Hot Prospects: May Edition

Throughout the minors, there are so many players to keep up with.  It is often difficult to know who or what to pay attention to.  With that in mind, right here, right now we'll take a glance at some of the top performers throughout the Blue Jays' system this season and get you all caught up.


Lansing Lugnuts….34-13 record, 1st place in the Class A Midwest League’s Eastern division.

David Rollins, a 24th round draft choice out of San Jacinto College North last year, has posted outstanding numbers for the Lugnuts. The 22-year-old lefty hurler has a 4-0 record with a 2.64 ERA while striking out 41 batters and walking just 15 in 44 1/3 innings through 10 starts this season. Rollins, who stands 6-feet-1-inch tall and weighs around 195 pounds, sports a 1.45 ERA in 4 road games this year. Last year, in 7 combined starts with Bluefield and Vancouver, Rollins went 4-0 with a 1.77 ERA.

Outfielder Chris Hawkins, a 3rd round draft selection in 2010, has put up some excellent numbers for Lansing as well. The 20-year-old has a .327 batting average with 6 doubles, 2 triples and 1 HR while driving in 15 runs in 42 games this season. He has also stolen 6 bases without being caught. In his previous two professional seasons, mainly in the Gulf Coast League and at rookie level Bluefield, Hawkins, a lefty hitter, tallied a .290 batting average with a .783 OPS.

Andrew Burns is another one of the Lugnuts’ offensive threats. The 21-year-old was drafted last season in the 11th round by Toronto out of the University of Arizona. Through 42 games this season, the shortstop is batting .283 with 15 doubles, 2 triples, 7 HR and 22 RBI. His .931 OPS is second best in the league. The righty hitting Burns batted .250 with 3 HR and 14 RBI in 28 combined games last year for the GCL Blue Jays and with short-season Class A Vancouver.


Dunedin Blue Jays….31-17 record, 1st place in the Class A Advanced Florida State League’s North division.

Gabe Jacobo has put up some very solid production for Dunedin. The Rule 5 draft selection from last year, out of the Angels system, has hit .301 with 11 doubles, 2 homers and 17 RBI through 20 games this season. The 25-year-old Jacobo, who plays first base, is a right-handed hitter that was a career .284 hitter in the minors before joining the Toronto system.

Left-handed hurler Sean Nolin may be on the verge of a promotion, as his numbers just keep getting better in the FSL. The 22-year-old, who was drafted in the 6th round by Toronto in 2010, has gone 5-0 with a 2.25 ERA while striking out 57 batters in 56 innings over 10 starts for Dunedin. The San Jacinto Junior College product, who stands 6-feet-5-inches tall and weighs 235 pounds, went 4-4 with a 3.49 ERA with 113 K’s in 108 1/3 innings pitched last season for Lansing.

Dunedin’s closer, Danny Barnes, has a 1-1 record with 16 saves and a 2.08 ERA in 22 appearances this season. The Princeton University product was a 35th round draft selection in 2010 by the Blue Jays. The right-handed Barnes has a 1.69 ERA in 10 May games. In his previous 2 pro seasons, Barnes posted a 6-2 record with a 2.26 ERA and a .203 batting average against in 66 games (2 starts).


New Hampshire Fisher Cats…19-27 record, 5th place in the Double-A Eastern League’s Eastern division.

Ryan Goins has been scorching hot all season for NH. The lefty hitting second baseman has a .331 batting average with 12 doubles, 2 triples, 2 HR and 22 RBI through 44 games this season. In 22 May games, the lefty batting Goins has posted a remarkable .380 batting average. Goins, 24, was a 4th round draft pick in 2009.

Catcher Sean Ochinko has done a very good job filling in for injured counterpart AJ Jimenez (elbow ligament). In 6 games since joining the Fisher Cats, the 24-year-old Louisiana State University product is batting .333 with 2 doubles and 2 HR.

Left-handed reliever Aaron Loup has continued a strong campaign out of the NH bullpen. The 24-year-old is 0-1 with 2 saves and a 1.46 ERA in 20 relief outings this season. Drafted in the 9th round by Toronto in 2009, Loup made the Midwest League All-star team the following year in his first full season as a pro. Loup could be well on his way to getting another such honor this season if his production keeps up.


Las Vegas 51’s….25-23 record, 3rd place in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League’s Southern division.

Highly touted shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria is posting strong numbers for the 51’s. Through 47 games played, the Cuba native is batting .322 with 14 doubles, 2 triples, 4 HR and 34 RBI with 6 stolen bases. Hechavarria, 23, was a career .255 hitter with 12 HR in 2 seasons in the minors prior to this year.

Catcher Travis d’Arnaud, fresh off an MVP season in the Eastern League, is having another big year. Through 40 games, the 22-year-old is hitting .307 with a team leading 10 HR and 25 RBI. d'Arnaud was, of course, acquired from Philadlephia in the December, 2009 Roy Halladay trade.

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Nearly Recovered, d'Arnaud Looks Forward

Back in October, we reported on a thumb injury that top Blue Jays prospect Travis d'Arnaud suffered while competing with Team USA. The reigning Eastern League Most Valuable Player felt a pop after "catching a ball wrong". The 22-year-old was soon diagnosed with a ligament tear in his thumb.

d'Arnaud, who was acquired from the Phillies in 2009 as part of the Roy Halladay trade, required surgery and has been rehabbing the repaired hand ever since, to get ready for the upcoming season.

