The minor league season starts on Thursday and the rosters were announced yesterday. As the season begins what should you look for with each team? Below I explain what I will be watching over the next couple of months. After that I tell you why you should buy the 2015 Toronto Blue Jays minor league handbook.
Buffalo Bisons
The Bisons roster is an old one, there are no active players born in 1990 or later. Most of the players are there in Buffalo for insurance in case of injuries or poor performance at the major league level. Some players in Buffalo are specialized, such as Josh Thole, you can only call up a catcher if Dioner Navarro goes on the DL. And if a catcher does go on the DL then Thole is likely the guy to get the call. But if the Jays need an outfielder, a starting pitcher or a reliever they will have several options. I will be watching to see who is the next man up, in the event of an injury. For that it is easier to promote a player who is on the 40 man roster. The only Bisons starting pitcher on the 40 man is Chad Jenkins. If the Jays convert Estrada to be a starter then the Jays could recall any of Delabar, Guilmet, Rasmussen, Schultz or Tepera, plus Jenkins. There are no outfielders on the 40 man roster.
There are two inactive players born in 1990, AJ Jimenez and John Stilson. Both start the year on the DL and both are injury prone but when they do come back they both could help the Jays, if they return top top form. I will be watching them.
New Hampshire Fisher Cats
I wondered where Andy Burns would be assigned to start 2015, now I know. It is not a big vote of confidence that Burns was returned to AA. True prospects should dominate in their second go-around at a level. Burns got off to a horrible start last season, he needs to do better this year. They say that the jump to AA is the toughest minor league promotion for a hitter. Dwight Smith gets to experience that this year. I will be watching his adaption to the better pitching closely. Smith did get a head start with his AFL assignment last fall.
Most pitchers in NH are major league bullpen material, except perhaps for Matt Boyd. Boyd crushed the FSL last year but in turn was beaten up in AA. Boyd is a good athlete, although he has a funky delivery. Can he now succeed in AA after last years struggles? The bullpen has a few interesting guys, Arik Sikula and Danny Barnes were both lights out as closers in the FSL. Blake McFarland pitched well in the AFL last fall. And returning Blue Jay Luis Perez can reclaim his prospect status with a recovery year. Together with some free agent relievers, the Fisher Cats should have a strong bullpen in 2015.
Dunedin Blue Jays
With the possible exception of Matt Boyd, the upper levels of the Blue Jays system is bereft of starting pitcher prospects. Jairo Labourt is the next in line and this jump past Lansing is interesting. Labourt had an up and down 2014 and obviously the Jays like his progress to place him in Dunedin. Alberto Tirado is a reliever now, how will he pitch in Dunedin out of the pen? Jimmy Cordero can get it up to 100 mph, but can he strike guys out? This will be a big test for him.
On the hitting side the Jays feature last years Lansing stand-outs, Mitch Nay, Dawel Lugo and Matt Dean. I know Jesse Goldberg-Strassler, the voice of the Lugnuts, liked Derrick Loveless last season, now he is in Dunedin. And finally Roemen Fields and David Harris get the big promotions. Fields got some exposure with the Jays this season and now he has skipped Lansing. Can he handle it? And Harris has really developed as a hitter, can he keep it going? That's what I will be watching.
Lansing Lugnuts
As usual the Lugnuts have several prospects in the lineup: Dan Jansen; Richard Urena; Rowdy Tellez and Josh Almonte. Can they handle the cold weather and the better pitching? Jansen is from Wisconsin so he should be fine with the weather, the others might be more challenged. Tellez got 40 at-bats in Lansing last season but other than that these guys played in Bluefield, which is two clubs down. Jumping from Vancouver to Lansing is easier than coming from Bluefield but if they are talented they should handle it. DJ Davis is back for his final chance to show he can be a decent major leaguer.
The pitching is thinner than I thought it would be. Chase De Jong and Shane Dawson are both back after injuries cut short their seasons last year. Chase Mallard and Justin Shafer are both older but have impressed the Jays, they could move up quickly if they shine.
The Jays have traded a lot of prospects recently and as I mentioned there are also six rookies on the big club. That has thinned out the minor league rosters somewhat. The Jays signed six high school pitchers in the first eleven rounds of the 2013 draft, all of them are still in extended spring training. I had hoped some of them would have graduated to full season teams by now but injuries and performance have held them back. Those six are: Clinton Hollon; Patrick Murphy; Evan Smith; Daniel Lietz; Connor Greene; and Jacob Brentz. Add in Matt Smoral and Ryan Borucki from the 2012 draft and you have a lot of draft value still in extended spring. Although short season leagues don't start for several months you would hope that one or two of these guys force their way onto the Lugnuts before June.
The Blue Jays minor league handbook was published for the first time last season and now it is back for year two. I bought a copy last season for two reasons, one to support minor league writing and the guys putting in the hours in the minor league parks, and secondly to help me out from time to time. I am pretty knowledgeable about the Jays system but from a time to time a player in the lower minors will have a big day and I will have forgotten his back story, where he is from and how the Jays signed him. The 2015 minor league handbook covers all the Jays minor league players and has those answers. This year I contributed an essay to the handbook. It's short, so don't buy the handbook just to read my essay, but buy it to support the guys travelling to the minor league parks and to improve your knowledge. The book costs $10, plus HST if you are in Ontario, and for $15 you get the book plus additional content all season long.
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