Blue Jays Minor League Recap: Vancouver Bats Run Wild, While Buffalo Has Some Mixed Results

CURRENT W-L Records

• Buffalo Bisons: 47-69
• New Hampshire Fisher Cats: 47-66
• Vancouver Canadians: 63-51
• Dunedin Blue Jays: 53-58
• FCL Blue Jays: Season Complete
• DSL Blue Jays Blue: 22-32
• DSL Blue Jays Red: 29-26

Transactions

• 08/17/25: New Hampshire Fisher Cats placed RHP Justin Kelly on the seven-day injured list.
• 08/16/25: Toronto Blue Jays optioned LF Joey Loperfido to Buffalo Bisons.

Buffalo Bisons
Buffalo (3), Lehigh Valley (10) - 8/16
Box Score

The Saturday contest between Buffalo and Lehigh Valley saw the Bisons going up against uber prospect Andrew Painter. Painter wasn't as spectacular as he can be, but he was still good enough. He went five innings while giving up three runs (two earned), walking three, giving up four hits, and striking out five batters. Buffalo got to him in the first inning on a Yohendrick Pinango sacrifice fly, an error allowing Michael Stefanic to score, and Damiano Palmegiani's RBI single. Buffalo wouldn't score again though, as Lehigh Valley put together big inning after big inning. The big hits were a Brewer Hicklen home run and a Rodolfo Castro home run, while Justin Crawford had an RBI double and Donovan Walton added an RBI double as well. In the end, Lehigh Valley had 12 hits and 10 runs, as they went on to beat Buffalo 10-3. 

Damiano Palmegiani - 2-4, 0 R, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K

Adam Kloffenstein - 4 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

Buffalo (5), Lehigh Valley (4) - 8/16
Box Score

Buffalo got things back on track in the series finale against Lehigh Valley. In the bottom of the first inning, Jonatan Clase launched his fourth home run for the Bisons on the season. In the third, Brandon Valenzuela doubled to bring home Pinango, and Josh Rivera homered in the fifth to give Buffalo five runs. In the eighth, Lehigh Valley mounted a late rally, scoring three runs on an RBI groundout from Hicklen and a two-run single from Robert Moore. Paxton Schultz would come on to pitch for Buffalo and finish the last 1.1 innings, only giving up one hit and striking out two for the save. Buffalo would win this one, 5-4.

Jonatan Clase - 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HR, 1 SB

Easton Lucas - 4.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

New Hampshire Fisher Cats
New Hampshire (8), Binghamton (0) - 8/16 - Game 1
Box Score

New Hampshire sent Grant Rogers to the mound on Saturday in game one of the afternoon doubleheader. It was one of the best all-around games the Fisher Cats have had in a while, and it was a great start to the long day of baseball. In the top of the first inning, New Hampshire's Eddinson Paulino put a ball in play that resulted in an error on Binghamton's second baseman, allowing Victor Arias and Jackson Hornung to score. Things stood stagnant until the top of the sixth inning, when Charles McAdoo and Je'Von Ward powered up the lineup with back-to-back solo home runs. Ward wasn't done though, as he smashed another home run in the top of the seventh, a two-run blast, extending the lead to 8-0. That was more than enough for New Hampshire, with Rogers throwing a gem. He went six innings, only gave up six hits, didn't allow a walk, and struck out six en route to notching another quality start. Yondrei Rojas came in and completed the game and shutout for New Hampshire, as they rolled to an 8-0 win. 

Je'Von Ward: 2-3, 2 R, 4 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K, 2 HR

Grant Rogers: 6 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K

New Hampshire (1), Binghamton (6) - 8/16 - Game 2
Box Score

Game two of the doubleheader was a much more rough experience than the first game. Geison Urbaez held down the Binghamton bats until the bottom of the third inning. Nick Morabito got the Rumble Ponies on the board first with a sacrifice fly, which was followed up by Jacob Reimer's solo home run to left. After Urbaez gave up a walk, Nick Lorusso doubled home a run to make it a three-run inning for Binghamton. In the fifth, D'Andre Smith added two more runs to Binghamton's lead with a big two-run home run to left as well. Dasan Brown cut into the lead with a solo home run in the top of the sixth. Binghamton quickly got the run back, however, with a solo home run of their own from William Lugo in the bottom half of the sixth, as they cruised to a 6-1 win over New Hampshire. 

