The Prospect/Minor Leagues Thread

[Mikeleelop]

Florida State League top 20 prospects released today from Baseball America #3, 5 and 19. Norris, Pompey and DSJ

 

Five years ago no one on the list. Shows how bad the system was 5 years ago

[Mikeleelop]

Things are usually pretty quiet coming out of instructs. Kiley McDaniel or Chris King on twitter would be your best bet for information.

 

thx King. Follow those guys - they are good

[Vdubfan]

Can anyone post the full BA FSL prospect list with write ups? There was also an FSL list chat today with Manuel, Jays related content would be appreciated.

[Mikeleelop]

Can anyone post the full BA FSL prospect list with write ups? There was also an FSL list chat today with Manuel, Jays related content would be appreciated.

 

Gerry (Toronto): John: Dunedin's pitching was excellent this year, even without Daniel Norris. Kendall Graveman made it to the major leagues, Taylor Cole led the minors in strikeouts and Matt Boyd opened some eyes too. Do the three pitchers who didn't make the top 20 have major league potential?

 

John Manuel: I must qualify this by saying I have an unhealthy Taylor Cole rooting interest, considering I forced him way up our 2007 pre-draft list when he was in Vegas. (Yes, he’s on my Vegas team I alluded to earlier, in the rotation along with Nick Kingham and Aaron Blair.) He’s 90-92 with athleticism and a plus changeup. He needs to trust his fastball and breaking ball more consistently. Boyd is more deceptive from an unusual delivery, though he has four pitches he throws for strikes. I didn’t get any plusses on Boyd. Graveman, we’ve chronicled fairly well of late, but he’s a 90-92 mph sinker-slider guy who took off as he threw more fastballs, commanded the pitch well and gave hitters a different look with the cutter. I like all three and would rank them Cole, Graveman, Boyd.

 

Clint (BC, Canada): Just curious as to the reasons why Pompey was at 5 on the list? I just assumed he would be higher after looking at his entire year. Also was Graveman close to making the top 20?

John Manuel: Five is pretty good. The other four guys are pretty good.

[Atothe]

Looks like Justin Atkinson is converting from 1B/3B to a Catcher.

 

 

Maybe not converting, just another position he's learning?

[Atothe]

Possible but his twitter designated picture is a picture of his catchers mask and JGS said on the radio he was going to instructs to change positions.

 

Thats a waste, positional flexibility is his best attribute

[beachbum]

According to Gerry at battersbox.ca, a lot of players were released recently:

 

"Released: RHP Brett Barber, RHP Hunter Carnevale, RHP Kramer Champlin, RHP Francisco Diaz, RHP Jesse Hernandez, RHP Adaric Kelly, RHP Joey Lovecchio, RHP Kamakani Usui, LHP Brent Powers, C Aaron Munoz, 2B Angel Rojas, SS Peter Mooney, OF Nick Baligod, OF Nathan DeSouza, OF Brenden Kalfus"

[Sammy225]

According to Gerry at battersbox.ca, a lot of players were released recently:

 

"Released: RHP Brett Barber, RHP Hunter Carnevale, RHP Kramer Champlin, RHP Francisco Diaz, RHP Jesse Hernandez, RHP Adaric Kelly, RHP Joey Lovecchio, RHP Kamakani Usui, LHP Brent Powers, C Aaron Munoz, 2B Angel Rojas, SS Peter Mooney, OF Nick Baligod, OF Nathan DeSouza, OF Brenden Kalfus"

 

That should shut some people up....

[beachbum]

Saw that Gerry also said, Kevin Patterson and Jonathan Jones were also released.

 

http://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20140926154822649#comments

[Angrioter]

According to Gerry at battersbox.ca, a lot of players were released recently:

 

"Released: RHP Brett Barber, RHP Hunter Carnevale, RHP Kramer Champlin, RHP Francisco Diaz, RHP Jesse Hernandez, RHP Adaric Kelly, RHP Joey Lovecchio, RHP Kamakani Usui, LHP Brent Powers, C Aaron Munoz, 2B Angel Rojas, SS Peter Mooney, OF Nick Baligod, OF Nathan DeSouza, OF Brenden Kalfus"

 

It's time to fire Alex

[GD]

Possible but his twitter designated picture is a picture of his catchers mask and JGS said on the radio he was going to instructs to change positions.

 

Display picture not designated picture lol

[kgm1]

Eastern league top 20 chat.

 

Roger (Washington DC): How would you compare Aaron Sanchez and Kyle Crick? Hard throwing 1st rounders out of HS who both have terrible command, but clearly ranked very differently here. I'd assume Sanchez' improvement in Toronto is the significant difference but could Crick, moved to the pen show something similar?

Josh Norris: Aaron Sanchez has worlds better stuff than Crick, with the potential for three plus pitches in his fastball, hook and change. Crick has a fastball and sometimes not much more than that.

[kgm1]

Sanchez only Jay.

 

 

 

5. Aaron Sanchez, rhp, New Hampshire (Blue Jays)

 

Age: 22. B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-4. Wt.: 200. Drafted: HS—Barstow, Calif., 2010 (1s).

