Minor League Roundup – August 19th

By:Gideon Turk(Yes, I'm back)
Ewan Ross contributed to this post.
Minor League Roundup – August 19^th

The Good

Andy Burns – New Hampshire (Double A)

2/4 – 1 SB, 1 Error

Burns continues to just rake.  He has now extended his hitting streak to 10 games, in which he’s hitting .341/.386/.585.  Going back even further than that to grab a bigger sample size, in the past month of games he’s hit .276/.321/.504.  Burns got off to a very cold start after getting called up to AA, but boy does he look like he has some promise hitting this well at just 22 years old.

Chad Jenkins – New Hampshire (Double A)

4 IP – 3 H, 2 R (0 Earned), 0 BB, 4 K, 1 Wild Pitch

In Chad's 3rd New Hampshire rehab start, he continued to have success, keeping his ERA at 0.00. A huge factor for that is his ability to keep runners off base, specifically walking batters, which he has done only once in his 10 IP for the Fisher Cats(compared to 8 strikeouts). Jenkins will likely get another 2 or 3 starts in the minors, and then be back up with the Jays as a September call up(or will be part of a Bisons playoff run).

Emilio Guerrero – Lansing (Low Single A)

1/3 – 1 BB, 2 SB, 1 Error

Guerrero continues to scorch at the young age of 20 in a full season league.  He’s now extended his hitting streak to 14 games, in which he’s been absolutely unconscious hitting .429/.431/.661.  If I wanted to be nit-picky I’d note that he hasn’t been walking, with just 1 walk in that span (and it was intentional), but when you’re hitting over .425 that seems unnecessary.

Tom Robson – Vancouver (Short Season Single A)

5 IP – 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K

Robson continued his fantastic season last night, when he faced over 19 batters for the 7th straight appearance. He now has a 3:1 K:BB ratio in Vancouver, and if he keeps up this success, he'll find himself in a nice looking Lansing rotation to start 2014.

Matt Dean – Bluefield (High Rookie)

2/3 – 1 HR, 1 2B, 1 BB

 Matthew had yet another outstanding game for the Rookie Blue Jays yesterday, showing his power with the double and homer, while throwing in a walk as well just for good measure. The Rasmus like K-rate is worrisome, but he extended his non-multiple K game streak to 15 last night(9 games during that span without a K), so maybe he has turned a corner in that regard. He is putting himself on the prospect map, and should be an interesting name to watch in the future.

Mitch Nay – Bluefield (High Rookie)

1/3 – 1 2B, 1 BB

Nay performed well once again, extending his hit streak to a modest 4 games, and anchoring the offence along with Dean, as they do night in and night out. His eye continues to look good with the low K% and high BB%, and another walk out of him yesterday makes it 22 in just 54 games for Bluefield this summer.

Zak Wasilewski – Bluefield (High Rookie)

4.1 IP – 7 H, 4 R (2 Earned), 0 BB, 6 K – 5 Groundouts, 1 Flyout

Wasilewski's line might not look great, but the 6 strikeouts and no walks more than makeup for the 7 hits allowed in 4.1 innings. He has not allowed more than 2 earned runs in a game since his 1st of the season in June, quietly putting up a nice season.

Dan Jansen – GCL (Low Rookie)

1/3 – 1 2B, 2 BB

With his 2 walks last night, Jansen has brought his OBP up to .400 for the season. In his first year as a professional, he has been fine, and for a 16th rounder, any success he has is an overachievement.  

Matt Smoral – GCL (Low Rookie)

3 IP – 2 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 HBP, 1 Wild Pitch – 6 Groundouts, 0 Flyouts

Smoral's control again was lost last night, as it has been for the entire season(higher BB% than K%), but the 6 ground balls were nice to see, along with no flyouts. Smoral has the potential to be great, and keep in mind that he is just 19 years old, pitching in his first pro season. 

