Batter's Box Interactive Magazine - Fisher Cats Unable to Locate Missing Lumber

Fisher Cats Unable to Locate Missing Lumber

The Blue Jays minor league season ended with a whimper last night. The Fisher Cats were eliminated in three straight games to mirror the Dunedin Jays who were swept in two straight. New Hampshire were unable to score until the ninth inning of game three, they had 29 scoreless innings in the series up to that point.

Trenton 8 New Hampshire 1 - Trenton wins series 3-0.

The Fisher Cats had some base runners but most were eliminated on the bases. Through seven innings the Cats had eight base runners of whom six were eliminated. Trenton turned four double plays and Darin Mastroianni was twice thrown out trying to steal.

Scott Richmond started and allowed two home runs through seven innings. Trenton's Rene Rivera, who played in the major leagues in 2005 and 2006, hit a home run for the third straight game. In the eighth Alan Farina gave up a one out line drive single and then the Fisher Cats collapsed. Two fielders choices without an out plated one run, an infield single loaded the bases, a walk scored run number two of the inning, a ground ball single scored a third run, and a ground out scored the fourth run of the inning.

In the bottom of the ninth inning Adeiny Hechavarria led off with a double. With two outs and the season almost over, David Cooper doubled to score a run but that was all.

Mastroianni and Thames had two hits each. Cooper hit .400 in the series, Mastroianni hit .308 and Hechavarria .250.

It was a good run, while it lasted.

Posted by Gerry on Friday, September 10 2010 @ 09:35 PM EDT.

Fisher Cats Unable to Locate Missing Lumber | 30 comments | Create New Account

The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.

ayjackson - Friday, September 10 2010 @ 09:47 PM EDT (#222285) #

So here we are in September. Drabek had 158 IP in 2009 and sits at 162 for 2010. Does he need more work? He could get three starts if he enters the rotation in Baltimore on Monday. That would take him to about 180 for the season and keep him under the recommended 20% bump.

I'm a fan, and not very objective at the moment, but I say give him the call.

TamRa - Friday, September 10 2010 @ 10:19 PM EDT (#222287) #

I want to see him get more innnings, i think that's as great a priority as almost anything else.

I've argued all summer he'd run out of innings but then they babied him down the stretch and went quietly in the playoffs and that leave him with some in the tank.

Unless there's another way for him to do that, i'd be for a promotion (even if it steps on the toes of lesser candidates) but i'd want it carefully explained that how he did here wold have no bearing on breaking camp with the team nex6t April (which i'm sure AA will do as a matter of course)

Ron - Friday, September 10 2010 @ 11:11 PM EDT (#222290) #

At this point, there's no reason not to call up Drabek. Considering the Jays aren't in the playoff hunt and the rosters are expanded, this is a good time to bring up Drabek in a fairly low pressure environment. Based on the low attendance (I can't see for my own eyes since Rogers is doing everything in their power to not let fans watch the games on TV) figures I read in the box scores, Drabek might provide a very small bump in attendance or at least create a little bit of buzz. And then you can also throw in the fact Drabek shouldn't be blocked by the Brad Mills and Shawn Hill's of the world. Drabek has nothing left to prove in the minors (I wouldn't let any blue chip pitching prospect throw even one pitch in Vegas).

ayjackson - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 01:29 AM EDT (#222293) #

With the season officially over and insomnia setting in, I pencilled down a first draft of what a Jays Top 25 prospect list might look like. Wow, it's a toughie this year.