According to the All-Star catcher he'll be ready for spring training and doesn't expect to miss a beat in 2012.

"My hand feels great," d'Arnaud said. "Rehab went well. I went to (the Sports Medicine Institute) in Anaheim, California and went for about two months of rehab. My thumb feels normal. Now, I just need to get accustomed to catching bullpens and such."

d'Arnaud was Philadelphia's supplemental first round draft choice (37th overall) in 2007.

En route to helping the Double A New Hampshire Fisher Cats lock down the EL championship, in 2011, d'Arnaud posted a .311 batting average with 33 doubles, 21 homeruns, 78 RBI and a league leading .542 slugging percentage.

The southern California native is already focused beyond recovery, as he's looking forward to having another big offensive year with hopes of more championship hardware.

"I'm feeling amazing and ready for the season to begin."

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Exclusive BP Footage: d'Arnaud and McDade

Happy day after the baseball season, gang. We feel your pain. Surely, it has been a while since we've seen Toronto baseball action or any of our favorite prospects on the field. However, just to brighten your first day of the official 2011-2012 off-season, 1BlueJaysWay is bringing you some exclusive batting practice footage of two top Blue Jays prospects.

Travis d'Arnaud, the Double-A Eastern League MVP batting .311 with 21 homeruns and 71 RBI in 114 games during the 2011 season. Acquired from the Phillies in the Roy Halladay trade, d'Arnaud projects to be an impact player at the big league level. The 22-year-old California native led his New Hampshire Fisher Cats club to the EL championship.

McDade, a 22-year-old first baseman, was a force this year for the Fisher Cats as well. The 6-foot-1-inch 260-pound slugger posted a .281 average with 16 HR and 74 RBI. Time will tell what the ceiling is for McDade, but the future looks bright for this 2011 EL All-Star.

Check out some video of Travis and Mike slugging away at some pregame offerings in the media player below.



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d'Arnaud Recovering From Surgery

Top Blue Jays prospect Travis d'Arnaud underwent surgery on his left thumb on Monday. While competing for Team USA, the 22-year-old felt a pop after "catching a ball wrong". Diagnosed with a ligament tear in his thumb, d'Arnaud required surgery to repair the problem.

According to d'Arnaud, who was acquired by Toronto in the December 2009 trade that sent All-Star Roy Halladay to Philadelphia, he will be in a cast for one month. Following the removal of the cast and further evaluation, doctors have told d'Arnaud that one month of rehab work will be necessary before he can resume baseball activities.

As the Eastern League's most valuable player, the California native, d'Arnaud, led the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats to the EL championship this past season, as he posted a .311 batting average with 33 doubles, 21 homeruns and 78 RBI.

d'Arnaud does not feel this setback will effect his 2012 season in the least. The team expects him back at full strength in plenty of time for the start of spring traning in February.

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High Hopes for Travis d'Arnaud

Two years ago, Travis d'Arnaud was leading the Phillies' Class A affiliate, the Lakewood BlueClaws, to their second ever South Atlantic League championship. This year, d'Arnaud was named as the Double A Eastern League's Most Valuable Player and is back in the post-season with New Hampshire.

Originally selected in the supplemental round of the 2007 draft, d'Arnaud became a well regarded prospect with his strong bat and tremendous skills behind the plate. In 2008, in his first full season as a professional, the California native posted a .305 average with 6 HR and 30 RBI in 64 combined games at two levels with short-season Williamsport and Lakewood.

The following season, d'Arnaud led a prospect laden BlueClaws club in RBI, with 71. His strides on the field caused folks all around baseball to take notice, and d'Arnaud was included in the December, 2009 trade that sent Cy Young Award winning hurler Roy Halladay to Philadelphia from Toronto.

In the Blue Jays system, d'Arnaud, has focused on staying healthy, following a 2010 filled with time on the disabled list and a concussion early this year. After finishing among the 2011 EL leaders in HR (21- tied for 4th in EL), RBI (78- 6th), OPS (.914- 2nd) and batting average (.311- 5th), d'Arnaud won the biggest individual honor at the Double A level. However, the MVP Award is not the hardware the 22-year-old is most concerned with. d'Arnaud hopes to lock down a team achievement and win the Eastern League championship, along with his Fisher Cats teammates.

"We're all really excited for the playoffs," d'Arnaud stated. "We want to go out there and win and bring the championship to the city (of Manchester) and to the Jays organization."

To read the rest of this post, click here.

Fisher Cats Hosting Eastern League All-star Game

On Wednesday night in Manchester, NH, the Double A affiliate of the Blue Jays, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats will host the Eastern League's All-star Game at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium.

The 2011 Eastern League All-star Game will feature the top prospects from the Western Division (Erie, Altoona, Akron, Bowie, Richmond and Harrisburg) taking on the best from the Eastern Division (New Britain, Portland, New Hampshire, Binghamton and Trenton). Each team is comprised of 24 players, with all of the league's teams being represented by at least 1 pitcher and 1 offensive player.

Also included in the All-star festivities will be a pre-game homerun derby which will feature two Fisher Cats All-stars, outfielder Moises Sierra and switch-hitting first baseman Mike McDade. First place in the homerun derby wins $1,000 and second place is awarded $500, so the drive will certainly be there for the participants to put on a good show.