The Bad

Ryan Goins – Buffalo (Triple A)

0/3

Goins struggled last night, but at least he made contact during all 3 of his PA's. I can't imagine Mike McCoy was too happy with the lack of protection behind him in the line up last night :)

Moises Sierra – Buffalo (Triple A)

0/3 – 1 BB, 2 K

Sierra's 2 strikeouts and no hits last night really show how much the 4th outfielder ceiling player is doing this year. He is striking out way too often, and if last night is any indication, maybe his hot streak was just that, and didn't really have any effect on him at all. But you know, #SSS.

Kenny Wilson – New Hampshire (Double A)

0/4 – 1 K

The speedy Wilson's hit streak came to an end last night, when he didn't couldn't get anything going with the bat, and wound up going o fer with a K. He is having a decent season though, and at just 23 years old in AA, not all hope is lost.

Christian Lopes – Lansing (Low Single A)

0/4 – 2 K

Lopes's shine is wearing off quickly, and the 20 year old  middle infielder has shown that above rookie ball, he just can't hit. Adjustments need to be made for Lopes, or else he will find himself off of the prospect radar.

The Other

Kyle Drabek – Buffalo (Triple A)

4 IP – 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 K

Kyle Drabek starts his night retiring 6 straight. Velo topping 95 & 94mph, 24 pitches. #bisons #bluejays

— Ben Wagner (@benwag247) August 19, 2013

Drabek appeared in his second game for the Bisons yesterday on his way back to the majors, and was very good once again. He was limited to 65 pitches, but made good use of them, going 4 innings and only allowing 3 hits and a walk. The strikeouts could be better, but just the fact that he is on a mound after two Tommy John surgeries is fantastic, and any success he has is just awesome. Oh, and he was hitting 95 MPH!

AJ Jimenez – Buffalo (Triple A)

1/3 – 1 2B, 2 SB Allowed

AJJ had a nice night at the plate, but behind it was a different story. Overall he is fine behind the dish, and at least he doesn't airmail his throws into centre field every time like a certain catcher the Blue Jays employ. Lets hope Jimenez' defense stays good, last night was a blip, and his bat is enough to dispose of JPA in the off-season.

Minor League Update: Buffalo Bisons (AAA) #2

How about that custom link up there?

Buffalo Bisons
26-19 (1st place International League North Division)

Not much has changed since I last wrote about the Bisons. Jim Negrych is still a non prospect who is having BABIP caused success, the offense as a whole is the best in the International league, and the pitching is still one of the worst in the league. That recipe has allowed the Bisons to maintain their division lead in the IL's North division, even though they have been slipping as late.

There are some new faces that I'll be looking at today because of various injuries, transactions, and performances, so it won't be repetitive like you might expect. Joining us is the awful Ricky Romero, the not so awful Jim Negrych, prospect John Stilson, and some other guys.

Before I start, I want to apologize for being late with this. I went through one of those stages this week where I was too lazy to write anything. I will have the Fisher Cats update posted on Monday like it is scheduled to be. As always, leave your comments about the article, my writing, or really anything in the section below. Enjoy!

Jeremy Jeffress-RP-Age 25

Jeffress made his AAA debut in 2013 a couple of weeks ago after appearing in 3 FSL games with Dunedin, and the flamethrower has had success as expected. Like Ricky Romero(who I'll be getting to soon), Jeffress' main issue is his control. Even if he can't get the control working, he will find success as he is doing now because of the stuff he does possess. Jeffress was put on the 7 day DL yesterday, so he will miss a week or two with an undisclosed injury. It's all about control for JJ, so until he works that out, he won't be doing drugs with Rob Ford up here in Toronto.

Dustin McGowan-RP-Age 31

The extremely small sample size the oft-injured McGowan makes it impossible to trust the stats for McGowan at this point. I watched his second rehab game in Buffalo, the one where he allowed 3 earned runs while only getting one out. I thought he looked pretty good until his 5th batter, where he started to lose control. The hits were soft ground balls, and he was keeping the ball down in the zone and on the outside corner. His velocity was also a little low, but that shouldn't be of concern. I don't want to go much farther into McGowan because I will be writing an article about him in the next few days.

