Batter's Box Interactive Magazine - 2010 R. Howard Webster Award Winners

2010 R. Howard Webster Award Winners

Today, the Blue Jays announced the 2010 R. Howard Webster Award winners today, honouring the Most Valuable Player at each of the team’s minor league affiliates.

The winners are:
Las Vegas: JP Arencibia
New Hampshire: Eric Thames
Dunedin: Mike McDade
Lansing: Sean Ochinko
Auburn: Carlos Perez
GCL Blue Jays: Jake Marisnick
DSL Blue Jays: Eyerys Guerrero

This is already Perez’s third R. Howard Webster Award. He is the fourth player to achieve this in Blue Jays history, joining Carlos Delgado, Adam Lind and Luis Lopez. Perez won the award in three consecutive seasons, picking up the trophy as the MVP of the GCL Blue Jays in 2009 and the DSL Blue Jays in 2008. Ochinko won his second award in his second year of professional baseball, having won the award at Auburn last season. The rest are first time recipients.

Right-handed pitcher Matt Daly won the team’s community service award for his efforts in Dunedin, including trips to local schools and heavy involvement in the team’s “Fight for the Cure” night.

Posted by Thomas on Wednesday, September 22 2010 @ 05:59 PM EDT.

2010 R. Howard Webster Award Winners | 22 comments | Create New Account

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

codyla - Wednesday, September 22 2010 @ 06:22 PM EDT (#222894) #

Eyerys Guerrero put up pretty decent numbers in DSL, going 1-2 with a 3.23 ERA. BUT how does someone that successful manage to only strike out 11 batters in 39.0 IP?

Gerry - Wednesday, September 22 2010 @ 08:53 PM EDT (#222897) #

Friend of Da Box, Dane Johsnon, won the Bobby Mattick award for player development. The Jays have developed a lot of young pitchers recently and Dane deserves a lot of the credit.

Lugnut Fan - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 10:43 AM EDT (#222902) #

I am slightly surprised Ochinko won the honor for Lansing as I figured Jimenez was a shoe in.

Anders - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 10:58 AM EDT (#222903) #

Mike Green - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 11:05 AM EDT (#222904) #

I thought that Kyle Drabek would probably get the award for New Hampshire, notwithstanding Thames' fine season. I guess that the award winners reflect the "boom, boom, boom" attitude that seems to have prevailed within the organization; maybe dudes dig the long ball too.

ayjackson - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 11:28 AM EDT (#222905) #

Starting off with a BANG!!

The Jays place 4 prospects in the 15-team GCL Top 20 prospects list at Baseball America. Marisnick, Sweeney, Hobson and Hawkins. They also note that Aaron Sanchez and Noah Syndergaard would have made the list had they not narrowly missed the minimum innings requirement.

ayjackson - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 11:48 AM EDT (#222906) #

My apologies, but I think that link has now been moved behind the subscribers wall.

Here's the free version.

rtcaino - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 12:17 PM EDT (#222908) #

Thanks for the heads up Ayj.

Very neat that Sweeney and Hawkins made the list. They were the top two position players taken by the Jays in the 2010 draft, in the 2nd and 3rd round respectively. Both just turned 19 within the past month or so. BA's positive assessment of them certainly agrees with the change in philosophy towards toolsy high ceiling kids.

Marisnick is only a few months older than them as well.

I'm very much looking forward to next year’s minor league season. The Jays' system projects to be awfully interesting to follow.

Here's the paragraph pertaining to the Jays, from the free section:

The Blue Jays led all teams with four players on the list, two from the 2009 draft who earned a promotion partway through the summer—outfielder Jake Marisnick and first baseman K.C. Hobson—while 2010 draftees Kellen Sweeney and Christopher Hawkins accrued enough playing time to qualify. Toronto could have easily had six make it as righthanders Noah Syndergaard and Aaron Sanchez, taken in the first and supplemental first-round this year, performed well and have upside, but they barely missed the minimum innings requirement.

Kelekin - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 01:09 PM EDT (#222912) #

I have to say Sweeney impressed me. Limited time, but when I told my friend about him, I said he's the type of guy that scouts say would make it to majors on his batting eye and plate discipline. Clearly he showed this at rookie ball, with a 25% BB rate. I'm really excited to see how he does next year.

TamRa - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 01:10 PM EDT (#222913) #

One suspects that if Joel Carreno didn't have a BABIP of .392 he would have easily won this award in the FSL; his FIP was 2.36 (well below his 3.73 ERA) and in 137.2 innings he struck out 173 and walked 30. From July onward, in 59.2 innings, he struck out 78 and walked 8.

I dunno, i don't think they think that deeply about it.

