On minor league system rankings

I was asked recently what to make of the Tigers' farm system ranking as dead last at MinorLeagueBall.com.

As always, I cautioned that you should never take prospect rankings too serious. Scouting reports about players are much more interesting than any numerical list. But I also note that there's a bit of truth in it. The Tigers just do not have many exciting prospects left in the system. They've had players who get the job done -- something that is often overlooked by rankings that like to look at best-case scenarios for toolsy players -- but there's no two ways about it: the farm is pretty barren. So while I don't really look around at other systems, I do believe any ranking that has Detroit near the bottom is probably a fair assessment.

But more than just looking for the best-case scenarios, we should see what kind of depth a system might be able to add to a team. Well, checking out Toledo's roster and the fringes of the 25-man battle that will go on in spring training ... Detroit's still not exciting. And that is actually a bit worrisome. Teams always face injuries. Teams that find ways to overcome them find success. The Tigers have quite a few positions with rather poor depth possibilities.

So, that's what I said in today's column. Go read the exacts and see what you think.