New Hampshire skipper Sal Fasano, who will manage the Eastern Division team was pleased with his clubs collection of players that were named to play in this year's exhibition match up in front of their home fans, especially his derby participating sluggers.

"McDade's had a heck of a first half," Fasano said in an exclusive interview. "He's probably been our most consistent hitter. He just keeps improving daily. It's fun to see him get a little bit of notoriety, because he's kind of worked his way into prospecthood. He wasn't a highly touted guy, but he keeps producing every year."

"Sierra, he's been hitting behind (McDade) for the whole year and so if they didn't pitch to 'Mac', then Mo made them pay," Fasano added. "Defensively he's been playing great too. He's been a pleasure, because he plays with such youthful enthusiasm. He really loves to play."

Other New Hampshire players honored as All-star were shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria, catcher Travis d'Arnaud as well as pitchers Henderson Alvarez and Joel Carreno. Additionally, righty pitcher Zach Stewart, who made a few starts at the big league level with the Blue Jays in June, was added to the Eastern Division roster last week to fill the spot of Alvarez, who will attend the event but will be unavailable to pitch.

Current Blue Jays that have played in the EL All-Star game include Travis Snider, Adam Lind and Aaron Hill.

Game time is 7:05 PM and the game can be heard on the Fisher Cats' radio home WGIR.


More notes-

On Hechavarria, Fasano says: "Hech is about as good a shortstop as you'll ever see, probably in your lifetime. He's pretty good. He keeps learning how to hit. He's taking better passes and stuff.

Asked how close he thinks Hechavarria is to the Majors, Fasano said: "He could go to the big leagues tomorrow. I mean, he's that good defensively. It's just whether he could produce, or not, offensively. He's still got a lot to learn about the game, but the more games he plays, the better it is."

On d'Arnaud, Fasano says: "d'Arnaud, he's had his good, he's had his bad. He battled a concussion early (this season), but he's proved enough."

Fasano on Carreno: "Carreno had probably the worst four most miserable starts that you probably could have (to begin the season). His ERA was up at 9, he gave up a lot of homeruns- he gave up 8 homeruns in his first four starts. And if you take those four starts out of the equation, he's been unbelievable. He's just been outstanding, he gives us a chance to win every time out."

On Carreno's improvements: "For him, he got beat up enough that he finally put his foot down and said, 'No! That's it! I'm gonna learn to make an adjustment at this level.' And he did."

Fasano on Alvarez: "Henderson is probably our most highly touted pitching prospect and he's touched 101 (MPH) this season, so he's got some kind of arm."

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1BJW Exclusive: Travis d'Arnaud Answers Fan Questions

This season, Blue Jays catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud is having a very solid season in the Double A Eastern League for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. Thus far in 2011, d'Arnaud has posted a .308 batting average with 11 homeruns and 32 RBI. He'll represent the Fisher Cats in the Double A All-star Game this coming week.

The 22-year-old California native spent time on the disabled list during April and May with a concussion, but he's been scorching hot since his return to the NH lineup. In 53 games since his injury, d'Arnaud has gone 64-for-189 (.339 batting average).

d'Arnaud, who was among the trio of players acquired from Philadelphia in 2009 for Roy Halladay, was ranked as the 4th best prospect in the Toronto system last off-season by Baseball America.

Over the past couple of years, we've caught up with d'Arnaud to learn about how he spends his off-season, how he deals with injuries and more. Last week, Travis again took time to speak with 1BlueJaysWay, however this time we let our readers, the fans, ask the questions. Check out the media player below to listen to the full audio and see if your inquiry made the cut.


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NH Hitting Coach Justin Mashore Interview

In his playing days, Justin Mashore was a 3rd round draft pick of the Detroit Tigers and was a career minor leaguer. Mashore played outfield and dabbled in the infield during his minor league career in the Tigers, Red Sox, Mets, Padres and Rockies organizations.

Since 2003, Mashore has been a coach in the Blue Jays organization, where he has been working his way up from the Rookie level Appalachian League.

Currently, along with manager Sal Fasano and pitching coach Pete Walker, Mashore is in charge of guiding the young careers of Toronto prospects assigned to the Double A New Hampshire Fisher Cats club.

Recently, I spoke with coach Justin about top prospects like Anthony Gose, Adeiny Hechavarria and Travid d'Arnaud, as well as his own career, his transition into coaching and plenty more. Check out the media player below to listen to the full interview.


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D'Arnaud in a Groove Following Concussion

NH hitting coach Justin Mashore working with Travis d'Arnaud last week

Sidelined in late April with a concussion, suffered when he was hit with the swing of a batter, catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud began the season in quite a slump. Through 13 games in April with the Double A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, d'Arnaud had posted a .188 batting average with 1 HR and 5 RBI.

However, since returning from the disabled list in early May, d'Arnaud has been on a hot streak, ripping into Eastern League pitching to the tune of a .378 batting average with 9 doubles, 5 homeruns and 12 RBI in 27 games.

The 22-year-old California native asserted that he hasn't changed anything in his approach or mechanics, confirming that sometimes a hitter can just get into a groove and capitalize on that.

"I've been slowing everything down and I feel like the ball looks like a softball right now. I can see it really good," d'Arnaud stated. "When I got on a roll, I was just seeing the ball well and putting good swings on it."