1. Kyle Drabek, RHP, 22, AA
2. JP Arencibia, C, 24, AAA
3. Zach Stewart, RHP, 23, AA
4. Henderson Alvarez, RHP, 20, high-A
5. Carlos Perez, C, 19, SS
6. Travis d'Arnaud, C, 21, high-A
7. Deck McGuire, RHP, 21, college
8. Asher Wojceichowski, RHP, 21, SS
9. Eric Thames, LF, 23, AA
10. Anthony Gose, CF, 19, high-A

11. Adieny Hechavarria, SS, 21, AA
12. Aaron Sanchez, RHP, 17, SS
13. AJ Jimenez, C, 20, low-A
14. Moises Sierra, RF, 21, high-A
15. Jake Marisnick, CF, 19, low-A
16. Gustavo Pierre, SS, 18, SS
17. Bradley Emaus, 3B, 24, AAA
18. Noah Syndergaard, RHP, 17, R
19. Chad Jenkins, RHP, 22, high-A

20. Drew Hutchison, RHP, 19, low-A
21. Michael McDade, 1B, 21, high-A
22. Kellen Sweeney, 3B, 18, R
23. Joel Carreno, RHP, 23, high-A
24. Michael Crouse, OF, 19, low-A
25. Dickie Thon, SS, 18, HS
25. Griffin Murphy, LHP, 19, HS

mamboon - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 02:09 AM EDT (#222295) #

Ayjackson, good post, thanks. Get some sleep.

Top 25 prospect lists are always a challenge. I don't know where, but should there be a spot for Darin Matroianni in the top 25 prospects? His rankings in the Eastern League batting stats along with other Fisher Cats in top 25 league stats are:

Average .301 - 5th in Eastern League. Thames is 18th at .288

OBP .390 - 2nd in Eastern League. Thames is 10th at .370. Diaz is 16th at .355

OPS .788 -23rd in Eastern League. Thames is 3rd at .896. Bowman is 16th at .814

Stolen Bases 46 - 1st in Eastern League. Crabbe 19 is at 14th. Lowen 17 is at 15th

Yes, it will be interesting indeed to see what a list would look like with some subjective measures/impressions after spring training. Granted, some of the list above may not even be in the organization next spring.

dawgatc - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 02:44 AM EDT (#222296) #

good list - I would add adonis cardona,sean opitz and marcus knecht and drop michael crouse,mike ncdade, and brad emaus. I think deck maguire will be the surprise and would put him about 3 or 4.

China fan - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 07:25 AM EDT (#222298) #

Given the difficulty of their positions and their success at a young age, Gose and Hechavarria should be ranked higher in the prospect list.

ayjackson - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 09:00 AM EDT (#222301) #

Given the difficulty of their positions and their success at a young age, Gose and Hechavarria should be ranked higher in the prospect list.

Above whom? Thames is the only candidate based on position and, Law comments aside, he's just had a monster first full pro year at AA. I'm not sure I'd drop McGuire and Wojo for them, but it's possible. Though apparently some feel McGuire isn't high enough and I think Wojo will be the better pitcher. But thanks for the feedback!

ayjackson - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 09:16 AM EDT (#222302) #

I would add adonis cardona,sean opitz and marcus knecht and drop michael crouse,mike ncdade, and brad emaus.

I forgot about Cardona until after I posted, but not sure where I'd put him as a 16 year-old. I gave consideration to Opitz and Knecht, but they just missed out. I'll keep Crouse, McDade and Emaus in the list over them.

China fan - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 09:47 AM EDT (#222305) #

I agree that Thames should be high-ranked. He's had a great season, despite very little minor-league experience, and I definitely see him as top-10 or even top-5 in the prospect list. I think Gose and Hechavarria should be ahead of Perez and d'Arnaud. Catchers in the Jays system so often seem brilliant until they reach the majors, and I think Perez and d'Arnaud are too young to be confident about. Gose and Hechavarria, in my view, are more projectable as near-certain major-leaguers. They should probably be ahead of one or two of the younger pitchers in your top-10 list too, but recently-drafted pitchers seem a lot harder to rank so I don't know where exactly I would rank those on your list.

greenfrog - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 10:57 AM EDT (#222309) #

On the whole, I agree with ayjackson's rankings. I would probably drop Alvarez a bit - his numbers fell off considerably this year, especially in the second half. And I would rank Hechavarria and Gose ahead of Thames (based on age, position, and upside), although not by much.

