In recent years the Toronto Blue Jays organization has not had a lot of success developing Latin America talent. In recent years, though, the club has returned to its roots and has started to invest heavily in that area once again.
Under former general manager J.P. Ricciardi the Dominican Summer League team was largely ignored. Any player that was lucky enough to receive a visa to come and play in the U.S. was used mostly as an organizational solider or roster-filler. The 2006 DSL team was a little different. A number of players caught the attention of the Player Development Staff and received brief opportunities (Bartolo Nicolas, Yensy Perez, Carlos Vasquez, Jimmy Gonzalez) but two pitchers had eye-opening seasons.
Left-hander Luis Perez and right-hander Joel Carreno both posted sub-2.00 ERAs as starting pitchers. Perez posted a 1.38 ERA and allowed 47 hits in 85.0 innings, along with 107 strikeouts. Carreno's ERA sat at 1.53 and he struck out 86 batters in 82.1 innings while allowing just 48 hits. Both pitchers earned a trip stateside in 2007.
Old for a Latin prospect making his North American debut, Perez was already 22 by the time he took the field for the Auburn Doubledays in the New York Penn League in June of '07. The southpaw's success comes from above-average velocity (He touches 95 mph) and his heavy sink (He has been amongst the league leaders in ground-ball rates in each league he's pitched in). Moved through the system as a starter, Perez has always been destined for a bullpen role because of his small frame, below-average control, and lack of plus secondary pitches (slider, changeup). As a reliever, Perez will focus on his plus sinking fastball and inconsistent breaking ball. He has the potential to develop into a high-leverage, eighth-inning reliever.
Two years younger and now 24, Carreno has made a slower climb through the system and is currently pitching out of the double-A rotation. After coming to North America, Carreno was left in extended spring training/short-season ball for parts of three seasons before getting his full-season break midway through the '09 season with Lansing in the Midwest League. Let loose in the Florida State League in '10, Carreno led the league in strikeouts and posted a respectable ERA of 3.73 (and 2.36 FIP). Carreno's stuff is not as potentially explosive as Perez's, but the right-hander has produced better overall numbers and has the better overall package. He has better control but is still learning to command the fastball consistently. His fastball sits in the 88-93 mph range and he also features a slider and changeup. With some polish to his secondary pitches and improved command, Carreno is an interesting sleeper who could develop into a No. 3 or 4 starter or possibly a middle reliever.
Since Perez and Carreno broke through from the Dominican Summer League, the Latin presence in the Jays system has steadily increased with a number of players now sitting amongst the organization's best prospects, including Henderson Alvarez, Moises Sierra, Carlos Perez, Adonis Cardona, and Gabriel Cenas. There are also some interesting sleepers including Nestor Molina, Jose Vargas, Deivy Estrada, Milciades Santana and Misaul Diaz. With a move to three short-season minor league clubs in 2011, the Jays should offer added opportunities to Latin players. Unconfirmed names coming to North America for the first time in '11 include pitchers Cardona, Cesar Sanchez, Alex Ramirez, and Luis Mendez, as well as catcher Santiago Nessi and outfielder Sony Javier.
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