In regards to his slow start and an increase of power (.928 OPS through 40 games played, while a previous season high in OPS was .831 in a 2008 season he split between short-season Williamsport and Class A Lakewood in the Phillies organization), the righty hitting d'Arnaud feels that he's steadily showing the type of hitter he's developing into.

"This year I've hit stretches where my timing's off a little bit, but I've made no changes and gotten some good results," d'Arnaud said.

d'Arnaud was originally drafted in the supplemental round (37th overall) in 2007 by the Phillies. He was later traded to Toronto among a trio of player dealt for ace pitcher Roy Halladay in December, 2009. Last off-season, d'Arnaud was ranked as the 4th best prospect in the Toronto system by Baseball America.

Defensively, d'Arnaud has always shined, earning nods from his pitching staff at every level he's played for assisting in their success and progress.

His ability to lead will certainly help d'Arnaud advance in the professional ranks and even his coaching staff has sees a bright future for the 2010 Class A Florida State League All-star. Fisher Cats hitting coach Justin Mashore is pleased to be working with such talented prospects in New Hampshire and has worked closely with d'Arnaud. Mashore agrees that d'Arnaud is going about hitting the same way since arriving in Double A.

"(His) consistent work and his approach is what's allowing (d'Arnaud) to drive the ball more," Mashore said. "Travis has got phenomenal hands. Hopefully, (he) can continue to climb where we hope he goes."

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Exclusive Interview with Travis d'Arnaud

Blue Jays Prospects from Ryan Kelley on Vimeo.

Our boy Jay has been very busy over the last couple of weeks pounding out exclusive content that hopefully made the sun shine just a little brighter for you, wherever you may be. Having seen merely 3 Fisher Cats games over a span of 4 days, he was able to get 7 solid interviews with various team personnel. The final installment of this series is with catcher Travis d'Arnaud. At the time of the interview, Travis was still on the DL with concussion like symptoms.

Since his return he has posted 2 multi hit games, one of which came against his former organization.

Date	Level		Pos	AB	H	2B	3B	HR	SO	BB
May 12	AA	@ Reading	C	4	2	0	0	1	0	0
May 10	AA	vs. Portland	C	3	1	0	0	0	1	0
May 9	AA	vs. Portland	C	3	0	0	0	0	1	0
May 8	AA	vs. Binghamton	C	3	2	1	0	0	0	0

We here at 1BJW are following this young man's progress very closely this year and envision him taking a huge leap forward under the watchful eye of his manager in New Hampshire, the one and only Mr. Sal Fasano. It's very hard to predict when a player of this caliber will get his shot in The Show but if everything goes his way, we can see a possible scenario where he enters Spring Training next season with a legit shot at heading north with the team to Toronto.




I think I can speak for everyone when I say we all totally look forward to the next time the Fisher Cats travel to Trenton to play the Thunder - which is June 3, 4 and 5 - and all the interviews, photos, videos and insight that follows in the weeks after.  

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There He Gose

Fisher Cats center fielder Anthony Gose

Anthony Gose is in a new organization, wearing a new uniform in a new town, but says he's still the same ball player. The quick-footed center fielder, who set out to lead all of minor league baseball in stolen bases at age 18 in 2009, and followed through when he swiped 76 bases as a member of the Phillies' Class A affiliate, the Lakewood BlueClaws, is now a member of the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. Gose was ranked as the 4th best prospect in the Blue Jays system by Baseball America prior to this season.

The 6-foot-1-inch, 195 pound Gose has stayed on track with the tools that earned him such high praise. He continues to get on base, swipe bags and exhibit terrific instincts and range on defense in the outfield.

Traded by the Phillies to Houston in the deal for starting pitcher Roy Oswalt last July, Gose ended up with Toronto when the Astros flipped him, almost immediately, in another trade for infielder Brett Wallace.

The lefty hitting Gose was playing with the Phillies High A Level team, the Clearwater Threshers, at the time and felt sure that he would be headed to Houston once rumors of a Phils deal for Oswalt began circulating heavily. When the trading commenced, Gose never heard from Houston. Even though he had been included in a package of players for the 3-time Astros All star, the first call Gose got was from Phillies assistant general manager in charge of player development Chuck LaMar, telling Gose that he was being dealt to Toronto.


To continue reading this article, click HERE.

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Travis d'Arnaud Talks to 1BJW

Blue Jays catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud was in Toronto recently to take part in team activities. It was d'Arnaud's first taste of Major League life north of the border. d'Arnaud, who will turn 22 years old next month, was acquired last off-season in the trade that sent Roy Halladay to Philadelphia. Injured for much of the 2010 season, d'Arnaud has been working hard to get healthy during the Autumn and Winter months.

We reached out to Travis last week for some quotes about his off-season. His thoughts on the team event and where his training and rehab work stands lies ahead. Check it out.


The format of the event in Toronto was pretty much like any day at the field. We had to show up around 7:30 am and breakfast was there for us. Each day from 9-10 was meetings from all of the front office staff for the Blue Jays. Then from 10-1 was a strength and conditioning program where we stretched, threw, ran and then worked out. After that we had lunch and attended more meetings from 1-2. After 2 we hit on the field from 2:15-3. After that we were allowed to go back to the hotel we were staying at and walked around the lovely town of Toronto.