My guess is that it comes down to the fact that it's a lot harder to be an impressive hitter in the FSL than it is to be an impressive pitcher.

TamRa - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 01:13 PM EDT (#222914) #

obviously sweet to place both Sweeney and Hawkins...but I for one think it's cool to see Hobson get props.

I had become afraid it was just me who had a bit of a fetish for him.

(I only don't mention Marisnick because we pretty much all saw that coming)

John Northey - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 01:58 PM EDT (#222921) #

Wow. What a compliment to AA on this years draft to have 2 of them make the top 20 in a 15 team league, plus 2 more who would've had they played enough. Very, very good start.

TamRa - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 02:35 PM EDT (#222923) #

well yeah but...buy that reasoning you have to ask - who drafted Marisnick and Hobson?

;)

Jdog - Thursday, September 23 2010 @ 06:28 PM EDT (#222943) #

JP started to learn that his original philosophy on the draft wasn't going to cut it in this division, and props to him he started to draft some younger over slot high ceiling players in the last couple drafts. One thing he didn't quite get brace enough to do is dip into the HS pitcher market in full force like AA has done. It will be interesting to see how the HS pitchers progress. I can't remember the last HS pitcher we had high hopes for before Sanchez

MatO - Friday, September 24 2010 @ 09:40 AM EDT (#222961) #

Marasnick and Hobson were 19 in a league of 18 year olds. A better evaluation can be made from their time in Lansing where Marasnick's numbers were no better than those of the kids from the 2007 draft who played there in 2008 at the age of 19. Hobson was more impressive especially in keeping his K rate down though you'd like to see some more walks.

ayjackson - Friday, September 24 2010 @ 11:20 AM EDT (#222966) #

That seems a harsh assessment MatO. Marisnick is closer to the average age of the GCL than the MWL, I'd wager. His sample size of Lansing at bats is quite small. If you're going to make rationalizations on small samples then it's worth noting that his OPS was .804 over his last 10 games at Lansing. I guess he figured out the older league in short order.

MatO - Friday, September 24 2010 @ 11:47 AM EDT (#222967) #

I just get amused at these lists that people get so excited over. Marasnick and Hobson had a good 9 months of preparation and informal games in comparison to players who came right out of HS. I don't know why they didn't start in Auburn like Carlos Perez who was the same age. Marasnick's performance in the MWL suggests there's nothing really to get excited about. Yet.

ayjackson - Friday, September 24 2010 @ 11:58 AM EDT (#222969) #

Well this is Perez' third season of pro ball (GCL, DSL) and Marisnick's first. You want to get back to rushing prospects?

Lists are fun!! Spoil someone else's party! : )

Mylegacy - Friday, September 24 2010 @ 04:47 PM EDT (#222983) #

Ever hear of Eyerys Guerrero? Me neither.

Eyerys Leonidas (Florentino) Guerrero is 17 - born on October 14th 1992. The man child is 6'3" and weighs 208 pounds and is in his first year in the Blue Jays system. On our DSL team this year he threw 39 innings giving up 40 hits with 6 BB and 11 SO. His WHIP was 1.179, H/9: 9.2, HR/9: .2, BB/9: 1.4, SO/9: 2.5, SO/BB: 1.83.

He joins 16 year old Ubber-Prospect 6' 1" 170 pounds, R/R, Adonis Cardona on the DSL roster (Adoins did not pitch with the team this year). And is the same age (17) as highly hyped GCL righty Deivy Estrada, 5' 11" 178 pounds.

THREE - clearly excellent - VERY young right handed pitching prospects - all free agent Latino signings. Who needs the draft, eh?

Alex Anthopoulos - our little Greek Treat - is quietly - effectively giving the Jays a very deep - very - very deep, talented, promising group on Baby Jays in the nest. I think we just might keep Alex for a few decades or more.

TheBunk - Friday, September 24 2010 @ 07:20 PM EDT (#222992) #

That's an awful k/9, not sure what's so exciting about the guy.

Mylegacy - Saturday, September 25 2010 @ 03:19 PM EDT (#223019) #

TheBunk I wasn't going to respond - but what the heck -

Of the 16 pitchers on the team that actually played this year the Kid was the second youngest. In addition, Santiago Nessy, a very good catching prospect, is also on that club. When the team decides that its second youngest pitcher, a virtual unknown - on a team with other acknowledged prospects - is the best - then - notwithstanding his "awful K/9" rate - that KID is a KID to watch - n'est pas?

scottt - Sunday, September 26 2010 @ 10:58 AM EDT (#223029) #

Pitching looks really good. Huge improvement from Towers and the cheapest FAs the Jays could sign to round up the lineup.

The position player situation is still a work in progress, though.

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