2019 Minor Leagues/Prospect Discussion Thread

[Skin Blues]

Wanted to post this gem from the comment section of an article on Sportsnet.ca about Bo Bichette:

It is best to avoid Sportsnet comment sections or the Fan 590 in general, for your sanity. The worst content on these forums is when people regurgitate those hot takes.

[vaff87]

Hopefully Kevin Smith can cut down on the strike outs, because outside of that, he seems to be doing really well. He worked on that in the off-season, it worked in Lansing, but has ballooned since being promoted to Dunedin. But that seems to be his only weakness.

[Lateral Quicks]

Vlad 2-4 with a 2B and single in a rehab game in Dunedin tonight.

Pompey back in Buffalo, goes 0-2 with 2 BB and a SF. I just want to see him get and stay healthy... with healthy I still think he's a major league player.

[polo007]

Read on Twitter

[vaff87]

Santiago Espinal has been promoted to AA. Also, Vladdy is back in AA.

[dagger]

Santiago Espinal has been promoted to AA. Also, Vladdy is back in AA.

Espinal's first AB - a bloop double

[Al_Oliver]

Santiago Espinal has been promoted to AA. Also, Vladdy is back in AA.

This is a good move for Espinal. Older for A ball, let's see what he's got at a more age-appropriate level

[JaysRule25]

Keith Law ranked Fernando Tatis as his no. 1 prospect and kept Vladdy Jr. as no. 2.

His outlook on Vladdy Jr.

Guerrero’s bat belongs in the big leagues and it’s the best in the minors, bar none. It’s an 80 hit tool, and because he’s so strong and his hands are so quick, it’s 80 power, too. If you’re a fantasy player, and you want to know who the best prospect is, it’s Guerrero. But position and defense matter, and Guerrero is not a third baseman in anything but name right now. He’s enormous for the position, and at 19, he’s more likely to get bigger than smaller. He has a tremendous arm, and his hands are fine, but he’s not mobile or agile enough for anything on the dirt other than first base. I’d try him in right field first, but he’s going to play somewhere at the wrong end of the defensive spectrum, and might not be good anywhere. And there’s a real concern about how big he’ll be even in his late 20s, given how his body is already changing for the worse.

That’s all merely my way of explaining why he’s No. 2 and not No. 1 on this list. He might still hit like Miguel Cabrera, a defensive nonentity who got big young and still hit like a star until age 34, and nobody will begrudge Baby Vlad those last few pounds.

I really hope Vladdy Jr.'s physical condition/weight is something that is being heavily monitored by the Jays' dietitians. Especially considering that we just overhauled our fitness department under the new regime. Some people just have bigger bodies regardless, but if this is something that can be at least slightly managed through a proper diet and workout program, I hope the Jays are on it.

Not only does having a bigger body means worse defensive performance, it also ends up being a cause of injuries. Especially in the lower body and back areas.

[vaff87]

Keith Law kept ranked Fernando Tatis as his no. 1 prospect and kept Vladdy Jr. as no. 2.

His outlook on Vladdy Jr.

Guerrero’s bat belongs in the big leagues and it’s the best in the minors, bar none. It’s an 80 hit tool, and because he’s so strong and his hands are so quick, it’s 80 power, too. If you’re a fantasy player, and you want to know who the best prospect is, it’s Guerrero. But position and defense matter, and Guerrero is not a third baseman in anything but name right now. He’s enormous for the position, and at 19, he’s more likely to get bigger than smaller. He has a tremendous arm, and his hands are fine, but he’s not mobile or agile enough for anything on the dirt other than first base. I’d try him in right field first, but he’s going to play somewhere at the wrong end of the defensive spectrum, and might not be good anywhere. And there’s a real concern about how big he’ll be even in his late 20s, given how his body is already changing for the worse.

That’s all merely my way of explaining why he’s No. 2 and not No. 1 on this list. He might still hit like Miguel Cabrera, a defensive nonentity who got big young and still hit like a star until age 34, and nobody will begrudge Baby Vlad those last few pounds.

I really hope Vladdy Jr.'s physical condition/weight is something that is being heavily monitored by the Jays' dietitians. Especially considering that we just overhauled our fitness department under the new regime. Some people just have bigger bodies regardless, but if this is something that can be at least slightly managed through a proper diet and workout program, I hope the Jays are on it.

Not only does having a bigger body means worse defensive performance, it also ends up being a cause of injuries. Especially in the lower body and back areas.

Putting Tatis over Guerrero seems ridiculous to me. The guy strikes out way too much.

I think with Vladdy and Bo, Ben Badler has the most credibility, given how much he covers them.

[dagger]

Keith Law has been saying this all along, and it's at least a valid concern, although an 80 bat and power is something I can't set aside for positional defence considerations. Even if he ends up at 1B or LF, he's a potential MVP.

