The Cardinals, the Red Sox, and more recently the Dodgers have been able to be so good at drafting and player development that they always have a stream of top prospects in the minor leagues even if they do not have the benefit of high draft picks. This is very rare.
Most organizations are dependent on the rebuild: the Nationals, the Astros, the Cubs, and the Braves have all won World Series in recent memory after tanking for years and using high draft picks and trades of superstar veterans to rebuild the farm system. This is realistically what most franchises have to do to have 5-10 seasons of excellence.