 

Sanchez’s arm and stuff always have been electric. His struggles have stemmed from an inability to harness his control. He didn’t solve that problem at New Hampshire or Triple-A Buffalo this season, but something clicked once he moved to the bullpen in Toronto, where he poured in the strikes and generated an absurd groundball rate of roughly two-thirds of all batted balls.

 

The Blue Jays shortened Sanchez’s stride in an effort to help him iron out his command issues, but that didn’t take and he still walked more than five hitters per nine innings in two stops in the minors. The Blue Jays still view Sanchez as a potential frontline starter, regardless of his bullpen success.

 

Sanchez’s arsenal includes a fastball that reaches as high as 97 mph, a power curveball and an above-average changeup. He can overthrow at times and will rush his delivery, both of which play a role in his wandering command. If he makes those fixes, he could be dominant.

[Orgfiller]

Ironic that they mention that he even has an above-average changeup, and yet he threw over 90% fastballs in his brief stint in the bullpen. He probably threw less than 30 non-fastballs.

[kgm1]

Some PCL s***

 

5. Noah Syndergaard, rhp, Las Vegas (Mets)

 

Age: 22. B-T: L-R. Ht.: 6-6. Wt.: 240. Drafted: HS—Mansfield, Texas, 2010 (1s/Blue Jays).

 

Managers and scouts held mixed opinions on the physical Syndergaard, based on his performance at Las Vegas’ notoriously hitter-friendly Cashman Field. He led the PCL in strikeouts but took his lumps as well. One rival manager called Syndergaard a “good prospect, but not an accomplished pitcher right now,” while a scout from a rival organization called him “probably the best pitcher in the PCL, prospect-wise.”

 

Acquired by the Mets in the deal that sent R.A. Dickey to the Blue Jays, Syndergaard touched 100 mph this season and pitched at 95-97 with heavy run and sinking action on his fastball. He adds to that a deceptive changeup for which he has feel and a curveball that flashes average. He was slowed in 2014 by injuries to his right forearm and left shoulder.

 

“His deception’s not great, especially on his breaking ball,” said a second scout, “but the action on it is good. He’s a horse.”

[ace3113]

An old familiar name.

 

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/fuenmayor-draft/

 

Indy League Player Of The Year: Fuenmayor Makes Most Of Second Chance

 

On a pretty regular basis, Balbino Fuenmayor would come up to Quebec manager Patrick Scalabrini this year and just say, ‘Thanks.’

 

When you’ve been released from affiliated ball, you quickly realize what you’re missing. Fuenmayor had spent most of his first year out of affiliated ball on a travel team, so he was quite happy to have a regular home with the Can-Am League’s Quebec club.

 

He was thankful for a job playing baseball. He was thankful for another chance. He was thankful for getting to provide for his wife and 2-year-old daughter by playing the game he loved.

 

Talk to Fuenmayor, 24, for more than five minutes and the thank-yous pour out. He’s thankful to Jon Hunton, an indy ball pitcher/player-development official who helped him land a job with the travel-team Frontier Greys. He’s thankful to Greys manager Brent Matheny for helping him develop last year. And he’s thankful to Scalabrini and the Capitales club for helping him take a big step forward this year.

 

But in reality, Scalabrini says it’s the club who should be thanking Fuenmayor. After all, he hit .347/.383/.610 this year with 23 home runs in 95 games with Quebec. He finished second in the league in batting, second in home runs and first in RBIs (99). With that kind of production, he was more than earning his keep.

 

He also earned the Baseball America Independent Leagues Player of the Year award, becoming the first Can-Am Leaguer to win the award since future Twins big leaguer Chris Colabello won it in 2011.

 

When Scalabrini picked up Fuenmayor in time for the Can-Am playoffs in 2013, it was with an eye on putting him in the Capitales lineup for 2014 as well. Scalabrini thought that Fuenmayor, a former Blue Jays prospect who had quickly gone from intriguing youngster to a stuck-in-Lansing, former prospect, could help the club by providing power. But the expectations were pretty limited.

 

“We thought he’d be a good guy to have to produce some power. He’d hit sixth or seventh, but his flaws would be evident,” Scalabrini said.

 

Fuenmayor had always struck out a lot. He’d never hit for average. And because of that, his power numbers had never matched his lofty power potential.

 

When the season began, Fuenmayor batted eighth. But a 2-for-4 Opening Day chock full of impressive at-bats quickly convinced Scalabrini to move him up to the sixth spot in the lineup.

 

A week later, he was hitting cleanup. Scalabrini and the rest of the Can-Am League were learning that the old scouting reports on Fuenmayor were no longer applicable. Pitches on the outer half were no longer being rolled over on mistaken attempts to pull the ball. Fuenmayor’s two-strike approach went from grip and rip to a shorter, controlled swing.

 

“The power was always there,” Scalabrini said. “I think he struck out a lot on offspeed before. Now most of his home runs are on offspeed pitches. He doesn’t miss twice on the same pitch. Now he makes that adjustment rapidly.”

 

Time On His Side

 

Most stories about an indy ball hitter taking a step forward are accompanied with a twinge of sadness. Often, it’s a 29-year-old who unfortunately figured out hitting too late to get another good shot at affiliated ball.

