The Prospect/Minor Leagues Thread

[theblujay]

My list would be as follows

 

1) Aaron Sanchez

2) Daniel Norris

3) Marcus Stroman

4) Roberto Osuna

5) Sean Nolin

6) Mitch Nay

7) Franklin Baretto

8) Dawel Lugo

9) Alberto Tirado

10) DJ Davis

11) Matt Smoral

12) Jairo Labourt

13) Richard Urena

14) AJ Jimenez

15) Andy Burns

16) Zak Wasilewski

17) Clinton Hollon

18) Dwight Smith, Jr.

19) Emilio Guerrero

20) Tom Robson

 

HM: Matt Dean, Dalton Pompey, Shane Opitz, Ryan Borucki, Anthony Alford, Alejandro Solarte, Miguel Castro, Chase Dejong, Adonis Cardona, Christian Lopes, Santiago Nessy, Michael Crouse, John Stilson, Matt Boyd, Rolando Segovia, Deiferson Baretto.

 

I really like your list. I glad you have Labourt in the top 15

[ace3113]

Wow, bold on Wasilewski.

 

I really liked Wasilewski and Borucki when we drafted them. I had them both in my top 10 high school lefties in the draft that year. I was pleasantly surprised when Waz only signed for 100k, even given his injury that year. At his best he's a lefty with low 90s velocity and a very sharp curve. He has to continue to make strides with his command, but he's definitely a sleeper for me.

[ace3113]

She's going to look a lot better with the 2 early draft picks next year.

 

Amen.

[ace3113]

I really like your list. I glad you have Labourt in the top 15

 

Thanks. Labourt has really made good strides this year. A bargain for the 350k we paid him as an IFA.

 

2-2 1.72era 47ip 32h 13bb 43so

[theblujay]

Thanks. Labourt has really made good strides this year. A bargain for the 350k we paid him as an IFA.

 

2-2 1.72era 47ip 32h 13bb 43so

 

I like Labourt almost as much as Tirado.

[Caper]

Amen.

 

I know they say you are not supposed to draft to fill positions on the big club. But I'd love to them go after the 2 best shortstop prospects they can get... maybe that Trea Turner guy and whoever else they can get at 11.

[billjc33]

No love for Dean in the top 20? I know Nay is going higher because he is playing 3rd and they moved Dean to 1st but they have almost identical numbers and from most things I've read Dean is still athletic enough to play 3rd but you can't your 2 best players at the same position everyday.

[GD]

Idk on Dean. He's got a Puigian (coining that) BABIP of .419 and his peripherals still kinda suck. His sample last year of a comparable size with a much lower BABIP (.333 which could still be considered high) consisted of a 78 wRC+. He's striking out too much and I dunno if he'll fix that. I like Dean, but I think my ranking for him (#22) is probably about right, if not a tad high.

[ace3113]

I know they say you are not supposed to draft to fill positions on the big club. But I'd love to them go after the 2 best shortstop prospects they can get... maybe that Trea Turner guy and whoever else they can get at 11.

 

If one were to go that route you're probably looking at Turner and either Nick Gordon or Ti'quan Forbes. The good thing about drafting Turner would be that he could play second until Reyes contract expires since we have a need there too.

[theblujay]

My top 20:

 

1: Sanchez

2: Stroman

3: Osuna

4: Norris

5: Jimenez

6: Davis

7: Nolin

8: Nay

9: Tirado

10: Burns

11: Barreto

12: Labourt

13: Hollon

14: DeJong

15: Lugo

16: Robson

17: Dean

18: Wasilewski

19: Smith Jr.

20: Guerrero

 

15-25 is really tough.

[theblujay]

Do you have dan Jansen in your top 50

 

I'd have Jansen in the thirties

[theblujay]

I know they say you are not supposed to draft to fill positions on the big club. But I'd love to them go after the 2 best shortstop prospects they can get... maybe that Trea Turner guy and whoever else they can get at 11.

 

We have lots of SS depth right now though. Lugo, Barreto, Urena, that guy we got this year, Guerrero...