My top ten would probably be something like:

Drabek
Arencibia
Stewart
Perez
D'Arnaud
Hechavarria
Gose
Alvarez
McGuire
Sanchez

Mike Green - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 12:32 PM EDT (#222312) #

I don't have a top 30 list, but some comments:

1. the farm system is in better shape than it has been in years.
2. I wouldn't presume to be able to put the catchers (Arencibia, d'Arnaud, Jimenez and Perez) in any kind of reasonable order, as so much depends on observations of defensive ability and health
3. I really like Anthony Gose, and more than the younger pitchers whose progress will depend to a greater degree on health,
4. It looks to me as though Kevin Ahrens has turned a corner; he's only 21 and would probably make my top 30.

ayjackson - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 01:36 PM EDT (#222315) #

I guess my opinion on Alvarez is unique. August aside, where he obviously tired considerably, I thought Alvarez got better as the year progressed. His K-rates definitely got better as the year (which was always a contention for the critics; now they're hanging their hat on ERA) progressed and the scouting report on his stuff at the Futures Game was very impressive. He had a pretty low LD% this year and was apparently very unlucky with regard to BABIP. Overall, a 4.04 FIP and a 9% HR/FB percentage, coupled with the reports of his 95mph FB and plus change have me thinking of this year as a breakout year of sorts. I think he may make his way on to a few Top 100 lists.

I have to put him ahead of McGuire because he's a year younger and probably a level ahead come next spring. He likely has a higher ceiling as well. As for where you put him in relation to the quartet of catchers, well it's like comparing apples and oranges. It's a question of taste.

1990Jays - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 01:47 PM EDT (#222316) #

I've had my top 30 ready for a while, as you can probably tell from the list, i value the potential of a high upside all star more than the likelihood of a solid player(AJ Jimenez vs Eric Thames)

1. Kyle Drabek
2. JP Arencibia
3. Carlos Perez
4. Zach Stewart
5. Adeiny Hechevarria
6. Travis D'Arnaud
7. Anthony Gose
8. Henderson Alvarez
9. Jake Marisnick
10.Chad Jenkins
11. AJ Jimenez
12. Aaron Sanchez
13. Eric Thames
14. Deck McGuire
15. Asher Wojciechowski
16. Joel Carreno
17. Brad Mills
18. Brad Emaus
19. Andrew Hutchison
20. Danny Farquhar
21. Michael Crouse
22. Darin Mastrionni
23. Moises Sierra
24. Trystan Magnuson
25. Santiago Nessy
26. Kellen Sweeney
27. Adonis Cardona
28. Dickie Thon Jr
29 Marcus Knecht
30. Gustavo Pierre

Just Missing: Shane Optiz, Noah Syndergaard, Griffin Murphy and Gabriel Cenas

Mike Green - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 01:53 PM EDT (#222317) #

And thank you to the minor league crew on another excellent year of reporting. We'll see you at the end-of-year wrap.

92-93 - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 02:56 PM EDT (#222318) #

JP Arencibia is going to be way too high on Da Box's Top 10 judging by some early sentiments around here. I hope the Jays sign VMart.

eldarion - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 03:00 PM EDT (#222319) #

Thank you all for the daily minor league updates - I'm a lurker on this site but, for what it's worth, I really enjoyed them and looked forward to reading them. Thanks again - they were appreciated.

mamboon - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 05:22 PM EDT (#222320) #

Hey eldarion,

"Lurkers" are people too. Tell your friends about Battersbox.ca!

Allowing me to speak for us updaters... "It is our pleasure."

Your kind words are appreciated.

Waveburner - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 05:45 PM EDT (#222321) #

I did a top 30 without any 2010 picks. The HS guys have done nothing to warrant being on such a list yet. Slot Deck somewhere in the top 10. I suppose Woj and Dyson should maybe be there but I don't know anything about them so ranking them would be silly.