 

But in Fuenmayor’s case, that’s not the case at all. Signed as a 16-year-old, he was released by the Blue Jays when he was 23. At an age when many college players are just getting ready to make their pro minor league debuts, Fuenmayor was told that his career may be over.

 

It’s hard to fault the Blue Jays for letting go one of their most expensive Venezuelan signees ever. Fuenmayor, who signed for $750,000, was brought in under general manager J.P. Riccardi’s regime. Alex Anthopoulos’ front office saw a first baseman who had spent the past five years shuttling between short-season Vancouver and low Class A Lansing.

 

When Fuenmayor hit .208/.297/.306 in his first 23 games of the 2013 season, the Blue Jays decided they had seen enough.

 

The raw power that Fuenmayor was expected to turn into towering home runs never showed up for the Blue Jays. The hitting ability he was projected to have as a youngster had been buried under too many overly-aggressive swings on pitches outside the zone.

 

Has Fuenmayor made a significant step forward? We won’t know unless he gets another shot at affiliated ball.

 

At 24, he’s young enough that it’s quite plausible that an improved approach and confidence at the plate that comes from experiencing success could make him a significantly better hitter. He’s going to play with Caribes in the Venezuelan League this winter to try to catch scouts’ eyes again.

 

“If one door closes you have to work doubly hard to open another,” Fuenmayor said. “I have to play every game as if it were my last.”

 

If he does get another shot, his new club will be sure to hear plenty of thank yous from Fuenmayor.

[Deadpool]

We should definitely sign that Balbino kid up!

[beachbum]

http://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/articles/speedy-berti-jon-trades/

 

http://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/articles/mcfarland-artist-mound/

 

http://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/articles/atkinson-straps-gear/

[nmrch]

Lane Thomas is being shifted to 2B, that's an interesting development.

BB: Lane Thomas, is he an outfielder or a third baseman?

 

DD: Lane Thomas has spent the entire instructional league at second base. That's were we think he profiles and that's where he has been playing.

http://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20141018210640681#comments

[Laika]

Lane Thomas is being shifted to 2B, that's an interesting development.

 

http://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20141018210640681#comments

 

It bugs me when people still say that 2B is harder than 3B.

[beachbum]

Anyone interested in posting this?

 

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/pompey-puts-name-jays-list-2015/

[bendera3]

It bugs me when people still say that 2B is harder than 3B.

 

I think all infield positions are hard in their own way. I think you have to be a little bit more athletic to play 2nd base but quicker reflexes are needed to play 3rd. It would be hard to fairly rank difficulty for the infield positions, in my opinion.

[Laika]

I think all infield positions are hard in their own way. I think you have to be a little bit more athletic to play 2nd base but quicker reflexes are needed to play 3rd. It would be hard to fairly rank difficulty for the infield positions, in my opinion.

 

Well, SS >>> 3B=2B >>> 1B.

 

The hardest one to place is C. It might actually be more important defensively than SS.

[spats]

Was at the AFL game in Mesa today. 1st at bat Pompey beats out a routine grounder to first and later scores on a short fly to center...amazing speed. Bad news is that he had to come out of the game after getting picked off at first...was walking gingerly back to the dugout. Lot of big brass presence at the game today...Gibby, AA, Lacava,Raines and Didier. Talked to Gibby for a while and he really likes Graveman.

[burlingtonbandit]

Was at the AFL game in Mesa today. 1st at bat Pompey beats out a routine grounder to first and later scores on a short fly to center...amazing speed. Bad news is that he had to come out of the game after getting picked off at first...was walking gingerly back to the dugout. Lot of big brass presence at the game today...Gibby, AA, Lacava,Raines and Didier. Talked to Gibby for a while and he really likes Graveman.

 

Funny that Gibby goes out on these trips. Did anyone you talk to reveal anything about the offseason?

[Angrioter]

It bugs me when people still say that 2B is harder than 3B.

 

After being a baseball player, and now softball player I could say 2B > 3B.

[spats]

The only thing Gibby mentioned is that he doesn't think that they will pick up Morrow's option...no surprise there.I forgot to ask him about McGowan. They are down here till Friday. I'll ask him next time. Anything else you'd like me to try and pry out of them...I'm surprised that they even talk about roster decisions.Btw, Sean Nolin has been horrible so far and Osuna had his best game today but has been equally unimpressive. The best player for the Jays contingent has been Ochinko.

[Laika]

After being a baseball player, and now softball player I could say 2B > 3B.

 

You probably just have more of a 3B skill set. I bet you have decent reflexes and a good arm, but you're probably not as dexterous or nimble on your feet as good second basemen.

 

If 2B was harder than 3B, then at the MLB level you would expect second basemen sliding to third to post markedly better UZR's. I don't think they do!

[Atothe]

Can you ask him/someone about potential rule 5 players that could be added to the 40 man? Taylor Cole, Andy Burns, Jon Berti, John Stilson + more COULD potentially be added, IIRC.

 

Stillson had surgery, no need to add him

[GD]

Couldn't the Jays just add Stilson to the 40 then put him on the 60-day DL themselves thus creating another spot