's no guarantee he'd be asked to close at his new stop, what with him averaging just 7.8 strikeouts per nine innings last year, so you'll want to approach him cautiously on Draft Day.
• Because of his staggering defensive metrics, Kevin Kiermaier is actually the most valuable of the Rays in terms of WAR, but the bat is beginning to make an impact as well. If not for injuries the past two seasons, he might be a 20-homer, 25-steal guy twice over, which is a pretty big deal in Rotisserie leagues. And even in points leagues, his typically respectable strikeout rate makes him a worthy starter.
• Between Brent Honeywell, shortstop Willy Adames, first baseman Jake Bauers, third baseman Christian Arroyo and even right-hander Jose De Leon (if he's able to resuscitate his top prospect standing), the Rays are at the precipice of another full-blown youth movement, which is why they may be hesitant to tear down what they've already built. All but Honeywell figure to factor at the major-league level this season, but none is expected to claim a job right out of the gate.
• After hurrying back from a torn ACL last June, Wilson Ramos' power was about the only thing that translated from his breakout 2016 season. But he made contact at a similarly impressive rate, so there's a decent chance an offseason of rest is enough to get his other numbers in line. He ranked up there with Buster Posey in 2016, making him a reasonable middle-to-late-round gamble at a thin position.

Lineup & Rotation