The half way point of the minor league season is upon us. Only Vancouver made the playoffs in the first half. As it is the half way point I decided to take a look at how the Batters Box top 30 are doing this season.
On the field Buffalo won in extras. New Hampshire lost in 14 innings. Vancouver scored lots while Dunedin were shut out.
Buffalo 2 Scranton WB 1 - 10 innings
New Hampshire 3 Somerset 4 - 14 innings
Vancouver 13 Eugene 2
Clearwater 1 Dunedin 0
FCL Phillies 14 FCL Blue Jays 5
Three Stars
Third Star - Jimmy Robbins
Second Star - Gabriel Martinez
First Star - Alex De Jesus
NOTES
Buffalo won with a tenth inning sac fly by Jordan Luplow. It was a bullpen day for the Bisons with seven pitchers used. Jimmy Burnette had five strikeouts in 2.2 innings.
New Hampshires game went to extra innings too. NH scored two runs in the top of the eleventh but Somerset hit a two run home run off Troy Watson in the bottom of the inning. On to the 14th where Adrian Hernandez balked in the winning run. New Hampshire had just two hits through nine innings, a 100% improvement on the one hit they had on Wednesday. Through 14 innings they had five hits. Jimmy Robbins had another good start, he might be finding his 2022 form. He went six innings just allowing two hits. Just three strikeouts though.
Alex De Jesus hit a three run home run in the first inning for Vancouver. Up again in the fourth inning he hit a a grand slam. He finished 3-6 with 7 RBI. Gabriel Martinez hit his fifth home run, he also had three hits as did Andres Sosa.
Adam Macko had a rough first inning by hitting a batter and then giving up a home run. But he settled down after that and went six innings.
Dunedin were two hit. Starter Pat Gallagher pitched well for six inning but gave up a run and that was all Clearwater needed.
The best hitter in the FCL so far is Jean Joseph, a speedy outfielder. He is hitting .321 with a .906 OPS. Jospeh signed for $450,000 last year. He is 18.
TOP 30 Review
The saying that has guided these reviews for several years is that each year one third of a teams prospects get better, as third get worse and a third stay the same. It's a very rough guide but it is useful to judge how well the minor league development system is working. Lets have a look at the Jays system for the first half of 2023.
Ricky Tiedemann
There is no such thing as a pitching prospect. Or, the number one skill required of a pitching prospect is health. Ricky doesn't have it right now. DOWN
Addison Barger
Barger too has been injured and when he has played he hasn't found his form from 2022. DOWN
Orelvis Martinez
Slow start the season, more promising recently but still has to hit better against RHP. FLAT
Brandon Barriera
See Tiedemann. DOWN
Yosver Zulueta
Zulueta was rated high in the off season on the expectation that he would be a starting pitcher. That didn't work out so now he is back to being a reliever. He has a 1.63 WHIP as a reliever mainly because he has walked 15 in 19 innings. DOWN
Tucker Toman
Toman was assigned to the Florida State League, a somewhat aggressive assignment for his age. He has been OK there but it looks like his numbers might be ticking up. I will say FLAT with an UP potential.
Gabriel Martinez
2022 seemed to be a break out season for Martinez and scouts liked him. But 2023 has been tough. He had a slow start, seemed to be picking up in May, but has slipped back in June. DOWN
Cade Doughty
Doughty was a second compensation round pick last year and you would expect such a high pick to be able to handle Vancouver. However he has been disappointing and hasn't caught fire yet. DOWN
Josh Kasevich
A .300 hitter who has no power. Might not hit as well as he rises through the system against harder throwing pitchers. Good defender. This was the player he was when drafted so I have to say FLAT.
Sem Robberse
Robberse is having a decent season in AA. He has a WHIP of 1.17, which is good and has a K per inning. However he is a bit homer prone leading to a high ERA of 4.69 when compared to his WHIP. FLAT but could be argued to an UP.
Adam Macko
His control problems continue to follow him to Vancouver. On the positive side he has stayed healthy but his ERA is over six. Very inconsistent, some good starts and some bad ones. DOWN
Hayden Juenger
Strikes out a lot of guys but gives up a lot of hits. Walks a lot too. High WHIP, high ERA. DOWN.
Otto Lopez
Otto had a slow start in April but has picked up his performance since. He is who he was last year. FLAT
Spencer Horwitz
Got his major league callup but questions remain over his power and position. I will say UP but it is up a little.
Dahian Santos
Has pitched well in Vancouver, good for a 20 year old. UP.
Leo Jimenez
Has stayed mostly healthy, is hitting reasonably well. Back to the expectations of him from 2021. UP
Dasan Brown
Another slow starter who has hit better recently. His June supports his position on the top 30, April and May didn't. Do we believe three weeks or two months? We will give him the benefit of the doubt. FLAT.
Tanner Morris
Inconsistent season so far. DOWN.
Adrian Hernandez
Sent back down to AA where he has been up and down. Recent reports has his fastball up to 93-94. Maybe he is adopting to a new velocity. Thats an optimistic take but overall so far this season he is a DOWN.
Hagen Danner
Injured again to start the season but has done OK when healthy. FLAT.
Adrian Pinto
More injuries, hasn't hit well enough when healthy. DOWN
Damiano Palmegiani
One of the best surprises this season. Good average and power. However, defensively seems to be a first baseman which makes for a high bar for a hitter. I will say UP but questions remain.
CJ Van Eyk
Slow recovery from TJ surgery. DOWN
Jimmy Robbins
Hasn't found his 2002 form yet, although his last two starts have been better. DOWN
Irv Carter
Same as Robbins. Down.
TJ Brock
Has pitched well earning a promotion to AA. UP
Zach Britton
Been injured, just 55 at-bats. DOWN.
Rainer Nunez
After a slow start has been hitting well but power is absent. Still hope it will show up. FLAT
Estiven Machado
Has not hit. DOWN
Davis Schneider
Has hit well in AAA. Still not sure about defense. UP
The normal metric should mean we get 10 UP, 10 Flat and 10 Down. For the Jays we get 6 UP, 8 Flat and 16 Down. That is a bad minor league season so far. Of the six "Ups" three are in AAA or AA but have a possible DH future. They are Horwitz, Schneider and Palmegiani. I am not sure if any of them have a lot of value, and by a lot I mean enough to bring back a starting pitcher. TJ Brock is one of a handful of relief pitching prospects in the high minors. Dahian Santos is intriguing but the jewel in the crown of the first half of the season is Leo Jimenez. There is still lots of season left and there are a lot of prospects looking to have a better second half.
Other Players
In our "top 31's and others" in the off-season we mentioned several players. Chad Dallas has taken a step forward and would be a top 30 guy today. Alan Roden and Peyton Williams have hit well too. Jimmy Burnette and Mason Fluharty have pitched well in relief, Trenton Wallace as a starter. Eric Pardinho, Manuel Beltre, Victor Mesia, Brandon Eisert, Luis Quinones, Robert Robertis and Devonte Brown are all FLAT or DOWN.
Kendry Rojas, Rafael Sanchez, Ryan Jennings and Connor Cooke are all pitchers who would be on a mid season top 30. Rojas, Jennings and Sanchez are still in A ball while Cooke just made it to AA.
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