The players that were there were: David Cooper, Eric Thames, Darin Mastroianni, Alan Farina, Kyle Drabek, JP Arencibia, Brian Jeroloman, Brett Lawrie, Jo Jo Reyes, and me. The MLB players that were there were: Vernon Wells, Adam Lind, Jesse Litsch, The new players they acquired from the A's (Rajai Davis) and Brewers (Carlos Villanueva), Travis Snider, and Dustin McGowen.

My off-season program has been a very long process for me. Since I was injured last year, I had to go through vigorous physical therapy for two months in Laguna Hills, CA, with Randy Bauer. After that, I went to Fischersports in Arizona and rehabbed with Brett Fischer. Without either of those two men, I would still be in a lot pain. So for the past month I have been lifting lots of core and strength lifting such as squats, deadlifts, and push/pull lifts for upper body stuff. My main focus of all of my workouts was core. Now, I am in my "get in shape" phase of the off-season, where I lay off heavy weights and focus more on getting an ever stronger core and start my running, agility, and plyometrics. By the time spring training starts next month, I was to be in peak physical shape so my body can withstand a 140+ game season.

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Projecting the 2011 Fisher Cats Opening Day Roster

Don't think 1BJW has disappeared. If you thought that, you're wrong! But I've decided to take the time to project the Double A Fisher Cats' Opening Day roster that I unfortunatley will not be seeing on April 7th, but will definitely listen on the radio. Here we go...

C Travis D'Arnaud
1B Michael McDade
2B Jonathan Diaz
3B Ryan Schimpf
SS Adeiny Hechavaria
LF Michael Crouse
CF Anthony Gose
RF Adam Loewen
DH David Cooper

C Ryan Budde
SS Luis Sanchez
OF Adam Calderona
1B Roan Salas
IF Callix Crabbe

SP Zach Stewart
SP Joel Carreno
SP Chad Jenkins
SP Reider Gonzalez
SP Randy Boone

RP Matt Daly
RP Ronald Uviedo
RP Evan Crawford
RP Vince Bongiovanni
RP Boomer Potts
RP Alan Farina

Keep in mind, this is just Opening Day as we will most likely see Deck McGuire among many others throughout the season.

Quotables: 1BJW's Sound Bites of the Year

We here at 1BlueJaysWay regularly bring our readers exclusive interviews and features with various minor league players and team personnel, during the season. We've browsed through our best Q&A's from 2010 to bring you the best 1BJW interview quotes of the year.

Check out the list below, and click each link to check out the best interviews we were lucky enough to bring you over the past year.

-Eric Thames on which teammate he feels deserves more recognition..."Darin Mastroianni is a stud. He's a machine. He plays pretty much every day. He goes balls out every day!"

-Chad Jenkins on pitching to wooden bats compared to aluminum..."I mean, I still like, I guess, I still hear those noises, in bed sometimes those pings"

-Zach Stewart on pitching in New Hampshire's cold April weather..."The few games we've played there so far, it's been really cold. We didn't have a ton of fans show up yet, but I guess it's been better than you could expect because we had 2 or 3 games in a row when it was in the 30's and 40's and it was sleeting and stuff. We didn't even want to be there, so I am sure the fans didn't want to be there."

-Travis d'Arnaud on how he spends his off-season..."(The) off-season for me is a way for me to fall in love with baseball more and more as each year goes. It's because I don't get to play baseball for a few months and it drives me crazy."

-Kyle Drabek, in August, on his estimated time of arrival for the big leagues..."I feel like I'm ready. All my pitches are where I want them. It's up to (the Blue Jays). If they have a plan for me...I'll be ready for whenever I get the call."

-Tom Filer on pitching in Toronto..."Toronto, when I was there, it was a fever pitch. Back in the 80's through the early 90's, that place was sold out every night. I love that town. The eclectic sampling of people you come across, it was really neat..."

-Adam Loewen, a former MLB pitcher, on taking a second journey through the minors- this time, as an outfielder..."I always said to myself, if my arm blew out, or if I had a serious career threatening injury, that I'd want to come back as a hitter."

-Sal Fasano on facing Randy Johnson during his playing days..."I went 0 for my first like 12 against him with like 11 punchouts. I think the first time I made contact we had a party."

-Jake Marisnick on silencing the haters..."Yeah I mean, ah, I wasn't, didn't swing to well in high school and ah, or my senior year and ah, I mean people were talking but I mean it's baseball. Slumps happen. You are not always hitting the ball great, you are not always hitting the ball bad. I mean, you go through a lot of things and ah, I mean things worked out."

-Ryan Goins on facing guys with arm side run with sink..."He threw it, like, middle away where I wanted it and I was like 'I gotta swing', so and I hit it and I was like 'oh goodness'."

-Drew Hutchison on what he did between being drafted and signing a pro contract..."Ah, you know just hung out you know ah, all summer and ah, I played all summer and then, you know, we were able to come to terms at the end of the summer and, you know...just, it was pretty.....it was cool."

-Michael Crouse on being drafted..."So for it to be the Toronto Blue Jays, a Canadian team, being me from Canada, it was a great feeling."

-Justin Jackson on who he would like to meet in the game..."If I had to go with anybody else I'd like to meet probably Pujols, talk a little hitting with him. See if he can give me a few tips."

-A.J. Jimenez on converting from the OF to catcher and what was the most difficult part of the transition..."Ah, I mean it's the tough one you get tired quickly, I mean everything is harder than other positions."

