Red Sox rank fourth in Baseball Prospectus prospect rankings

We've already seen Baseball Prospectus' takes on the Red Sox' top-10 prospects, as well as BP's overall top-101 list, but now they've released their last bit of rankings by unveiling the top organizations in the game. The Red Sox, as you would suspect given the sheer volume of their minor-league ranks, sit in a lofty spot as the fourth-ranked farm system in all of baseball.

Prospectus, represented here by the head of their prospect side, Jason Parks, slots just the Twins, Cubs, and Pirates in front of Boston, with the Astros and Cardinals coming in right after them. The "state" of the Sox farm is described as "Impact talent at premium up-the-middle positions and major-league caliber arms in the upper-minors," referring to the likes of Xander Bogaerts as well as prospects like Matt Barnes and Allen Webster. On top of that, BP lists a pair of breakout candidates in catcher Blake Swihart and 2013 first-round draft selection (and seventh overall pick) Trey Ball: with Boston graduating Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley Jr. -- at minimum -- this upcoming season, prospects like Swihart and Ball are sure to get more mainstream attention, especially if they take the leap in their development.

Speaking of graduating prospects, Prospectus sees the Red Sox system taking a step back for 2015, with Bogaerts, Bradley, and Webster all moving up, as well as Barnes and Garin Cecchini potentially promoted depending on Boston's needs and the prospects' own progress in their development. That might seem like a downer at first, but remember: we will also be talking about a major-league roster with Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley Jr., Allen Webster, Matt Barnes, Garin Cecchini, and also Will Middlebrooks and possibly Rubby De La Rosa on it. That's one with an absurd amount of youth, so if the farm has to step back into the mid-range for a year or two after graduating all of that over the course of a couple of seasons, things are going to be all right.

Plus, things could still look up, possibly close to the top-10 in the organizational rankings, depending on the seasons of Owens and Swihart, as well as other intriguing prospects like Mookie Betts, Christian Vazquez, Brian Johnson, and the slew of young arms the Sox possess in their lower levels. "Down" is just the easiest direction to point to, given their current ranking of fourth, but it's not a death sentence for the Sox' system by any means.