Todd Redmond-SP-Age 28

Redmond has only started one game so far this season, so I'm not going to bother writing about him. The sample is way too small. Don't expect anything out of him, as he is just another card in AA's waiver game.

Ricky Romero-SP-Age 28

The Romero case is fascinating. He cannot keep the ball in the strike zone. He has walked 17 to 3 strikeouts this season while pitching for the Bisons, and has a FIP close to 7.00. He can't get major leaguers out, and he can't get AAA hitters out. I don't expect him to be in Buffalo for much longer, as it is getting to a point where it will be better for him to be back in Dunedin where he can work with various coaches at the Dunedin complex. The Jays(and AA) messed up big time when they ruined his development by calling him up early. This season is a write off for Romero in my opinion, and he should just try to focus on putting the ball in the zone, even if he gives up hits. Something has to change for this guy, or else he'd be fortunate to even spend the rest of his career in AAA.

Michael Schwimer-RP-Age 27

Schwimer's results look good so far, except for the walks of course, but it's obviously a really small sample for him as he was injured to begin the season, and only started playing games around 2 weeks ago. He doesn't figure to get any time with the Jays this season, and like Redmond, he's a candidate to be taken off the 40-man roster soon.

John Stilson-RP-Age 22

Injury is the cause for Stilson's lack of innings this year, but it does finally look like the Jays have converted the big righty to the bullpen, where scouts say his stuff plays better. With fellow top prospect Sean Nolin getting the call to pitch for Toronto today, Stilson isn't very far behind, and if another reliever is lost for a significant amount of time, look for Stilson to be a prime candidate to fill in. He is striking guys out so far in his limited work at a good rate, he is said to have looked good in his game for the Bisons. The walks are an issue, but once the sample is bigger than 2 tiny innings, that will come back down to normal for Stilson, around 4 per 9, which is probably the only thing keeping him from the Blue Jays.

Mickey Storey-RP-Age 27

This is the story about Storey(that might have been the worst pun ever, I'm sorry about that). He's a AAAA player, and just like so many names I've already mentioned, he's just a pawn in AA's waiver game.Since going back down to Buffalo after a brief stint up here in Toronto, he has continued to pitch well in 3 innings. Both his strikeout and walk rats are up this year, but I'd expect both to drop as he continues to pitch in AAA. He might be back up for the Jays a few more times this year, but if he is for an extended period of time, then you know something has gone wrong.

Thad Weber (A.K.A Thaddeus)-SP/RP-Age 28

We discussed Thaddeus on last week's episode of the BJP Podcast, and we came to the conclusion that he is a nice little piece to have. He doesn't walk batters, and although he isn't a strikeout machine, he is a good player to be able to shuffle between AAA and Toronto to either spot start or pitch at the back end of the bullpen. His control makes him very attractive, so if he is put on waivers at anytime to be taken off the 40-man, I can't imagine he wouldn't be picked up. I hope AA decides to keep him, as he is one of the few waiver claims AA has made that is actually interesting.

Ryan Goins-SS-Age 25

I've never been a huge fan of Goins, and it doesn't look like he is deserving of a call up anytime soon. The team obviously doesn't feel he is ready, and his stats prove it, as both his wOBA and wRC+ are both well below average. His defense isn't all that great as well, so with the Jays set at short for the next 5 years with Jose Reyes, and Goins not profiling as a second basemen, it looks like a career that involves flip flopping between the majors and the minors is in store for Goins, although so many things can change. He is going to need to pick up his offense if he wants to get back to a mid-level prospect status, and truthfully, I'd be surprised if he is called up this season before September. 

Mauro Gomez-DH- Age 28

Did somebody say AAAA player? Because that is exactly what Gomez is. He isn't "too good" for AAA, but he sure as hell is great there. After being the MVP of the IL last year, he is putting up good numbers once again in 2013. He has been a strong force in the Bisons line up, but he won't be playing on the Blue Jays this year. Like so many of the players in this article, he is just depth. 