-Kevin Ahrens on what he did this past off-season..."It was real awkward 'cause one day in December it actually snowed in Houston and I built a little miniature snowman out there and it was just, you know, one of the funnest times I've had."

-Darin Mastroianni on his favorite ballplayer growing up..."I was a New York boy, so Derek Jeter. How do you not like Jeter growing up in New York?" (We still love him anyway)

-Luis Rivera on who should have been the Eastern League Most Valuable Player..."I know (Trenton) has Laird as the MVP, but for me Eric Thames should be the MVP! He hit 27 homers, had 104 RBI, batted .290. He had huge numbers!"

And a bonus 5 interviews for ya from the 2009 season in Lansing, that we debuted on the site in 2010, just cuz we can!

-Matt Daly on closing out a game in front of the home crowd..."Even when you hear them cheering and stuff, you know, you kinda, it kinda feeds in your head that, that they are kinda with you and stuff."

-Joel Carreno on how he is feeling on the mound..."I'm feel berry good. Berry, berry good."

-Mike McDade on what the team does during rain delays to pass the time..."Playing cards, talking, just messing around, fooling around a little bit, just trying to stay loose with each other, listen to some music, maybe eat a sandwich or something. That's pretty much it."

-Henderson Alvarez's translator on how he got a pro contract..."His first try out with Toronto Blue Jay, so he throw 88 - 89, um he lie to the scout (about his age?), so he sign him that day."

-Mel Queen on pitching to Henry Aaron..."So, I told the catcher I'm gonna pitch him inside, the manager said 'no'. Anyways to make a long story short I pitched, threw him fastballs inside the next three times up and struck him out all three times."

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Overvaluing Arencibia

Alright. This may be a blanket statement but I'm just gonna go ahead and say that if you are a fan of any particular MLB organization, then you overvalue their prospects. It's just what we do.

Let's take a look at a Blue Jay specific example: J.P. Arencibia

He was selected in the 1st round, 21st overall, in the 2007 Amateur Draft. Entering the 2010 season, really smart people were writing shit like this about Arencibia. His supporters will quickly point out that he had 2 surgeries - one on his eyes and another on his kidney - which were clearly necessary and allowed him to regain his form.

He will be 25 years old when the 2011 season begins and it now appears like he will get a legit shot at cracking the active roster.

Here are his stats as a pro courtesy of Baseball Reference (notice the dip in 2009, then the resurgence in 2010)

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev		G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2007	21	Auburn	NYPL	A-		63	249	228	31	58	17	1	3	25	0	0	14	56	.254	.309	.377	.686
2008	22	2 Teams	2 Lgs	AA-A+		126	537	510	70	152	36	0	27	105	0	0	18	101	.298	.322	.527	.850
2008	22	Dunedin	FLOR	A+		59	262	248	38	78	22	0	13	62	0	0	11	46	.315	.344	.560	.904
2008	22	New Hampshire	EL	AA		67	275	262	32	74	14	0	14	43	0	0	7	55	.282	.302	.496	.798
2009	23	Las Vegas	PCL	AAA		116	500	466	67	110	32	1	21	75	0	1	26	114	.236	.284	.444	.728
2010	24	Las Vegas	PCL	AAA		104	459	412	76	124	36	1	32	85	0	0	38	85	.301	.359	.626	.986
4 Seasons						409	1745	1616	244	444	121	3	83	290	0	1	96	356	.275	.319	.507	.827

I went ahead and plugged those stellar 2010 numbers into the Minor League Equivalency calculator and this is what it spit out:

422 AB 53 R 101 H 29 2B 1 3B 23 HR 59 RBI 28 BB 92 SO .240 BA .291 OBP .474 SLG .765 OPS

This tool takes a body of work from a specific level in the Minors and converts it as though that body of work happened in the Majors. How accurate is it? Who knows.

Now, I'm not going to base an entire argument on this conversion but I think it helps to put things into perspective. A monster MVP type year in Las Vegas is not really worth getting all that worked up about.

Don't get me wrong, Arencibia clearly has power. And it looks like his power will play in the big leagues. Anyone who was lucky enough to watch his totally unreal MLB debut will tell you, he is ready.

What those same people won't tell you is he had just 1 hit for the rest of the year. Obviously he wasn't playing regularly and if I remember correctly when he did start, it always seemed to be against pretty good pitchers.

Matsuzaka
Buchholtz
Haren
Gonzalez
Price
Lester
King Felix
CC
Blackburn

So what is it that I'm trying to say? Here goes:

J.P. Arencibia may end up being a serviceable Major League catcher someday. But it will be how he plays behind the dish that will ultimately determine that. And it's probably gonna take a while till we figure that out.

By the time we do a couple of our other prospects, most notably Travis d'Arnaud and Carlos Perez, will likely be ready to take their respective shots. I would put A.J. Jimenez in that conversation as well.

Let's throw those 3 players numbers at their respective levels into the mighty Minor League Equivalency Calculator and see what comes out.

Why the hell not?

