Farm System Update- New Hampshire Fisher Cats (AA)

For now, Kevin Pillar is the only
note worthy player doing well
for the Fisher Cats.

Week 2 of our series brings us to New Hampshire where there a ton of prospects and noteworthy players, most of which haven't actually played yet because of injury/suspension. This is the list of players that are on the Fisher Cats roster, but have not played yet. They will not be talked about due to their zero appearances.

Chad Jenkins
Sean Nolin
John Stilson
Marcus Stroman
A.J. Jimenez

The following have played in games, and will be written about.

Deck McGuire
Evan Crawford (WHY IS HE ON THE 40-MAN????)
Clint Robinson (See Crawford, Evan)
Kevin Pillar

New Hampshire Fisher Cats (11-13 Last-Eastern League Eastern Division)

The Fisher Cats are not playing as well as the Bisons are. They're actually doing quite the opposite. The Bisons are succeeding with a monster offence and average pitching, whereas the Fisher Cats have one of the Eastern League's best pitching staffs(4th in ERA), and quite a horrible offence( 5th last in Runs). It's still a small sample though, so like last week, take the following with a grain of salt.

Deck McGuire-SP- 23 years old

All hope of McGuire turning out to be anything seems to be lost at this point. The big righty is repeating AA after a miserable year last season when he posted a 5.88 ERA in 28 starts, with high walk numbers and a low K rate. The 11th overall selection in the 2010 draft has never had the stuff scouts rave about, and at this point, he'd be lucky to make it on to a 40-man roster for a few years, if at all. He has repeated his 2012 self exactly(according to ERA a least) through 5 starts in 2013. He has had 2 good starts, but you won't be a successful pitcher when 40% of your starts are decent, and the other 60% are horrible. If McGuire doesn't turn it around, a career as minor league filler is in the works for this once top draft choice.

Evan Crawford-RP-26 years old

The only reason Crawford is on the 40-man is because he's a lefty, and if AA keeps on playing this waiver game(which I assume he will), I'd expect him to be removed eventually. He started the season in Dunedin, for a reason not known to me, and pitched horribly there, so he got promoted(that's how it works, right?). He's really barely pitched this year, so it'd be cruel to judge him already. All you need to know is that if he makes it to the Majors this year before September, something has gone horribly, horribly wrong. Let's all just hope Crawford doesn't make it into Canada for a while.

Clint Robinson-1B-28 years old

Robinson, a victim of AA's famous waiver carousel is a career minor leaguer (he had a cup of coffee with KC last year in the majors), and doesn't seem to be on the 40-man for any reason other than David Cooper hurt his back and Robinson is decent filler just in case something happens to the first basemen in AAA, although I also assume, like Crawford, his time on the 40-man will come to a close soon. He has raked so far in New Hampshire, putting up an OBP over .400 in 21 games played. He's nothing special, although I'd be surprised if he doesn't keep these type of numbers up. He is what Deck McGuire will be in a few years(but in a hitters body). 

Kevin Pillar-OF-24 years old

Pillar is the one true "prospect" on this AA team(healthy at least), and he has kept up what he's been doing for the past few years, as he continues to demolish pitching and steal bases with ease. He doesn't have one tool that absolutely sticks out, but he could definitely be a solid option for a 4th outfielder in a couple years, or even better. He was our #9 prospect on our list last December, but come July when we take a look back at that list, he's sure to be higher. He is a gritty player who will walk, steal, and do everything in between, and you never know what type of careers guys like him could have. If he keeps this up, he might just be something Jays fans could get excited about.

Comments and criticisms welcome in the section below.

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Minor League Roundup - New Hampshire Fisher Cats

Minor League Roundup (July 9^th to July 15^th)

Every week I’ll be diving into the Blue Jays system to see how the up and comers have fared in the past 7 days.  I’ll only be looking at the prospects in the system, so, sorry to the Ruban Gotay types out there, you’ll continue to be ignored. 

Its very important to note, that while this is can be a useful exercise, its important to not take the stats put up in the minor leagues as gospel.  Minor league numbers can very often be deceiving, the calibre of competition can frequently vary wildly (often within the same game eve), and frequently skills that allow you to thrive in the minors wont translate at all to the majors (such as being a mistake hitter, or relying on a trick pitch for strikeouts).  Also, minor league teams don’t do advanced scouting, so holes in a players game that can be exploited at the next level won’t become apparent.  So take anything I’m saying here with a healthy grain of salt.

            I’ll be writing up one team per day (Las Vegas on Monday, New Hampshire on Tuesday, Dunedin on Wednesday, Lansing on Thursday, & Vancouver (and lower) on Friday.  Since it’s the first week I’m doing this, I’m a day behind, but I’ll catch up by rolling the Vancouver recap together with Lansing on Friday, next week we should be on a regular schedule.