Jim Negrych-2B-Age 28

Stop that. Jim Negrych is not good. He is not a major league player. There's a reason he is 28 and still in the minors. He isn't very good. His start is BABIP driven. His BABIP sits at .433 right now after 36 games, and it will only go down, taking his insane numbers with it. He won't be added to the 40-man, he won't be called up, and he won't continue hitting close to .400. It won't happen. He's getting luckier than the 2012 Orioles. OK? Good.

Moises Sierra-OF-Age 24

Sierra deserved the call up when Rajai Davis went down with injury last week, and when it went to Anthony Gose instead, he must have been wondering what he has to do to get the call. He has been playing very well, with the average over .300 all year, and his defense hasn't been to terrible, well, at least the games that I've watched. His arm is awesome, as always. His BABIP is a sky high .381 right now(Still not Negrych level, folks), so expect a regression soon for Sierra. The strikeouts and lack of walks are a concern, and if he does regress and those numbers stay the same, look for Kevin Pillar to skip him on the depth chart.

Josh Thole-C(well not really, but sure)-Age 26

Think JPA's defense is bad(Yes, I do actually)? Thole's is worse! Yup. hard to believe, but it's true. He's nothing more than a backup, and the entire #FreeThole thing really is a joke. JP is the best option we have right now(which obviously isn't so good), so we're stuck with the power hitting, strikeout king for now. Josh is proving that he can hit, although nobody ever really doubted his ability to get on base at a clip around .350 at the major league level. There is quite a lot of BABIP to his hot start, but I fully expect to see Thole hitting above .300 for most of the year, if not all of it. He won't be called up replace Blanco because Dickey likes Blanco, so his only way of getting to the bigs before September is a JP injury. Hopefully that doesn't happen.

DONE!!!!! 4 days late, but it's finally done! Next week, Fisher Cats. 

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Farm System Report: Dunedin Blue Jays (A)

By: Isaac Boloten
Sorry for this being two days late. But better late than never. Week 3 of the Farm System Report will feature the Dunedin Blue Jays. This team is very shallow. It has a few prospects, most notably Aaron Sanchez and A.J. Jimenez, but other than that it isn't all that deep. Let's start with overall team performance.

Dunedin Blue Jays, 18-11, 1st in Florida State League North Divison. 

Well, this team has played really well. It actually was surprising to me, looking at the roster as a whole. Offensively, the Blue Jays have been middle of the pack, not great in any category, but not awful. The pitching has carried the Blue Jays, leading the Florida State League in ERA and WHIP. I can't see them sustaining this pace, yet you never know.

I will now proceed to write about the following players: 

Aaron Sanchez, SP
Casey Lawrence, SP
Tyler Ybarra, RP
Jesse Hernandez, SP

AJ Jimenez, C
K.C. Hobson, 1B
Michael Crouse, OF



Aaron Sanchez, SP

2013 Season
Team	League	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	GO/AO	AVG
DUN	FSL	1	1	3.07	6	6	0	0	0	29.1	18	12	10	0	9	28	2.39	.170

Why not start with the #1 prospect in all of the Blue Jays organization?  Sanchez and Roberto Osuna were really the only top prospects left from the offseason, although the system does have some depth. Sanchez has impressed so far. The K's are high, which is to be expected with the stuff Sanchez possesses pitching in the Florida State League. One thing that he has to work on is being efficient. Sanchez reached his pitch limit of 75 pitches on May 2 after just 3.2 innings. As he continues to grow, he will learn to be more of a pitcher, and less of a thrower. We can expect big things out of Sanchez. Jason Parks at Baseball Prospectus says that Sanchez could be a top 5 prospect in all of baseball next year.