Travis d'Arnaud, again courtesy of BR:

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev		G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2007	18	Phillies	GULF	Rk		41	151	141	18	34	3	0	4	20	4	2	4	23	.241	.278	.348	.626
2008	19	2 Teams	2 Lgs	A--A		64	267	239	33	73	18	1	6	30	1	2	23	39	.305	.367	.464	.831
2008	19	Williamsport	NYPL	A-		48	197	175	21	54	13	1	4	25	1	2	18	29	.309	.371	.463	.833
2008	19	Lakewood	SALL	A		16	70	64	12	19	5	0	2	5	0	0	5	10	.297	.357	.469	.826
2009	20	Lakewood	SALL	A		126	540	482	71	123	38	1	13	71	8	4	41	75	.255	.319	.419	.738
2010	21	Dunedin	FLOR	A+		71	292	263	36	68	20	1	6	38	3	1	20	63	.259	.315	.411	.726
4 Seasons						302	1250	1125	158	298	79	3	29	159	16	9	88	200	.265	.323	.418	.741

His injury shortened / 2 time All Star 2010 season in the pitcher friendly Florida State League had it happened in the big leagues, would have looked like this:

271 AB 23 R 52 H 15 2B 1 3B 4 HR 24 RBI 2 SB 1 CS 13 BB 70 SO .194 BA .239 OBP .296 SLG .535 OPS

A.J. Jimenez, BR:

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev		G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2008	18	Blue Jays	GULF	Rk		19	52	47	5	9	2	0	0	5	5	2	3	16	.191	.255	.234	.489
2009	19	Lansing	MIDW	A		80	294	278	30	73	15	1	3	31	5	2	7	72	.263	.280	.356	.636
2010	20	2 Teams	2 Lgs	A-A+		72	301	271	36	81	22	0	5	55	17	4	18	61	.299	.340	.435	.775
2010	20	Lansing	MIDW	A		70	292	262	35	80	22	0	4	54	17	4	18	56	.305	.347	.435	.782
2010	20	Dunedin	FLOR	A+		2	9	9	1	1	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	5	.111	.111	.444	.556
3 Seasons						171	647	596	71	163	39	1	8	91	27	8	28	149	.273	.306	.383	.689

Midwest League to MLB conversation, which ends up being remarkably similar to d'Arnaud:

272 AB 19 R 58 H 14 2B 0 3B 2 HR 29 RBI 11 SB 5 CS 10 BB 66 SO .214 BA .246 OBP .290 SLG .536 OPS.

Unfortunately Carlos Perez only made it as far as the New York Penn League and the Minor League Equivalency calculator doesn't do short seasons.

These 3 young guys are all known as solid defensive catchers. But they all are at least 2 or 3 full seasons away from being seriously considered for the big leagues. Look for d'Arnaud to start in New Hampshire, Jimenez to stay in Dunedin and Perez to get the bulk of the reps in Lansing.

Point being catcher is clearly a position of strength for the organization.

Is J.P. Arencibia the most ready? For sure.

Is he the best we have? Maybe.

Will he bring back the greatest return in a trade? Most likely.

Will his value ever be higher? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

That's the real question I want to address. Let's just say that J.P. gets his well deserved shot in the big leagues and he puts up numbers that are similar to what he is projected to do. 

A .250 batting average with a .300 OBP and 20 homers with about 60 RBI. That would be if he got the lion's share of work behind the plate.

My question to you is this: Would his trade value increase or decrease after a season like that?

The floor is yours.....

Press Release: Gose, d'Arnaud Named To FSL All-Star Team

Gose amongst FSL leaders in numerous categories, 2nd All-Star nod for d'Arnaud

The 2010 Florida State League All-Star Team was released on Tuesday and the Dunedin Blue Jays had two players named to the team in outfielder Anthony Gose and catcher Travis d'Arnaud.
Gose, 20, played the majority of the season with the Clearwater Threshers before being involved in a series of trades that sent him to the Blue Jays on July 29. Since coming over from Clearwater, he has hit .255 in 27 games with three home runs. He is also 9 for 14 in stolen base attempts.
Overall, Gose has hit .263 with seven home runs and an FSL-leading 45 stolen bases. He has played in an FSL-leading 130 games and also leads the FSL in runs scored with 88. He's tied with Tampa's Jose Pirela for the FSL lead in triples with 13 and also ranks fifth in hits with 134.
The native of Bellflower, CA was a fourth round selection by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2008.
D'Arnaud, 21, was also named to the FSL First-Half All-Star Team and was selected to start at catcher for the FSL North squad in the All-Star Game back on June 12 in Viera. He also participated in the All-Star Home Run Derby.
He hit .259 with six home runs and 38 RBIs in 71 games with Dunedin this season, but back issues plagued him for much of the year before a herniated disc in his back required season-ending surgery earlier this month.
This was d'Arnaud's first year in the Blue Jays organization, having been part of the Roy Halladay trade this past offseason. He was a supplemental first-round draft pick of Philadelphia's in 2007.
This is the second consecutive season that d'Arnaud and Gose have played together as both players were a part of Low-A Lakewood's 2009 South Atlantic League championship-winning team.
The FSL Player of the Year ended up being Tampa's Melky Mesa while the FSL Pitcher of the Year was Clearwater's Austin Hyatt, who was recently called up to Double-A Reading.

 Another theft by the 2 time Gold Glover

All-Stars from Big D(unedin)

Here are your 2010 Florida State League All-Stars from the Dunedin Blue Jays:

• Henderson Alvarez, P
• Matt Daly, P
• Travis D'Arnaud, C
• Yan Gomes, C
• Tyler Pastornicky, SS

Daly was a late substitution.

