The Prospect/Minor Leagues Thread

[ElNik2013]

Nolin should be in AAA and Burns in AA.

[GD]

At least he doesn't appear broken or anything

[ElNik2013]

Nolin should be in AAA and Burns in AA.

 

I meant to say, "Pillar should be in AAA and Burns in AA".

[Caper]

Pillar just tripled. 3 for 5 hr, triple, no strikeouts.

[theblujay]

Sanchez #13 on the prospect list, d'Arnaud no where to be found.

 

I didn't know Bogaerts was so good...

[theblujay]

Lopes 2-4 2B

Smith 1-4 2Ks

 

Burns 1-4

[Angrioter]

How does one pronounce Bibens-Dirkx?

 

"Old man"

[Caper]

JJAX on for Lugnuts

 

Should have had a 1-2-3 inning... instead they walk it off after out three fell, on which should have been an easy fly ball.

[G-Snarls]

"lugnuts" is what my wife calls me when she's annoyed with me. It always makes us laugh when we hear anything about the Lansing team.

[AdamGreenwood]

He has 5 HR now. Over a full season, works out to about 15 HR and 40 SB.

I've heard his D is just OK, not a CF, but a solid corner outfielder.

 

Despite the fact that he's probably the only player in our farm system with a hit tool, we're likely to package him off for a .250 OBP athletic toolsy guy. That's what we need more of.

[Angrioter]

Matt Smoral

 

At six-foot-eight with a mid-90s fastball, Toronto Blue Jays pitching prospect Matt Smoral isn’t the type of guy you easily forget.

 

“The giant guy?” Pat Hentgen asks when the name is mentioned. “He’s huge, got a great arm, the ball just jumps out of his hand. He’s a big prospect. I liked what I saw – unfortunately I only saw him for one little bullpen session, I was actually focused on one of our big-leaguers at the time.

 

“I kept looking over at him and was like, ‘Wow.’”

 

That’s the impression the 2012 supplemental first-round pick, compensation for the free-agent departure of Frank Francisco, has left on many people during extended spring training, and the 19-year-old is expected to open up with the rookie-ball Gulf Coast League Blue Jays when the short-season leagues get going in June.

 

Smoral may end up being a steal for the Blue Jays after he slipped in the draft because of a stress fracture in his right foot, an injury his doctor believes was connected to a seven-inch growth spurt between his sophomore and junior years in high school.

 

Surgery to put a plate and a couple of pins on the fourth metatarsal in his foot, a procedure more common for NBA players, has taken care of that, and he has had time to grow into his imposing frame. Over the winter he’s both gained strength and co-ordination with his longer limbs, and will soon get a chance to test out his gains in games that count.

 

“The most difficult thing was my lower half, it was really hard to keep closed,” says Smoral. “I feel this off-season I addressed that issue pretty well. Most of my height is from my legs and I was growing, it was hard to get my legs working with my upper half. Now I feel I can do a much better job of that and over the next couple of years I think I’ll just keep getting better and better.”

 

Another area where the native of Solon, Ohio is also looking to improve is with his changeup, and that’s where Hentgen comes in.

 

Smoral remembers Hentgen sitting around the bullpen with a handful of Blue Jays prospects during spring training, preaching the importance of the changeup, the need to experiment with different grips until just the right one is found, and it struck a chord.

 

“He was talking about different grips and the game in general,” recalls Smoral. “He said, you’re down here in the lower levels right now but you’re really not that far away. …

 

“My changeup is still a little hard. That’s definitely the pitch I need to work on most. But I’m throwing my slider for strikes and locating the fastball. I have a lot of work to do but I think over the next three, four years I can come a long way.”

 

Hentgen suggests pitchers looking for a changeup ask teammates about their grips and then practise with different ones while playing catch. He also preaches fastball command, not only to be able to pitch in the strike zone, but to be able to pitch consistently on the edges of the box.

 

The 1996 Cy Young Award winner certainly came away impressed with the heater Smoral featured that spring day.

 

“I didn’t see the radar gun and I don’t care about the radar gun,” says Hentgen. “Sometimes when you stand behind the pitcher, the ball looks small. It’s hard to explain. A.J. Burnett is a guy that when I walked out behind the mound, I thought, ‘Wow, it looks like a BB coming out of his hand.’ Smoral had that BB effect, where the ball just looks small.

 

“There are two different 95s. One guy throws 95 and it’s just 95, and the other guy can throw 95 and it’s 95 with life. It’s all about late life in the hitting area and when you have that late movement and late life, you can make mistakes in the strike zone and you can get people out in the strike zone.”

 

Smoral’s aim is to finish his first pro season with low-A Lansing of the Midwest League, which would have him close to home, an ambitious goal.

 

“I would think he’s going to start in the Gulf Coast League,” says GM Alex Anthopoulos, “and if he performs there, at some point, depending on how those teams in Bluefield and Vancouver do, we might slide him up there.”

[theblujay]

Matt Smoral

 

At six-foot-eight with a mid-90s fastball, Toronto Blue Jays pitching prospect Matt Smoral isn’t the type of guy you easily forget.

 

“The giant guy?” Pat Hentgen asks when the name is mentioned. “He’s huge, got a great arm, the ball just jumps out of his hand. He’s a big prospect. I liked what I saw – unfortunately I only saw him for one little bullpen session, I was actually focused on one of our big-leaguers at the time.

 

“I kept looking over at him and was like, ‘Wow.’”

 

That’s the impression the 2012 supplemental first-round pick, compensation for the free-agent departure of Frank Francisco, has left on many people during extended spring training, and the 19-year-old is expected to open up with the rookie-ball Gulf Coast League Blue Jays when the short-season leagues get going in June.