[Schad]

With the usual caveat that Rowdy Tellez probably will never be a prospect again...he has 4 HRs in 4 games, after hitting 12 in his previous 195 games. Maybe he has remembered that he is 250 lbs of sirloin?

[dagger]

If someone follows this more closely, can he tell me what the deal is with Travis Bergen at New Hampshire. He's being moved into closing. He was our Round 7 in 2015, but has lost a lot of time to injury. This is the first season when he's been able to rack up a fair number of innings, without interruption. He has a cumulative 1.07 ERA across two levels and 0.41 at NH with a WHIP of 1.14. Does better than a K an inning at every level, low ERA at every level, low opponent BA at every level, good GO/AO. But like I said, until this season, small sample size. Oh, did I mention he's a left-hander? So am I fixating on him for nothing, or is he a serious candidate for the pen in 2019?

[Schad]

SRF is having a hell of a time in Buffalo. Walk rate still isn't ideal necessarily, but it's at a much-improved 3.0/9 in 65.1 IP, and his K rate is well over 10 per 9. He has also been much more judicious about surrendering home runs, with his HR/9 plummeting from a frightening 1.5 last year to 0.6 this season. He's looking more and more like someone who'll have a real chance to stick in the rotation, and it might not be long before he gets that shot.

Danny Jansen went 2 for 3 with 2 HRs, a walk and a K, for a perfect 100% true outcome rate. Would appear that he has recovered from his (mostly BABIP-induced) slump in July. That's 5 HRs in 11 games, while going 3 for 24 on balls in play. He very much appears to be ready, whenever we can clear space for him.

[dagger]

With the usual caveat that Rowdy Tellez probably will never be a prospect again...he has 4 HRs in 4 games, after hitting 12 in his previous 195 games. Maybe he has remembered that he is 250 lbs of sirloin?

Your (big) boy had three hits today.

[Schad]

With the usual caveat that Rowdy Tellez probably will never be a prospect again...he has 4 HRs in 4 games, after hitting 12 in his previous 195 games. Maybe he has remembered that he is 250 lbs of sirloin?

Your (big) boy had three hits today.

Not getting my hopes up, but he does the things that generally bedevil large adult first basemen, namely taking walks and maintaining a modest K rate. He just has to make much more hard contact; 8 XBHs in his 40 PAs in July is a start. He's increasing the likelihood that we'll keep him on the 40-man, if nothing else.

[phillipmike]

I remember I was told that SRF wasn't going to be an option as a major league starter to finish the season and that our upper minors pitching wasn't good.

Borucki was solid and is solid. Likely will finish the season as a MLB starter when Happ gets dealt.

SRF has been great, up to AAA and is likely our next MLB starter if someone gets dealt or hurt.

Gaviglio was a good get as depth. Romano up to AAA and don't look now but Pannone in AAA with 3 starts good for 20.1 innings with 0 walks, and 0 wild pitches and HBP with 23Ks.

I'd re-sign Happ in the offseason after we deal him this month for a bounty of course. Happ, Stroman, Sanchez, Borucki, Reid-Foley, Gaviglio, Pannone, Romano, Harris and Zeuch would be some good depth.

[Schad]

I remember I was told that SRF wasn't going to be an option as a major league starter to finish the season and that our upper minors pitching wasn't good.

He still wouldn't be a great option in a stretch run, no. This thing where he has average command is still pretty new (it's been, I dunno, about a month and a half); I'd be relatively confident in him as a late-season call-up as a reliever, but less so as a starter. Good chance he has some serious rough patches early in his career, but I like his chances of refining his stuff and command more than I did last season, definitely, and 2019 is shaping up to be the sort of year where we can afford him the chance to work through it.

I'd re-sign Happ in the offseason after we deal him this month for a bounty of course. Happ, Stroman, Sanchez, Borucki, Reid-Foley, Gaviglio, Pannone, Romano, Harris and Zeuch would be some good depth.

It's still not great depth. It's improved, but I wouldn't bet on Romano/Harris/Zeuch playing significant starting roles in 2019, either. Zeuch's inability to miss bats looms pretty large, and Harris still mostly sucks; he has good control, but good grief does he give up a lot of hard contact.

Romano could be a sleeper, but he's basically a fastball/slider pitcher with a fairly involved delivery. I wouldn't bet against him being our closer by 2020, but he still has work to do in order to be a major league starter.

[Schad]

Pardinho has a K/9 of 13.1 as a 17 year old. Curious whether he plays full-season ball next year; may not for innings management, dunno.

[vaff87]

Pardinho has a K/9 of 13.1 as a 17 year old. Curious whether he plays full-season ball next year; may not for innings management, dunno.

Someone posted his swinging strike % the other day. It was comparable to guys like Chapman and Kimbrel.

[vaff87]

Vladdy hit a 2 run HR.