Tampa Bay Rays Top Prospect Xavier Isaac 'Sparked Debate' Among MLB Pipeline Experts

MLB.com revealed its list of the top 100 prospects in baseball last week, and the Tampa Bay Rays had five representatives make the cut.
One of them, however, was a point of contention amongst the outlet's experts.
MLB Pipeline writer Sam Dykstra published an article Tuesday breaking down the six top 100 prospects that sparked the most debate between him and senior writers Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo. First baseman Xavier Isaac, ranked No. 2 in Tampa Bays farm system, was one of those prospects.
Dykstra praised Isaac's "consistently great" exit velocities through the minor leagues, which have led to 37 home runs and a .497 slugging percentage so far in his career. That raw power and tangible production at the plate is the reason they settled on slotting Isaac in at No. 51 overall and No. 4 among first basemen.
At the same time, Dykstra noted that Isaac's 40.6% strikeout rate in Double-A and an overall swing-and-miss rate of 49.3% made it difficult to rank him over other prospects in his ballpark. Through just 209 games as a professional, Isaac has already struck out 240 times.
Most of that can be attributed to Isaac playing in Double-A at just 20 years old, but those numbers certainly warrant raising a red flag or two.
Isaac totaled 19 home runs, 72 RBI and 12 stolen bases between Single-A and High-A in 2023, then 18 home runs, 78 RBI and 15 stolen bases betwee High-A and Double-A in 2024. The Rays sent Isaac to the Arizona Fall League to close out last season, and he proceeded to hit .286 with a .957 OPS with 27 strikeouts across 15 games.
On the whole, Isaac is a .274 hitter with an .882 OPS since the Rays selected him in the first round of the 2022 MLB Draft.
MLB Pipeline projects Isaac to reach the big leagues in 2026. Tampa Bay's starting first base job could be vacated by then, if they pull the trigger on a Yandy Díaz trade or decline his $12 million club option.
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