Dasan Brown: 1-2, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 HR

Geison Urbaez: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K

New Hampshire (3), Binghamton (2) F/10 - 8/17
Box Score

Sunday saw the series between New Hampshire and Binghamton come to an end. The Fisher Cats sent Rafael Sanchez to the mound to match up against Tylor Megill for the Rumble Ponies. From the onset, the New Hampshire hitters were in a bind facing the major league pitcher on a rehab assignment. Megill mowed down New Hampshire batters with ease, as he struck out nine of the 12 batters he saw. The Fisher Cats got on the scoreboard first, when Alex De Jesus smacked a solo home run to lead off the top of the fifth inning. In the seventh, New Hampshire added an insurance run, as De Jesus scored from first on Brown's triple. Unfortunately for the Fisher Cats, Conor Larkin coughed up a two-run double to Lugo, sending the game into extra innings. In the top of the tenth, a little small ball worked out well for New Hampshire. Paulino flew out to center, advancing Brown to third, followed by Arias’ sacrifice fly bringing home what would be the winning run. The Fisher Cats got a hard-fought win, 3-2 in extra innings.

Alex De Jesus: 1-3, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HR

Rafael Sanchez: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K

Vancouver Canadians
Vancouver (12), Spokane (2) - 8/16
Box Score

The Canadians got off to an early lead with a three-run first inning, coming from two RBI singles from Nick Goodwin and Eddie Micheletti Jr., and then an Alexis Hernandez RBI groundout. The second inning went even better, with J.R. Freethy, Micheletti and Hernandez loading the bases before Carter Cunningham helped take a dominating lead with a grand slam! The Canadians continued to pile it on, with Tucker Toman getting his first High-A RBI with a single, then Matt Scannell joined in on the fun with his first two RBIs himself with a single of his own. Freethy added another RBI single to score Toman, and the Canadians had scored 11 unanswered runs by the fourth inning. Silvano Hechavarria let in his first run of the night on an RBI single from Cole Messina, then another on a double play ball, but he was solid after that. The bullpen didn’t let in a single run, with Colby Holcombe and Juanmi Vasquez both striking out three batters each, and Jonathan Todd also had an effective inning. Hernandez capped off the scoring in the ninth with his second RBI groundout, as the Canadians thoroughly trashed Spokane. 

J.R. Freethy - 4-4, 2 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 2 2B

Silvano Hechavarria - 5 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
Hechavarria’s debut for the Canadians was overshadowed by their offensive outburst, but he continued to dominate at what is now his third level in the minors. 

Vancouver (6), Spokane (1) - 8/17
Box Score

The Canadians maintained their momentum from the previous game, as they immediately scored again. This time, Toman knocked in Freethy for his second RBI as a Canadian and continued his hot stretch from down in Dunedin. In the third inning, Goodwin added to the lead with a homer, and Cunningham stole third base as an errant throw allowed him to go home to make it three to nothing. Then Scannell came up to the dish with Toman and Jay Harry on base, and he hit his first Vancouver homer to double the lead. Jackson Wentworth had a strong start, and after the Canadians went up six runs, he did allow a run, but he still went six innings and lowered his season ERA to 4.36. The bullpens for both teams allowed zero runs after that, as Bo Bonds, Javen Coleman and JJ Sanchez struck out eight batters in three innings without allowing a walk. The Canadians won the last game of the series six to one. 

Nick Goodwin - 2-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 HR
Goodwin was in a homer drought after an excellent June, but he found other ways to contribute, as he’s been on a 10-game hitting streak. 

Jackson Wentworth - 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
After a tough stretch for Wentworth in May and June (he had a 5.93 ERA in nine games started), he’s really turned it around since July started, with a 3.10 ERA. 

Dunedin Blue Jays 
Dunedin (7), Tampa (2) - 8/16
Box Score

The D-Jays had a bullpen day, with Danny Thompson Jr. serving as the opener. Jean Joseph got it started in the first with a single to give the D-Jays the lead. Then, a big second inning started off with a Yorman Licourt three-run bomb. Eric Snow hit a sac fly, and Jake Casey came home on a balk for an early 6-0 lead for Dunedin. Diego Dominguez allowed two runs, with one being unearned due to a Joseph throwing error, but that was all for Tampa, as Eliander Alcalde earned his second save with three scoreless innings. Licourt got RBI number four in the game in the eighth as an extra insurance run. 

Yorman Licourt - 2-4, 1 R, 4 RBI, 1 HR
Licourt has struggled in his first look at full-season baseball, but he hit his first homer in this one with a 96.5-mph shot to right with two runners on. 

