Las Vegas
J.P. Arencibia has begun to pick up a bit, with 2 home runs thusfar in May, but he is still not getting on base (.245 OBP). Scott Campbell, on the other hand, is slowly getting his bat where it needs to be - but slowly. He was 1-3 with a triple and a walk yesterday, and the fact that he was walked (10) more times than struck out (7) even during a slump is a pretty good sign going forward.
Fabio Castro has been quite good after quickly pitching his way up from New Hamphsire - over his 2 starts for Las Vegas, he's got a 2.19 ERA and went 7 strong innings (no runs, 2 hits, 2 walks, 3 Ks) in his last start. He could see the majors soon. Out of the recently exiled, Brian Burres surprisingly put up the better start than David Purcey in their first go around. Purcey was tough to hit in his 6 1/3 innings but he walked 5 batters (striking out 6) so still has some more work to do. Burres went seven strong yesterday and gave up just one run, walking 6 and striking out 1. I point this out because I'm a little afraid of him pitching for the Jays again. Jonah Bayliss had his perfect start ruined with a disastrous outing (1/3 of an inning, 6 earned runs). Dirk Hayhurst seems to struggle whenever he's starting (9.49 ERA, 7/5 K/BB ratio) but do well when pitching out of the bullpen (1.59 ERA, 4/0 K/BB, .090 batting average against).
New Hampshire
Brian Dopirak continues to hit well - he's batting .297/.357/.515 with 5 home runs and 7 doubles but has slowed down very recently after a torrid end to April. A callup could be in order. Catcher Brian Jeroloman has cooled off considerably, though he has started to show his trademark plate discipline. David Cooper continues to hold his own (.345 OBP) which is very good, but he hasn't shown much in the way of power yet (.375 slg, .104 Iso-P). Brad Emaus has picked it up a bit and is now hitting .294/.360/.441/.801 with 10 extra-base hits.
Even with Castro gone, New Hampshire's pitching has continued to be stellar. Marc Rzepczynski is leading the way with 41 Ks in 32 1/3 innings over his 6 starts, for a 3.06 ERA. Reidier Gonzalez, Luis Perez, and Randy Boone have also done very nice jobs. Brandon Magee was promoted from Dunedin and will make some starts for New Hampshire now that Castro is gone.
Dunedin
Eric Thames and Moses Sierra continue to swing very hot bats. Thames is hitting .333 with 3 extra-base hits, 10 RBI, and 8 walks to just 4 Ks over his last 10 games. He's looking like a draft-day steal for the Jays. As for Sierra, the rifle-armed right-fielder is batting .305/.394/.500 and you have to love that power. Another guy who is really hitting well is John Tolisano - he has been red hot recently with 4 home runs, a .300 average, and 7 walks over his last 10 games. Over the season, he is hitting an impressive .262/.366/.541. Tolisano is outpacing his more-heralded fellow draftees - Justin Jackson and Kevin Ahrens. Both have dealt with some nagging injuries (Ahrens just returned) and are really struggling.
Adam Loewen has 12 games under his belt but hasn't done much yet.
On the pitching side, as we mentioned, Magee earned his promotion. Trystan Magnuson could be close behind - the big righty has done a nice job for Dunedin with a 2.95 ERA and 2/1 K/BB ratio over his 18 1/3 innings. Tim Collins has been even more dominant, with almost twice as many strikeouts (31) as innings pitched (16 1/3) and a miniscule .67 Whip. Andy Liebel has also pitched okay in his first full season, with a nice strikeout to walk ratio.
Lansing
Johermyn Chavez continues to hit everything in sight. The toolsy Venezuelan outfielder is now hitting .333/.371/.678/1.049 with 15 extra-base hits (half of his total hit output), including 6 home runs and 4 triples. 2008 draftee third baseman Mark Sobelewski is doing a decent job, hitting .286/.364/.388 and nice walk (about 10% of plate appearances) and strikeout numbers (less than 20% of PAs). Most of the other Lansing hitters aren't doing much yet, though shorstop Ty Pastornicky is picking it up a bit at the plate.
As for rehabbing Jays, Casey Janssen (shoulder) is scheduled to pitch for Dunedin today, with Ricky Romero (oblique) going tomorrow. B.J. Ryan is also beginning his rehab stint with Dunedin. Oh, and thanks to Pavement for today's title.