[GD]

Do you have dan Jansen in your top 50

 

#39

[theblujay]

Anyone think Lopes repeats Lansing next season? He started off amazing but he literally fell off a cliff at the start of the second half

 

Maybe, but I hope not.

[theblujay]

I'm really tempted to put Stroman 1, Sanchez 2...

[GD]

he literally fell off a cliff

 

That sounds painful

 

I'm really tempted to put Stroman 1, Sanchez 2...

 

I can see why you would, but I wouldn't.

[GD]

It was as painful as it sounds. Look at his monthly splits

 

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=lopes-000chr&type=bgl&year=2013

 

... ouch.

[Angrioter]

Overrated prospects

[theblujay]

I really don't know what to think about DJ Davis. He got off to a hot start, but has cooled off and is K'ing a lot. Is he turning into Gose v2? How does Davis' speed compare to Gose's

[Laika]

I really don't know what to think about DJ Davis. He got off to a hot start, but has cooled off and is K'ing a lot. Is he turning into Gose v2? How does Davis' speed compare to Gose's

 

The needle hasn't moved from his draft day status (apparently).

 

Tons of tools; not enough skills (yet?).

 

Apparently he's a pure 80 runner, faster than Gose even, but you wouldn't know it by looking at his SB totals. On top of that, he had grades like 30/60 present/potential hit coming out of high school, and glancing at his current AVG and K numbers, that hasn't changed much.

 

The good news: His ISO is nearly .200 this year, and his isolated OBP has been nearly .100 through his MiLB career. This implies significant (nonlinear?) returns from him ever figuring out how to hit for average. i.e., he already knows the strikezone somewhat, and how to drive a baseball, so if he can every figure out how to recognize breaking balls (or whatever), then he's going to take off.

Edited August 26, 2013 by Laika

[GD]

Does anyone have Gose/Davis 60 times?

[Laika]

Does anyone have Gose/Davis 60 times?

 

I've seen a <6.40 on Davis and a 6.50 on Gose. That's an 80 vs. a 70 (I think).

 

Here are some random sources:

 

http://minors.mlblogs.com/tag/2012-draft/

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/draft/y2008/reports_popup.jsp?popup=yes&content=gose

[theblujay]

The needle hasn't moved from his draft day status (apparently).

 

Tons of tools; not enough skills (yet?).

 

Apparently he's a pure 80 runner, faster than Gose even, but you wouldn't know it by looking at his SB totals. On top of that, he had grades like 30/60 present/potential hit coming out of high school, and glancing at his current AVG and K numbers, that hasn't changed much.

 

The good news: His ISO is nearly .200 this year, and his isolated OBP has been nearly .100 through his MiLB career. This implies significant (nonlinear?) returns from him ever figuring out how to hit for average. i.e., he already knows the strikezone somewhat, and how to drive a baseball, so if he can every figure out how to recognize breaking balls (or whatever), then he's going to take off.

 

Thanks. I hope he's in Lansing next year so we can get a better idea of what's he's like. I'd imagine his D is good in center, but idk about his arm.

[G-Snarls]

[Angrioter]

[ace3113]

 

Nice. Urena also 1-2 with a double.

[Angrioter]

Javier "pop" Baez +A, AA

.285/.346/.576....34 dingers, 101 Ribeyes, 20 SB

[z3r0s]

Javier "pop" Baez +A, AA

.285/.346/.576....34 dingers, 101 Ribeyes, 20 SB

 

He may make Gibbers look REEEEEEEEEEALLY smart in the DDL.

[GD]

Marc Hulet dropped some prospect knowledge on the Jays today.

 

Kendall Graveman

With the new draft rules and signing bonus restrictions, the Toronto Blue Jays like to get cute with their drafts. Over the past two seasons, the organization has targeted college seniors (with little to no negotiating abilities) in the third to 10th rounds. Case in point, Mississippi State senior right-hander Kendall Graveman was selected in the eighth round of the 2013 draft and signed for $5,000. The slot for that round was just slightly more than $150,000, allowing the organization the opportunity to allocate the leftover funds elsewhere (although things didn’t exactly go as hoped for the club when the dust settled).

