Blue Jays Minor League Baseball Blog

Brian Van Kirk led the team in OPS (regulars only) with an .879 mark.  He didn’t do anything one thing particularly well and he didn’t lead the team in anything else but he was very reliable.  His 17 home runs were third on the team and his 89/50 strikeout to walk ratio was solid enough.  He was particularly good against lefties with a .325 batting average.

Brad Glenn led the team with 26 home runs.  He also drove in 80 but he didn’t show much patience with 123 strikeouts and just 30 walks.  Still, he was good for an .833 OPS.

Brad McElroy led the team with 31 stolen bases and his 63 runs were third on the team.  He doesn’t strike out much and there’s not a lot of power but this guy could make a solid table setter down the line.

Nestor Molina led the team with 115 strikeouts and he was 10-3 with a 2.58 ERA.  He also had a really nice showing in five starts at Double-A so this guy looks like a keeper.  Oh yeah, and he just turned 23 and he walked only 14 guys.

Deck McGuire struck out 102 in 104 2/3 innings and he finished 7-4 with a 2.75 ERA.  Fly balls are an issue but this kid still has some time to develop.

Wes Etheridge was the team’s closer and he struck out 38 and walked only 7 in 47 2/3 innings.  He saved 32 and he finished with a very nice 1.89 ERA.  This is an extreme ground ball pitcher.  He had 3.57 ground balls for every fly ball with Dunedin in 2011.

With the hitters, the Fisher Cats also had their share of solid pitchers.  Here’s the best of the lot.

Joel Carreno – The ace of the rotation, Carreno only went 7-9, but he struck out 152 in 134 2/3 innings.  His solid performance eventually led him to the big leagues where he had a solid finish in the Jays pen.  Walks are a concern (he had 68) and while his batting average against is .208, he gives up a lot of fly balls so he could have a rough transition to the big leagues.

Reidier Gonzalez – Gonzalez is more of a pitch to contact pitcher and it’s a little surprising that he went 8-3 with a 3.36 ERA.  He did it while having a .292 batting average against and he struck out just 52 batters in 99.  He only had 27 walks and two home runs though.  He was hammered in five starts for Las Vegas so it’ll be interesting to see if his luck holds out in the PCL.

Nestor Molina – Molina only made five starts, but he gave up just one earned run in 22 innings with a 33/2 strikeout to walk ration.  This was after a very solid season with Dunedin.  This kid is only 22 (soon to be 23) and he looks to be a keeper.

Here’s the Top Ten Prospect list released by Baseball America

1)  Travis d’Arnaud  C
2)  Anthony Gose OF
3)  Jake Marisnick  OF
4)  Daniel Norris LHP
5)  Justin Nicolino LHP
6)  Aaron Sanchez  RHP
7)  Noah Syndergaard  RHP
8)  Deck McGuire  RHP
9)  Drew Hutchison  RHP
10)  Asher Wojciechowski  RHP

New Hampshire won their division and when you look at some of their offensive standouts, you can see why.  Here’s a look at the best of the best.

Travis d’Arnaud – d’Arnaud raked all season long.  He led the team in home runs (21), RBIs (78) and OPS (.914).  Oddly, he hit better against left handers but 20 of his 21 home runs came off of right handed pitching.

Mike McDade – McDade led the team with 37 doubles and he was right behind d’Arnaud with 74 RBIs.  McDade is a solid switch hitter but he did a lot better while hitting from the left side of the plate.  He didn’t draw many walks (28) so hopefully he can work on his batting eye going forward.

Moises Sierra – Sierra was second on the team with 18 home runs and he led the team with 81 runs.  He struck out 93 times but he did draw 39 walks and that all equated to a .778 OPS.  He’s having a tough time in the Dominican Winter League though but he’s only 23.  There’s some time for him to develop further.

John Sickels put out his list of the Blue Jays top 20 prospects and unfortunately there’s no A players.  Topping the list is Travis D-Arnaud with a B+ rating.  This could be the Jays catcher of the future Sickels even said he could have been an A.

Number two is Nestor Molina.  You’d think he’d be a catcher but he’s the top pitching prospect in the system.  Sickels talks about how he’s underrated in the system.  Jake Marisnick (OF), Noah Syndergaard (RHP) and Justin Nicolino (LHP) round out the top five.

The Las Vegas 51s had their share of hitting stars in 2011.  Here are the best of the best.

Brett Lawrie – Despite playing just 69, Lawrie led the team in home runs with 18.  Throw in six triples and 24 doubles and it all adds up to a 1.076 OPS.  Of course Lawrie got it done for the Jays too and this guy is going to be a stud for years and he and Bautista are going to scare AL East pitchers while they’re on the field for the Jays.

David Cooper – Cooper led the team with 96 RBIs and he hit .364 in 120 games for the 51s.  He also had 51 doubles and nine home runs in a really good season.  That all adds up to a .974 OPS.  This is the PCL so numbers are inflated but those are some really nice numbers.

Adam Loewen – Loewen led the team with 83 runs and he was right behind Cooper with 46 doubles.  He was also second on the team with 85 RBIs.  He hit .306 and his finishing OPS ended up being .884.

The PCL isn’t kind of pitchers but the guys in the Jay’s farm system had a pretty good year considering the circumstances.  Here were the best of the pitching staff in 2011.

Brad Mills – Mills led the team with 157 1/3 innings and he had 11 wins, 136 strikeouts, and he was tied for the team lead with 24 starts.  Mills did give up 20 home runs and his fly ball rate isn’t great and this may have been why he struggled with the Jays in limited time.  He also gave up a lot of hits considering his strikeout rate.

Sean Henn – One of the better relievers on the team, Henn struck out 61 in 61 1/3 innings.  Henn is 30 so he’s well past having a prospect label but he finished with a 2.79 ERA and pretty good ground ball rate.  He didn’t see the big leagues but this is the guy you like having down in the minors because he makes for a solid reliever in the event of an injury.

Danny Farquhar – The 51s closer, Farquhar led the team with 15 saves.  Farquhar had an odd season.  He had a batting average against of .300 but he didn’t give up many home runs and he kept the ball down so the damage was limited.  His 4.70 ERA was also high.  He didn’t get into many big league games, but he struggled when he did.

In 2009, Moises Sierra broke onto the scene in the Blue Jays farm system but injuries hampered his rise in 2010 and he played in only 20 games.  Now with his nightmare season behind him, the Jays hope Sierra can bounce back.  In a great profile, Larry Milson talks about Sierra and the challenges he faces.  He’s still young (22) but microfracture surgery is always iffy.  Let’s just hope he can put his name back on the prospect map with a strong 2011.

Finally had a chance to take a look at the Blue Jays top ten prospect list that was put out by Baseball America.  There’s no surprise that future starter Kyle Drabek tops the list. He’s ready for the bigs and showed as much when he got his cup of coffee at the end of the season.  I’ve heard some mixed reviews saying he’s no longer considered a stud starter but even if he’s a solid middle of the rotation guy, you can’t hit a home run with every trade.

The Jays 2010 first round pick, Deck McGuire, comes in at number two.  He signed too late to play, but he should make his minor league debut in 2011 with the High A Dunedin Blue Jays.  Anthony Gose comes in at number three and he’s the top position player on the list.  Gose came over from the Astros after the Phillies traded him in the Oswalt deal.  He’s still young so he might repeat High-A but expect him to make his Double-A debut at some point in the season.

Catcher Travis D’Arnaud (couple of years away) and Zach Stewart (right handed pitcher, good season with the Fisher Cats and close to major league ready) round out the top five.