Five Jays named to FSL North All-Star Team

First place Jays get two pitchers, two catchers and an infielder

Dunedin, FL – The Florida State League announced their rosters for the 2010 Florida State League All-Star Game in Viera on Saturday, June 12, with five Dunedin Blue Jays players being selected to make the team.

Starting pitcher Henderson Alvarez, catchers Travis d’Arnaud and Yan Gomes and infielder Tyler Pastornicky were all voted to the team by team managers, official scorers and beat writers.

Dunedin closer Matt Daly was added to the team as a substitution after Tampa pitcher Hector Noesi was promoted to Double-A.

Both Tampa and Dunedin ended up with five selections, with Brevard County, Clearwater and Lakeland each having four. Daytona had three selections. South Division leading Bradenton led all teams with seven selections overall.

The Dunedin Blue Jays were at the top of the FSL North Division after Friday night’s action at 31-18 overall, and it was due to the hard work of their all-stars.

Alvarez, 20, has gone 5-1 with a 2.42 ERA in nine starts this season, striking out 31 and only walking nine. The right-handed starter was named the #5 prospect in the Blue Jays system by Baseball America at the start of the season.

D’Arnaud, 20, hit his fifth home run of the season on Friday night and is hitting .309 this season with 22 RBIs. The catcher has a team best .543 slugging percentage. He was acquired in an offseason trade that sent Roy Halladay to Philadelphia in exchange for d’Arnaud, Kyle Drabek and Michael Taylor.

Gomes, 22, is batting .286 on the season with 10 doubles and 14 RBIs. Also a catcher, Gomes is in his second season of professional baseball after being drafted in the 10^th round of the 2009 draft out of Berry University.

Pastornicky, 20, is batting .263 and has split time between shortstop and second base this season. He has three home runs with 19 RBIs and has stolen a team-high 13 bases.

Daly, 23, has 14 saves in 15 opportunities with Dunedin this season, tops in the Florida State League. He has allowed a run in only three of his FSL-best 22 appearances this season.

Checking In On The Farm

Triple-A Las Vegas (12-12) accomplished the difficult feat yesterday of compiling 17 hits and three walks... but scoring only five runs (four in the ninth) in an 11-5 loss. The 51s now have a .294 batting average as a team, paced by 2B Jarrett Hoffpauir (.345). Meanwhile, 1B Brett Wallace continues to lead the Pacific Coast League with nine home runs.

Good news from Double-A where the first place New Hampshire Fisher Cats (16-7) are on fire, winners of six in a row. C Brian Jeroloman's batting .350 with a league-leading .458 on-base percentage; OF Eric Thames has 20 RBIs, second in the league; and speedy OF Darin Mastroianni leads the league with 12 stolen bases. I should mention, too, the terrific performance by 2B/3B Brad Emaus (.326, 2 HR, 16 RBIs, 15 walks and just two strikeouts in 14 games).

Yesterday the Cats were tied 5-5 with Reading in the fifth inning -- and then received a grand slam from Callix Crabbe amidst a seven-run explosion. New Hampshire cruised to the 16-5 rout.

In Dunedin (14-9), immensely talented 20-year-old Henderson Alvarez has only allowed one earned run in four starts (24 1/3 innings). He's 3-0 with a 0.37 ERA. Joel Carreno leads the team with 34 strikeouts, including 10 in six innings in a win at Tampa on April 27.

At Single-A, the Lansing Lugnuts' (14-10) six-game winning streak (including the first victory for 2009 1st round pick Chad Jenkins) came to an end on Thursday night. Two nights later, some history in Lansing: the 1,000th win in the franchise's history, thanks to a walk-off blow from sparkplug outfielder Chris Hopkins.

Unfortunately, perhaps the main early headline has been injuries to some promising players. Kenny Rodriguez is DL'd in New Hampshire, Travis D'Arnaud is on the shelf in Dunedin, and Matt Fields, Dave Sever, and Mark Sobolewski have all been sidelined in Lansing. Nothing looks serious as of yet, but it's worth keeping an eye on.

Down in Dunedin

Catcher Travis D'Arnaud, picked up in the Halladay deal, is legit.

How legit?

He's hitting .396 with three homers and 12 RBIs in 13 games. Give him another month or so then move him up the ladder.

The rest of the offense:

Raul Baroon's been terrific (.389, .450, .611, four steals). Justin Jackson is on the Disabled List again, unfortunately. Welinton Ramirez (.231) and Mike McDade (.170) haven't started hitting yet. John Tolisano's (.250) bat was quiet early but looks like it's coming around.

If you haven't heard Venezuelan right-hander Henderson Alvarez's name yet, I'm pleased to provide the introduction. The kid's a total stud. He just turned 20-years-old, he's pitched seven innings in each of his starts this year, and he's allowed only one run on seven hits. If he doesn't keep shooting upward like a meteor, I'll be shocked. The only weakness is that his strikeout totals are low, but his stuff (sinking fastball, cutting change, biting slurve) is so good that I expect them to increase in time.

Out of the rest of the rotation, Andrew Liebel (1-2, 5.40) and Joel Carreno (0-2, 6.32) are disappointing, but Ryan Page (1-1, 4.76) and Chuck Huggins (1-0, 2.20) have pitched well.