Xavier Isaac’s power potential translating to MLB is big question for Rays

The Rays may not have had the best 2024 season, but the future is indeed bright, with a wide variety of shiny new prospects coming through the pipeline. No other prospect is quite as polarizing as Xavier Isaac. He has more questions than answers; how will he be able to hit in the majors with such a low contact rate? If he can't produce offensively much better than current-day Joey Gallo, how can he make up for it by just playing an average-at-best first base? Has Tre' Morgan already surpassed him in terms of future value? These are all totally valid questions, and as mentioned, there aren't any great answers.

One common opinion among Rays' fans is that a big adjustment (bordering on a total rebuild) to Isaac's swing would be necessary for him to truly curb his contact issues, especially as he continues to advance through the minors and faces tougher and nastier pitching.

However, that might be a tough sell to Isaac and maybe even the Rays organization in general, as his production has still been quite good through Single-A+ and Double-A. Isaac has recorded a 157 wRC+ through 71 games this year in Single-A+ and a 113 wRC+ through 31 games in the pitcher-friendly Southern League.

Unfortunately, the Gainesville, Georgia native posted a 40.6% K-rate that left something to be desired in his brief time with the Montgomery Biscuits and spoke to the overall need for him to improve his bat-to-ball skills despite making up for it with his incredible power. It begins and ends with his elite power ability as FanGraphs gives Isaac a 35/80 grade in game power and a 70/80 in raw power, meaning that he has the potential to have an 80 future grade in both game and raw power, but he currently has a 35 and a 70 in those fields.

The good news is that Isaac will only be 21 years old+ entering next season. The former first-rounder has plenty of time to make adjustments in his approach, and for as many deficits as there are with his profile, there's also a whole lot of upside.

Most of his potential future value lies in his power, as his speed has never been a strong suit despite his significant changes to get in better shape after the Rays selected him 29th overall in the 2022 draft.

Isaac has played a couple of games of organized ball in right field, and the Rays' unwillingness to throw him back out there despite Tre' Morgan potentially passing Isaac up in the first base rankings for the Rays might speak to Isaac's talent level out there.

But, of course, it's important to keep in mind Isaac's youth, as these things can change quickly.

Here's to hoping his contact issues work themselves out and that he can make the transition to a corner outfield spot someday. Then, the Rays will really have themselves a monster of a power hitter.

If not, Isaac's value and role might be a bit more limited; think of perhaps a slightly better version of Daniel Vogelbach.

Although, optimism is always better, so the best comparison for Isaac should be Kyle Schwarber, who is awful defensively, and has no real contact ability in the majors, but combines an excellent approach with his ridiculous power to be a solid major league player.