Casey Lawrence, SP 

2013 Season
Team	League	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	GO/AO	AVG
BUF	INT	0	1	11.25	1	1	0	0	0	4.0	10	6	5	0	2	3	1.00	.455
DUN	FSL	2	2	3.48	5	5	0	0	0	33.2	29	13	13	3	5	20	1.30	.236

Lawrence isn't all that much of a top prospect, but he is worth being written about simply because of the start he has gotten off to in 2013. He went through a 2 game stretch in which he pitched 17.2 Innings, throwing 9.2 innings in one of those games. Since then, it hasn't been as stellar. I have my doubts about Lawrence as a prospect, seeing as he doesn't strike out a lot of guys, and he's in the FSL at age 25...So he's not a prospect.

Tyler Ybarra, RP

2013 Season
Team	League	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	GO/AO	AVG
DUN	FSL	0	0	5.40	3	0	0	0	0	5.0	4	3	3	0	2	5	0.67	.222

The lefty has been a bullpen pitcher from the start. His ERA doesn't look all that great in the small sample size of 7 innings, but he has worked a 2.49 FIP. Ybarra has never had an issue with striking batters out, doing that consistently in his 3 years in the Blue Jays organization. Because he is a bullpen arm, he may develop faster, and the Jays might be a little bit less careful with him. I wouldn't be surprised if he is in AAA by next year, and AA by the end of this year.

Jesse Hernandez, SP

2013 Season
Team	League	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	GO/AO	AVG
DUN	FSL	2	3	3.00	7	7	0	0	0	39.0	31	13	13	2	17	27	1.24	.217

Hernandez has gotten off to a decent start this year, providing needed innings for the Dunedin pitching staff. Much like Lawrence, his inability to strike batters out on a consistent basis in high-A ball concerns me.  In this era, not many pitchers turn out to be MLB'ers if they can't strike out batters. Henderson Alvarez comes to mind, but at this point he is a 4th starter at best. The only way Hernandez can get around not striking out a lot of guys is inducing a lot of ground balls. Unfortunately, I don't have that data.


AJ Jimenez, C

2013 Season
Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
DUN	FSL	.375	5	16	4	6	1	0	1	5	10	1	3	0	0	.412	.625	1.037

In the smallest of sample sizes, Jimenez is hitting the ball very well in 2013. In his last full game, he was 3-4 with his 1 home run, and was the player of the game for Dunedin. Us Jays fans are praying that Jimenez is a "young Travis d'Arnaud." Jimenez hasn't done anything to prove that wrong, but he is taking his sweet time to develop, mainly because his 2012 was cut short by Tommy John Surgery. He did show what he could do though in 2011, with a .303/.353/.417 triple slash that year. Many are impressed with his eye at the plate, and how he has really cut down on his strikeouts (which is something Jays fans aren't used to at the catcher position.)  Jimenez is a prospect who didn't receive much praise last year due to his injury, but I am sure will shoot up the rankings by midseason. I am very high on this kid(OK, he's older than me). He left the game last night before receiving one at bat which he says was because of elbow pain. Hopefully just some scar tissue, and nothing more.

Michael Crouse, OF

2013 Season
Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
DUN	FSL	.357	4	14	1	5	3	0	0	2	8	2	5	1	1	.438	.571	1.009

I lied when I said Jimenez had the smallest of sample sizes. Crouse's 2013 sample size is microscopic. Despite being in the organization since 2008, the Canadian is still very raw. He has tools, but is not polished at all. Historically, he has had extremely high strikeout percentages, and an on base percentage below .300, which simply isn't going to cut it. He is known to steal bases, though. Profiles as a possible 4th outfielder.


K.C. Hobson, 1B

2013 Season
Team	League	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
DUN	FSL	.203	17	69	5	14	2	0	4	10	28	3	17	1	0	.233	.406	.639

Despite the power numbers being there, Hobson is off to a very slow start in 2013. He has struck out way too many times, and has yet to show any patience at the plate. This is odd, because historically, he hasn't had all that much trouble getting on base. Hopefully this isn't a sign of things to come.