            Last thing I’ll mention here, is that I’m doing a write up on the previous week’s results.  Not looking ahead to what they’ve done since Monday, so in some cases (McGuire’s for instance) results in their appearances early this week might’ve changed my opinion on some of what they’ve done during the week I’m profiling here.

New Hampshire Fisher Cats (AA)

July 12^th – 4-2 Loss @ Portland

July 13^th – 4-3 Loss @ Portland

July 14^th – 3-1 Loss @ Portland

July 14^th – 9-1 Loss @ Portland

July 15^th – 5-1 Win @ Portland

            Like the 51s (who were profiled yesterday), New Hampshire had an abbreviated week due to the AA all-star break.  Coming out of the break, the Fisher Cats continued to show why they currently have the worst record in the Eastern League by losing 4 of 5 to the Portland Sea Dogs. 

Hitters

Mike McDade – 1B – 23 Years Old

AA Line – 387 PAs - .284/.362/.452 – 14 HRs, 46 RBI, 40 Runs, 1 SB, 0 CS, 73 Ks, 39 BBs

Weekly AA Line – .117/.211/.294 – 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2 Runs, 5 Ks, 2 BBs

AA All-Star Game – 4/4 – 3 1Bs, 1 2B, 2 RBI

July 12 – 1/3 – 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 Run, 1 K, 1 BB

July 13 (Day) – 0/3 – 1 K

July 13 (Night) – 0/3 – 1 K

July 14 – 0/3 - 1 BB

July 15 – 1/5 – 1 1B, 1 Run, 2 Ks

            Mike McDade had an up and down week.  He was outstanding while playing the entire Eastern League All-Star game at DH, and just narrowly missing the MVP award of that game.  He then homered in his first game after returning to the Fisher Cats, but then did almost nothing the rest of the week. 

            The biggest problem that McDade has a prospect is the position that he plays.  To use a term that BP’s Kevin Goldstein uses on a regular basis, he suffers from the curse of the first base prospects.  For you to be a truly legit prospect at first, you really need to profile as an elite middle of the order hitter, and McDade doesn’t really have the profile.  So yes this guy was an all-star this week, but please temper your expectations.

           

Jake Marisnick – CF – 21 Years Old

AA Line –  46 PAs, .262/.311/.405 – 1 HR, 4 RBI, 5 Runs, 0 SB, 1 CS, 11 Ks, 1 BB

A+ Line – 306 PAs, .263/.349/.451 – 6 HRs, 35 RBI, 41 Runs, 10 SBs, 5 CSs, 55 Ks, 26 BBs

Weekly AA Line – .267/.375/.333 – 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 Run, 3 Ks, 1 BB

July 12 – 0/3 -

July 13 (Day) – 2/4 – 1 1B, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 Run, 2 Ks

July 13 (Night) – Off

July 14 – 0/3 – 1 K, 1 BB

July 15 – 2/5 – 2 1B, 1 K

            Marisnick has gotten off to a very respectable start to his career in AA.  Its nothing that jumps off the page at you, but you have to consider that he’s just 21 years old.  Marisnick is still one of the main shining lights in the Jays system (when it comes to position prospects).  He has a prototypical power hitter’s frame, even if its one that may shift him to a corner position down the line.  This week has been a representative example of the slow development he’s going through as he moves up the line.

Pitchers

            The Fisher Cats are probably home to the two most disappointing prospects in the Jays system this year, in Chad Jenkins & Deck McGuire, and really that’s it in terms of talent on the mound.  That’s especially the case now that Sammy Dyson, & Aaron Loup have gotten the call.  Its probably a pretty good reason as to why they are sweeping up the basement of the Eastern League at the moment.

Deck McGuire – RH Starter – 23 Years Old

AA Line – 97.2 IP, 4-9 W-L, 5.90 ERA, 1.454 WHIP, 6.6 K/9, 3.5 BB/9, 1.5 HR/9

July 13 (Day) – No Decision, 6.1 IP, 3 Runs, 5 Hits, 7 Ks, 0 BBs, 2 HRs

            For a pitcher who has been an almost universal disappointment thus far this season, what we say this week was a step in the right direction (and a continuation of what we saw in his start before the break).  Thus far this season, McGuire has had two issues plaguing him, 1) an inability to miss bats, & 2) a propensity to give up home runs.  In his last two outings he’s cleared up 1 of those problems striking out 17 batters, and only walking 1.  However the home runs continue to become a problem, as evidenced by the 2 he gave up last Friday.  Its been largely an up and down season for the big Virginian, and this doesn’t to anything to disprove that assertion.

Chad Jenkins – RH Starter – 24 Years Old

AA Line – 94 IP, 4-9 W-L, 5.55 ERA, 1.638 WHIP, 4.1 K/9, 2.0 BB/9, 1.2 HR/9

July 14 – Loss, 5 IP, 6 Runs, 13 Hits, 4 Ks, 0 BBs, 1 HR

            While we saw some positive signs were seen the past week from McGuire, the opposite was true for Jenkins.  Another disaster start from the strapping 6’4 Tennessean.  Trying to find positives the 4/0 K/B ratio was nice, but when you give up 13 hits, that’s obviously not nearly good enough.  He was seen as a rotation option coming into the year, but quite simply he is far too hittable.  He’s shaping up as yet another disappointing draft pick from the JP Ricciardi era.