Eliander Alcalde - 3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

Dunedin (5), Tampa (7) - 8/17
Box Score

The Jays got off to an early start again, this time with Dariel Ramon getting it going with an RBI single, before Maddox Latta hit another single to score Yeuni Munoz to make it 2-0 early. Ediel Rivera hit an RBI single in the bottom of that same inning off of Holden Wilkerson, but Munoz hit a two-RBI single soon after to make it 4-1 for the D-Jays. However, the pitching faltered for Dunedin, as Wilkerson allowed two runs in the fourth and Nate LaRue allowed one more after replacing him. David Beckles took the lead back for the D-Jays with a clutch double, but LaRue continued to struggle, allowing a run to score to tie it in the fifth, and then two more in the sixth to lose the game. Grif Hughes came in to replace LaRue and threw 2.2 scoreless innings, but at that point, it was too little too late.

David Beckles - 3-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 2B

Grif Hughes - 2.2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

DSL Blue Jays Blue
D-BJB (0), D-RCK (6) F/7- 8/16
Box Score

Saturday's game down on the island between BJB and RCK was not the prettiest game played this season. Cristopher Polanco led off the game with a walk, followed by a single from Angel Guzman. BJB's scoring opportunity quickly came to an end, with a strikeout by Franklin Rojas and a groundball double play from Yeicer Crespo. In the bottom half of the inning, Ronny Ugarte cleared the bases with a three-run double, giving RCK the early lead. In the second, BJB loaded the bases with a single, a walk, and a hit by pitch. Just as in the first, their threat was thwarted when Daniel Dominguez struck out and Polanco grounded out to end the half inning. RCK would tack on three more runs in the seventh, as BJB couldn't get any more threats going and fell 6-0. 

Cristopher Polanco: 1-2, 2 BB

Michael De La Cruz: 2.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K

D-BJB (7), D-WSX (1) F/7 - 8/18
Box Score

It was a much better game for BJB on Monday, as they were up against the DSL team for the Chicago White Sox. Guzman kicked the scoring off with an RBI groundout to second base in the bottom of the first inning. Fabian Gonzalez added a run in the second on his RBI double to left field, scoring Darwin Núñez. BJB got another run in the fourth; this time it was Esmeiquel Arrieche hitting one to center and scoring Nuñez. Alejandro Cruz homered in the top of the fifth for the WSX, but Juarlin Soto got the run back in the bottom half of the inning with his double to right field that scored Crespo. BJB kept the pedal down, scoring three more in the sixth. Dominguez had an RBI groundout, Polanco singled home Arrieche, and Rojas singled in Polanco. It was an easy win for BJB, as they took this one 7-1. 

Fabian Gonzalez: 2-2, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 2B

Cristhian Duarte: 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K

DSL Blue Jays Red
D-BJR (11), D-MEB (6) - F/7 - 8/16
Box Score

The DSL Blue Jays Red team took control of the game Saturday in the third inning against the DSL Mets Blue team. Two runs scored on a Kennew Blanco double, two more scored on an error by the third baseman, and a run scored when Luis Felipe hit an RBI single. Two home runs in the fifth by Hector Francis and Leandy Mella would bring the Mets Blue team closer. J.T. Bain would answer with a home run of his own for the Blue Jays Red team. BJR would go on to get RBI doubles from Blanco and Randy Soto to extend the lead. BJR would go on to win this one 11-6. 

Kennew Blanco - 2-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K, 2 2B

Edgar Gallegos - 4.2 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

D-BJR (2), D-ARR (5) - 8/18
Box Score

The DSL Blue Jays Red team didn't have their high-octane offense on Monday morning, but they did jump out to an early lead. Juan Sanchez tripled in the third inning and then was brought home by Pascual Archila hitting a single. However, a throwing error and a double steal would give ARR the one-run lead in the bottom half of the inning. In the sixth and seventh innings, an RBI groundout and an RBI single by Jorge Lara would put ARR up three. A passed ball would add one for BJR in the eighth inning, but they would go on to lose this one, 4-2.

Pascual Archila - 2-2, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 0 K, 1 2B

Luis Fonseca - 4 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K

Toronto Blue Jays Minor League Players of the Period

• Pitcher of the Period: RHP Grant Rogers (Vancouver) – 6 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K
• Hitter of the Period: 2B J.R. Freethy (Vancouver) - 5-8, 3 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 2 2B

Prospect Summary (Last 2 Days)
Will return next week.

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