1-RHP Kyle Drabek-AA-possible Ace-in-the-making

2-RHP Zach Stewart-AA-big fan of Stewart, very underrated compared to Drabeck with respect to hype

3-C J.P. Arencibia-AAA-could be special or just a Barajas type

4-OF Anthony Gose-A+-my favourite prospect at the moment, exactly the type of player the Jays could use

5-SS Adeiny Hechavarria-AA-giving him a pass for first year in new country, etc. Mostly here on hype/signing bonus/defense

6-OF Eric Thames-AA-I think his second half showed clear improvements until he got hurt, calling him a platoon only bat is premature

7-C Carlos Perez-SSA-could be as high as number one next season, huge potential

8-RHP Chad Jenkins-A+-giving him a pass for first year, may have been unlucky on BABIP, wonder where he starts 2011

9-C-Travis D�Arnaud-A+-injuries are an issue, if healthy ranks higher

10-RHP Henderson Alvarez-A+-ayjackson opened my eyes to his improvements in second half despite horrible luck on BABIP-the arm fatigue could be an issue though moving forward

11-LHP Brad Mills-AAA-I wouldn't wish pitching in Vegas on any pitching prospect-weak finish to second half bumps him down list

12-3B/2B Brad Emaus-AAA-I don't get why the Jays don't like him-does he take too many walks for their tastes? Interesting utility bat IMO

13-RHP Joel Carreno-A+-great numbers, AA will be the real test

14-RHP Alan Farina-AA-finally healthy, must have some filthy out pitch with all those K's

15-OF Jacob Marisnick-A-here on potential, solid GCL showing

16-RHP Danny Farquhar-AA-too many walks, but he imrpoved in second half-has to be in AAA next year

17-RHP Trystan Magnuson-AA-great numbers, should join Farquhar in AAA

18-1B Michael McDade-A+-intriguing raw power

19-OF Darin Mastroianni-AA-I like him, hope he gets a shot at some point

20-RHP Drew Hutchison-A-huge breakout candidate for 2011

21-RHP Josh Roenicke-AAA-should be in majors next year with bullpen spots open

22-1B David Cooper-AA-his strong finish gives me some hope-needs to mash AAA

23-OF Moises Sierra-A+-lost year in 2010, I still like him though

24-C A.J. Jiminez-A-I don't like him near as much as the other 3 catchers, but he's still a good prospect

25-3B Kevin Ahrens-A+-I think he may have figured something out with abandoning the switch-hit thing, Maybe Kenny Wilson should too

26-C Brian Jeroloman-AAA-old for a prospect, but has plate dicipline and showed some pop this year. Maybe finds a backup role

27-RHP Bobby Ray-AAA-not a good year, but I think his future lies in the bullpen. Same for Luis Perez

28-C Yan Gomes-A+-solid first full pro season. If he can stick at catcher he's a prospect

29-RHP Matt Daly-A+-dominant at High A, probably deserved promotion but AA bullpen was loaded all season

30-RHP Ronald Uviedo-AA-another good bullpen prospect at AA, may get stuck in AA again with all the arms the Jays have

ayjackson - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 06:53 PM EDT (#222322) #

I disagree about the HS players. They're signed and are thus assets that have value, and in some cases much more value than most of the guys on your list. But I agree it is hard for a fan to slot them in somewhere with no meaningful stats to analyze. But I bet 17 year-old Bryce Harper would be on your list if the Jays drafted him.

Also, I think you're selling AJ Jimenez seriously short. He started the year as a teenager in Lansing, turning 20 on mayday. The midwest league is an extreme pitchers league. Jimenez' offensive performance might have been as good as Arencibia's or Perez's. He's probably the best of the quartet defensively. His one weakness is his walk rate, but I think that improved a fair bit this year.

TheBunk - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 06:56 PM EDT (#222323) #

AJ Jimenez behind Moises Sierra is ludacris.