           

Aaron Loup – LH Reliever – 24 Years Old

AA Line – 45.1 IP, 0-3 W-L, 2.78 ERA, 1.324 WHIP, 8.5 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, 0.8 HR/9

Weekly AA Line – N/A

AA All-Star Game – 1 IP, 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 K, 0 BB, 0 HR

            Aaron Loup started the week getting a surprise call for the AA all-star game (after Sam Dyson was called up to the big team).  He impressed in the showcase game, pitching a clean 3^rd inning, and soon after that was called up to the big league team.  Not a bad week for the submarining lefty.  However his call up, means that future Fisher Cats previews will be even more bereft of prospects.  Good for the big league team, bad for someone who’s writing prospect recaps.

I'll be back tomorrow to take a look at the Dunedin Blue Jays.  See you then.

You can follow me on Twitter, @Mentoch.To connect with the site, Follow us on Twitter, and Like us on Facebook.

Blue Jays Minor League Rosters

Triple-A Las Vegas

SP — Luis Perez
SP — Brad Mills
SP — Scott Richmond
SP — Mike MacDonald
SP — Randy Boone

RP — Winston Abreu
RP — Chad Cordero
RP — Sean Henn
RP — Mike Hinckley
RP — Wilfredo Ledezma
RP — Rommie Lewis
RP — Josh Roenicke

C — Ryan Budde
C — Brian Jeroloman

1B — David Cooper
2B — Niuman Romero
SS — Chris Woodward
3B — Brett Lawrie

UTL — Manny Mayorson

LF — Eric Thames
CF — Darin Mastroianni
RF — Adam Loewen
OF — Daniel Perales
OF — Jason Lane

DL — Scott Podsednik
DL — Ryan Shealey
DL — Robert Ray

Double-A New Hampshire

SP — Zach Stewart
SP — B.J. Lamura
SP — Joel Carreno
SP — Ray Gonzalez
SP — Willie Collazo

RP — Evan Crawford
RP — Matt Daly
RP — Clinton Everts
RP — Alan Farina
RP — Bobby Korecky
RP — Vince Perkins
RP — Ronald Uviedo

C — Travis d’Arnaud
C — Yan Gomes

1B — Mike McDade
2B — Jon Diaz
SS — Adeiny Hechavarria
3B — Mark Sobolewski
DH — Craig Stansberry

UTL — John Tolisano

LF — Adam Calderone
CF — Anthony Gose
RF — Moises Sierra
OF — Ricardo Nanita

DL — Scott Campbell
DL — Jared Potts
DL — Callix Crabbe
DL — Luis Sanchez
DL — Al Quintana

Inactive — Matt Liuzza

Class-A Dunedin

SP — Chad Jenkins
SP — Deck McGuire
SP — Asher Wojciechowski
SP — Chad Beck
SP — Ryan Tepera
SP — Nestor Molina

RP — Casey Beck
RP — Frank Gailey
RP — Dumas Garcia
RP — Wes Etheridge
RP — Matt Wright
RP — Ryan Shopshire

C — Antonio Jimenez
C — Sean Ochinko

1B — Jon Talley
2B — Ivan Contreras
SS – Ryan Goins
3B — Kevin Ahrens
DH — Brian Van Kirk

UTL — Justin Jackson
UTL — Kevin Nolan

LF — Kenny Wilson
CF — Bradley Glenn
RF — Brad McElroy
OF — Chris Hopkins

DL — Henderson Alvarez
DL — John Anderson
DL — Raul Barron
DL — Ryan Schimpf
DL — Sean Shoffit
DL — Andrew Liebel

Inactive — Justin McClanahan

Class-A Lansing

SP — Drew Hutchison
SP — Misaul Diaz
SP — Daniel Webb
SP — Egan Smith
SP — Casey Lawrence

RP — Daniel Barnes
RP — Scott Garcey
RP — Dayton Marze
RP — Alex Pepe
RP — Drew Permison
RP — Sam Strickland
RP — Steven Turnbull

C — Carlos Perez
C — Jack Murphy
C — Joseph Bowen

1B — KC Hobson
2B — Garis Pena
SS — Gustavo Pierre
3B — Bryson Namba

UTL — Oliver Dominguez
UTL — Balbino Fuenmayor

LF — Marcus Knecht
CF — Jacob Marisnick
RF — Michael Crouse
OF — Markus Brisker

DL — Dustin Antollin
DL — Matt Fields
DL — Sean Nolin
DL — Lance Durham
DL — Aaron Loup
DL — Brian Slover
DL — Marcus Walden