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Midseason Prospect Report Card + Top 20 List

By achengy

Here's the mid-season top 20 list I came up with.

  1. Adam Lind (AAA)
  2. Travis Snider OF (Low-A)
  3. Curtis Thigpen C (AAA)
  4. Ricky Romero P (AA)
  5. Jesse Litsch P (MLB)
  6. Kevin Ahrens SS/3B (Rk)
  7. Balbino Fuenmayor 3B (Rk)
  8. JP Arencibia C (Lo-A)
  9. Robinzon Diaz C (AA)
  10. Josh Banks P(AAA)
  11. David Purcey P(AA)
  12. Brett Cecil (Low-A)
  13. Kyle Yates P(AA)
  14. Chi-Hung Cheng P (Low-A)
  15. Justin Jackson (Rk)
  16. Aaron Matthews (AA)
  17. Ryan Patterson OF (AA)
  18. AJ Wideman (Hi-A)
  19. Josh Kreuzer (Hi-A)
  20. Kyle Ginley (Low-A)
I've decided to add Adam Lind back into the mix and while Thigpen does have issues with lack of power, you can't deny he was having a good year at the plate and still can be a serviceable major leaguer though his potential is limited. I've stopped placing Jesse Litsch ahead of Ricky Romero but it's just me giving some serious respect that Litsch does deserve. Most guys dropped due to adding this year's new crop of youngsters but some are in trouble of losing their prospect status. Travis Snider has done what he can to have people calling him the next Jays all-star for years to come but we do have to remember that he is still far away so while it's good we have a new youngster we can rave about and watch intently sometimes disappointment is painful .

Rising prospects:
Robinzon Diaz is proving all the doubters wrong as he was the only Blue Jay prospect in this year's futures game. Diaz doesn't get much respect due to his very low walk rate and an OBP that is very dependent on his BA. He doesn't strike out much but he is apparently a very very good contact hitter without much power. Some call him a "slap hitter" and it sounds like a second coming of Curtis Thigpen. This can make Thigpen a possible trade candidate.

Aaron Mathews is currently the best hitter for the Fisher Cats in AA. He has always posted solid numbers at lower levels but has never done anything special until this year. Currently Aaron Mathews look like a great contact hitter with a .338 average with 21 doubles and 5 home runs. He doesn't strike out much but he does need to improve that walk rate. Right now he looks like a great platoon guy with a .400 average against lefties. A promotion to AAA is probably in the works and he could further rise at the end of the season but people have taken notice.

Josh Kreuzer/Luke Hetherington are both deserving on this list but I figured I could only choose one so I chose the power guy and Kreuzer has been healthy all season with an OPS close to 1.000 and 15 home runs already rarely goes unnoticed. He should be called up ASAP and one of the falling prospects should be released.

Lastly AJ Wideman, is on this list due to the Canadian bias. Can you blame me? He's another of those great control but possibly not that great stuff and may have a problem in the future at upper levels but I have Ginley locked at number 20 and figured Wideman is at a higher level and they have both been hittable but Ginley was beaten up to start this year but he does have a K rate that keeps up on this list.

Falling Fast:
Kyle Yates had good stats just a few weeks ago but with the new struggles like Hugo had said earlier that his ~3 ERA wasn't attainable. He is mainly the victim of the newly drafted talent coming in but he does need to improve a whole lot to stay in the top 20.

Ryan Patterson is a power hitter who just refuses to walk which I have doubts that will carry him at higher levels when he mashed up A ball. He has been hitting the lights out of the ball recently and improved his batting average .254 with an OBP of .280. Not encouraging numbers and he will need to be more selective to have a shot at the major leagues.

Brandon Magee one guy who went from top 10 material to off my list. His ERA is decent being pushed up an extral level in Dunedin but I have doubts that it will remain the same. His K:BB is 46:41 in 101 innings and I don't see much future sucesss with such a low K rate.

Chip Cannon is currently hitting .237 but with 13 home runs. His problem is that he strikeouts in 40% of his at-bats. This is his second go around in AA and he has failed the AA test miserably and should make way for Josh Kreuzer.

Ryan Klosterman thought of as a possible utility player is hitting .221 and has no power. He was moved from SS for Sergio Santos so if he can't play shortstop he definitely won't make it to show unlike Johnny Mac.

Anthony Hatch hitting .257 in Dunedin will always get you knocked off the prospects list but this 23-year old will have many opportunities his name just takes a backburner.

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