Lugnut Fan - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 07:06 PM EDT (#222325) #

I agree that Jimenez should be ranked higher on the list. He has one of the stronger arms that I have seen at this level as he throws from his knees most times. His offensive performance was awesome in Lansing this year too, but the way I look at catchers is that their job is to call the game and work with the pitcher through the lineup. Anything you get from them offensively is gravy. Luckily, his dinner was completely smothered in gravy all year and he was definitely a stand out in an otherwise average line up for the most part.

Jimenez was rated as the top catcher in the MWL this year and I believe that he was rated the top catching prospect in all of low A.

raptorsaddict - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 08:32 PM EDT (#222327) #

Despite reading 99% of the minor league updates, I don't have enough knowledge to make a list. I'm like the previously mentioned "lurker", and I just wanted to say thanks to the whole crew. When I tell my friends that I could name over 50 of the players in the Jays minor league system, they look at me with utter disbelief. In fact, I might start using that as a bar-trick to win free drinks, because no one believes its possible.

I do have a bit of a thought experiment though, based on what I have always viewed as the inherent differences to any "top 30 list" - what are the criteria? Do you include the unknown draft picks? Do you base it on likelihood to be a mlb player, or on "star-potential"? To address this issue, I'd like to steal an idea from some NBA blogs I read about what some teams do, and see a grouping of players into "levels" based on current consensus career projections. For instance, in the pitching category, you'd have something along hte lines of "aces" (i.e. Drabek, maybe Stewart and Alvarez), your second tier of "guys you'd like to see take the ball every five days and who will win 12-17 consistently over a number of years", such as Jenkins, McGuire, Carreno, Sanchez, third tier of your Brad Mills' of the world, and so on. Other categories would be "bullpen aces", with Farina, Magnusson, "innings eaters" Perez, so on, "AAAA and utility roles" Emaus, Jeroloman, "long-shots and enigmas" Ahrens, Pastornicky, "too soon to tell, but we're really excited", ie. Cardona.

Basically, the number of categories is endless, but at the end of the day I think it would give a good organizational overview of what we think we have in terms of talent and where do we see these guys fitting into our big league roster, and also how much of that top-tier stuff we really think is in the system. I suppose in many wyas this is just breaking down other lists, but I still think it would be a nice compliment to, not replacement of, standard prospect lists.

Thanks again, and I'll keep spreading the gospel of BB, despite any potentially negative repurcussions this could have on my ability to win drinks at the bar by knowing the most prospects. I'll consider that my sacrifice for the team, as sadly I'm too geographically removed to make my contribution directly to Rogers. Although I do have the pleasure of making a monthly tithing directly to the bossmen. So-long as they don't skimp, I won't complain, and so far with what they've let AA do, I can't complain. Hope is in the air, which is more than could be said for a lontime, in my humble opinion.

Waveburner - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 09:18 PM EDT (#222328) #

"I disagree about the HS players. They're signed and are thus assets that have value, and in some cases much more value than most of the guys on your list. But I agree it is hard for a fan to slot them in somewhere with no meaningful stats to analyze. But I bet 17 year-old Bryce Harper would be on your list if the Jays drafted him. Also, I think you're selling AJ Jimenez seriously short. He started the year as a teenager in Lansing, turning 20 on mayday. The midwest league is an extreme pitchers league. Jimenez' offensive performance might have been as good as Arencibia's or Perez's. He's probably the best of the quartet defensively. His one weakness is his walk rate, but I think that improved a fair bit this year." I think I worded it poorly about the HS players. Obviously they are valuable, I just think it's impossible to slot them with almost no pro experience. I am very excited about the 2010 draft, but they all signed so bloody late there is nothing to go on. I've only been following Jays prospects for maybe 4-5 years and already I have learned that short season stats are tough to read due to the large age discrepancies (just-drafted college guys playing with/against HS/International guys). When you don't even have that to go on in many cases, I just don't see any value in trying to rank these HS guys just yet. As for Jiminez, apparently I never took a real good look at his stats. I could have sworn I looked at him earlier in the season and he was hitting in the .240's, but maybe I was looking at the wrong player. Having taken a closer (ie correct) look now at his numbers I have him far too low on the list. Bump him to number 11 behind Alvarez.

scottt - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 09:18 PM EDT (#222329) #

I think it's weird to bring JPA in to catch one inning when the club is down by 12 runs. Replacing Buck, I would understand, but what's the point of sending Molina to the shower early? Or was that just a golden opportunity to use JPA so now he can sit the next 8 games?