 

Graveman, 22, faced off against the 17-year-old Urias on Aug. 22. I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw out of the Jays prospect. He showed a smooth, easy delivery and worked quickly. He also, perhaps more importantly, threw strikes. I saw him use three pitches: a fringe-average fastball, an inconsistent breaking ball and a solid changeup. The breaking ball was actually better than advertised and showed a nice 12-to-6 break at times from his three-quarter release point.

He could be a fast mover for the Jays and likely has the ceiling of a No. 4/5 starter or middle reliever.

 

Dalton Pompey

Canadian outfielder Dalton Pompey opened the year as one of my personal favorite sleepers. He hasn’t been a runaway success story but his momentum continues to head in the proper direction. He’s a tall but skinny athlete — possessing a projectable body. Speed is perhaps his strongest tool right now — along with his center field defense — and, in this game, he did a nice job of getting out of the batter’s box from the right side and legged out an infield hit.

 

In his second at-bat, he showed his willingness to work the count. After watching the opposing pitcher walk the hitter ahead of him on four pitches, Pompey, who should hit at the top of a big league batting order, didn’t take the bat off of his shoulder until the young pitcher threw him a strike. He then worked what appeared to be a walk, although a missed call from the umpire ran the count full, instead. He ended up flying out to right field but showed a willingness to take the ball where it was pitched and use the whole field.

 

Emilio Guerrero

Emilio Guerrero was an older signee out of the Dominican Republic. He inked his first pro contract in 2011 at the age of 18. Now having just turned 21 a few days ago, the shortstop is in full-season ball for the first time after trips through the Dominican Summer League, as well as two rookie leagues: the Gulf Coast League and the Appalachian League.

 

Guerrero is a tall, lanky player and is listed at 6-4, 190 pounds. I find it hard to believe that he’ll remain at shortstop for much longer. He’s tall for the position and doesn’t have great range, although he’s not a paperweight, either. His actions at shortstop are clunky at times and he lacks fluidity. On one play, he got caught between letting the ball bounce and catching the low line drive on the fly. The hitter was given a single when it squirted through Guerrero, but it really should have been an error. With 33 miscues in 87 games it’s not hard to envision him moving to the hot corner (where he’s played 64 times in his career) in the near future.

 

At the plate, he showed decent bat speed and a willingness to use the whole field. He went the other way in each of his first two at-bats and recorded a single each time. He also stole a base thanks to an excellent read of the pitcher, and he showed just average speed, thanks perhaps to his long legs.

 

If he can find a way to keep his long limbs in check, I can see Guerrero — who has a .933 OPS in August — as an offensive-minded utility player at the big league level. He’s an overly aggressive hitter but, if he learns to wait for better pitches to drive, he could tap into his raw power on a more consistent basis.

 

Santiago Nessy

I just have a couple quick notes about catcher Santiago Nessy, who actually DH-ed on this day, and is listed as a 20 year old. In this game, his bat seemed slower than ideal and his pitch recognition… showed room for improvement. Urias (the 17 year old) got ahead of the catching prospect with a fastball and then doubled-up on the changeup, to which Nessy swung over. Twice. Based on that look, I’d have a hard time seeing him advance much past Double-A or Triple-A without some significant adjustments.

 

Dan Klein

Dan Klein, who was actually behind the plate in this game for the Jays, was selected in the 28th round of the 2012 draft. He’s a NP (non-prospect) but he’s filling a need at the lower levels of the minors as a depth player. He gives a nice target to his pitchers and is very still when he receives the ball, but I did have one concern that affects the pitchers he works with in games. Klein, who turns 23 in a couple of days, moved into position to receive the ball extremely early. His quick setup may actually be tipping off pitch locations for the hitters. He almost hops into position at times, which can no doubt be seen, if not felt/heard, by the competition.

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/prospect-stock-watch-julio-urias-and-some-blue-jays/

[theblujay]

Nice for Tellez to finally get his first HR

Urena: 2-4

Jansen: 2-5 (Best part about Jansen-21BB 9K)

 

Tinoco got hit around a bit 3.2IP 5ER