 

Smoral may end up being a steal for the Blue Jays after he slipped in the draft because of a stress fracture in his right foot, an injury his doctor believes was connected to a seven-inch growth spurt between his sophomore and junior years in high school.

 

Surgery to put a plate and a couple of pins on the fourth metatarsal in his foot, a procedure more common for NBA players, has taken care of that, and he has had time to grow into his imposing frame. Over the winter he’s both gained strength and co-ordination with his longer limbs, and will soon get a chance to test out his gains in games that count.

 

“The most difficult thing was my lower half, it was really hard to keep closed,” says Smoral. “I feel this off-season I addressed that issue pretty well. Most of my height is from my legs and I was growing, it was hard to get my legs working with my upper half. Now I feel I can do a much better job of that and over the next couple of years I think I’ll just keep getting better and better.”

 

Another area where the native of Solon, Ohio is also looking to improve is with his changeup, and that’s where Hentgen comes in.

 

Smoral remembers Hentgen sitting around the bullpen with a handful of Blue Jays prospects during spring training, preaching the importance of the changeup, the need to experiment with different grips until just the right one is found, and it struck a chord.

 

“He was talking about different grips and the game in general,” recalls Smoral. “He said, you’re down here in the lower levels right now but you’re really not that far away. …

 

“My changeup is still a little hard. That’s definitely the pitch I need to work on most. But I’m throwing my slider for strikes and locating the fastball. I have a lot of work to do but I think over the next three, four years I can come a long way.”

 

Hentgen suggests pitchers looking for a changeup ask teammates about their grips and then practise with different ones while playing catch. He also preaches fastball command, not only to be able to pitch in the strike zone, but to be able to pitch consistently on the edges of the box.

 

The 1996 Cy Young Award winner certainly came away impressed with the heater Smoral featured that spring day.

 

“I didn’t see the radar gun and I don’t care about the radar gun,” says Hentgen. “Sometimes when you stand behind the pitcher, the ball looks small. It’s hard to explain. A.J. Burnett is a guy that when I walked out behind the mound, I thought, ‘Wow, it looks like a BB coming out of his hand.’ Smoral had that BB effect, where the ball just looks small.

 

“There are two different 95s. One guy throws 95 and it’s just 95, and the other guy can throw 95 and it’s 95 with life. It’s all about late life in the hitting area and when you have that late movement and late life, you can make mistakes in the strike zone and you can get people out in the strike zone.”

 

Smoral’s aim is to finish his first pro season with low-A Lansing of the Midwest League, which would have him close to home, an ambitious goal.

 

“I would think he’s going to start in the Gulf Coast League,” says GM Alex Anthopoulos, “and if he performs there, at some point, depending on how those teams in Bluefield and Vancouver do, we might slide him up there.”

 

I can't wait for the SS teams to start.

[theblujay]

Holy s*** you weren't joking

 

Bogaerts with 2 HRs off Stroman, 7ER in 1 innings...ouch

[GD]

@StivBators: And of course Stroman just took a line drive off his back

 

Stroman 1 IP 2 K 1 BB 2 HR 7 H 7 ER 8 R 8.10 ERA

[Angrioter]

only stat that looks good, 18.0 k/9 lol

 

9 bb/9

[GD]

Only stat that looks good, 18.0 K/9 lol

 

I counter with a 9 BB/9

 

Edit: f*** you Angrioter

[theblujay]

Just when our prospects start to do well...it all falls apart.

[Angrioter]

I counter with a 9 BB/9

 

Edit: f*** you Angrioter

 

Great minds think alike

[Captain Adama]

"lugnuts" is what my wife calls me when she's annoyed with me. It always makes us laugh when we hear anything about the Lansing team.

 

Then this song will either make you laugh or want to tear your hair out.

 

[Angrioter]

Decent Norris again

[theblujay]

The only stat I care about for Norris is the walks.

[GD]

The only stat I care about for Norris is the walks.

 

You should be caring about the K's, too, to an extent. Plenty of guys have walked a lot of people at Norris' level, I think someone (No49?) posted a nice list. All I can remember from it is Archie Bradley and Aaron Sanchez, though.

[theblujay]

You should be caring about the K's, too, to an extent. Plenty of guys have walked a lot of people at Norris' level, I think someone (No49?) posted a nice list. All I can remember from it is Archie Bradley and Aaron Sanchez, though.

 

Ok then, K:BB

[GD]

Kramer Champlin on for Norris

 

I think this man takes "Best name in organization" from released Balbino

 

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=gabrys000jer

 

Jeremy Gabryszwski

 

Ok then, K:BB

 

6 K's are really encouraging

[GD]

No way, bro! Kramer Champlin takes the cake

 

Scrabble v3.0 > Champlin.

[bzapple]

“For Sean, it was just getting it out of the way, you could tell he was wide-eyed,” Alex Anthopoulos says of his 1.1 inning start Friday. “If he had gone four or five innings, even if he had given up four or five runs, then you give him another turn.

 

It is just depressing to see AA saying things like this.

[theblujay]

What ever happened to A. Cardona?

[Captain Adama]

What ever happened to A. Cardona?

 

Stuck in the annals of the rookie leagues.

[theblujay]

Stuck in the annals of the rookie leagues.

 

Did he get hurt last year, because I barely remember hearing about him after he had a great start the year before.

[GD]

Cardona went 1 IP, 2H, 2K

 

And Tirado also pitched in that game, 2 IP 2ER 2H 1BB 2K

 

Where's Tirado going to be this year? I think it was Parks that said he'd rank him #75.