Waveburner - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 09:22 PM EDT (#222330) #

Sorry about that last post, but no edit feature.

"I disagree about the HS players. They're signed and are thus assets that have value, and in some cases much more value than most of the guys on your list. But I agree it is hard for a fan to slot them in somewhere with no meaningful stats to analyze. But I bet 17 year-old Bryce Harper would be on your list if the Jays drafted him.

Also, I think you're selling AJ Jimenez seriously short. He started the year as a teenager in Lansing, turning 20 on mayday. The midwest league is an extreme pitchers league. Jimenez' offensive performance might have been as good as Arencibia's or Perez's. He's probably the best of the quartet defensively. His one weakness is his walk rate, but I think that improved a fair bit this year."

I think I worded it poorly about the HS players. Obviously they are valuable, I just think it's impossible to slot them with almost no pro experience. I am very excited about the 2010 draft, but they all signed so bloody late there is nothing to go on. I've only been following Jays prospects for maybe 4-5 years and already I have learned that short season stats are tough to read due to the large age discrepancies (just-drafted college guys playing with/against HS/International guys). When you don't even have that to go on in many cases, I just don't see any value in trying to rank these HS guys just yet.

As for Jiminez, apparently I never took a real good look at his stats. I could have sworn I looked at him earlier in the season and he was hitting in the .240's, but maybe I was looking at the wrong player. Having taken a closer (ie correct) look now at his numbers I have him far too low on the list. Bump him to number 11 behind Alvarez.

TamRa - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 10:05 PM EDT (#222331) #

speaking for myself only, i don't take the ranking process too seriously because i'm not a scout and i can't see the players in depth personally.

I base my opinions on what well regarded professionals say, what the stats say, and, when possible, what Jays fans who have seen or spoken with the players say....along with what people who work for the team itself say.

I salt that with an admitted sprinkling of my own biases, which sometimes prove out (Thames, for instance) and sometimes don't (Jackson, so far)
since the list is by definition such an imprecise judgement call, why bother to get nitpicky about whether to rank recent draftees or whatever.

I tend to rank first by ceiling, then by likelihood of making it somewhere close to that ceiling as a sorting device. But my hunches (bias) sometimes trumps that.

I try not to punish too much because of injury but if other players take a big step up an injured guy might fall a lot as a consiqnence. I also try (and sometimes fail) to be careful about reacting too much to a relatively small sample (as in a player who trailed off or got hot in the second half of the last season).

Finally, when everything else is considered, i try to have fun with it by finding and highlighting some spot where few if any other list maker is agreeing with me. if we all make essentially the same list there isn't much fun in that.

Waveburner - Saturday, September 11 2010 @ 10:18 PM EDT (#222332) #

I'm not saying there is anything wrong with ranking recent draftees, just that I personally prefer not to. Leaves out some high upside guys but also makes you look hard at the system and try to uncover someone who has perhaps gone under the radar. Perhaps someone like Yan Gomes will have a Mastro-type breakout in his second full pro season. Can be fun to try and spot these guys. Everyone knows who the Jays took in the first three rounds.

Vic Parker - Thursday, September 16 2010 @ 10:26 AM EDT (#222545) #

The Blue Jays and Auburn Doubledays have gone their seperate ways.

http://blog.syracuse.com/sports/2010/09/blue_jays_officially_sever_tie.html

Mike Green - Thursday, September 16 2010 @ 01:33 PM EDT (#222557) #

Thanks, Vic, for the link. That is too bad. Nice park and nice people in Auburn.

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