Over the past few days, and using the prospect rankings we put together at the end of last season, we've looked at how the Jays top-ranked prospects are doing thusfar this season, and then Tom took a look at our #11-20 ranked prospects are doing. Now, let's take a look at the next group, those who were ranked #21-30. Once again, we're using the rankings from last year because, well, it just makes more sense to do it that way. It is silly to update your prospect reports every couple of months, and it would be a bit meaningless to try to integrate the 2009 draftees, and it's just more interesting to see how players have progressed based on what we thought about them at the time. We'll update the rankings at the end of the season.
21. Kyle Ginley: Kyle still hasn't shaken the injury bug, and it continues to plague him in 2009. Ginley has made just 5 appearances, and they have all been as a reliever. I'm not sure whether the switch to relief is permanent for the righty, or just a way to ease Ginley back into pitching, but he has always been a starter before. That said, relief work might suit Ginley, as he features a good hard fastball he controls very well but so-so secondary pitches. We'll have to keep an eye on him and see if he can stay healthy and how he progresses. At 22 there's still time.
22. Jonathan Talley: Talley swung a nice bat last year but it was repeating the GCL, which always has to be taken with a grain of salt. This season he has played in Lansing and hasn't hit much at all while playing catcher, 1st base, and DH. I haven't heard great things about his defense so he will need to hit, and that isn't happening yet. Still, he just turned 20 and has showed much-improved plate discipline this year, so that's a start.
23. Johermyn Chavez: Chavez had a bad year for Lansing last season but he was a teenager (he's 20 now) and this season has been much better. Thusfar, Chavez has hit .261/.329/.466 for Lansing, showing very impressive power for the Midwest League with 12 home runs, 12 doubles, and 5 triples this season. (Travis Snider only had 16 home runs for the Lugnuts in a full season at Lansing, though of course he was a year younger). He started the season on a tear but had a pedestrian June (.777 OPS) and July has been very slow. Still, it has been a productive season for the 20-year old.
24. Zach Dials: Dials was converted to a reliever last season and that seemed to be a good move for the young pitcher. This season, he began in New Hampshire, but was demoted to Dunedin after experiencing control problems (he had a 3.12 ERA in 8 games in AA, but 6 walks and just 4 strikeouts in 8 2/3 innings). He has been Dunedin's closer and has done quite well, with a 12/1 K/BB ratio over 18 1/3 innings, 9 saves, and a 2.45 ERA, getting plenty of grounders. Still, at nearly 24, Dials needs to get back to AA sooner rather than later.
25. Joel Collins: Collins, a Toronto native, was released by the Jays before the season even started. He was snapped up by the Pirates organization and is putting up pedestrian numbers for their high-A affiliate.
26. Kenneth Wilson: Wilson, a 2008 draftee, started the season in Lansing to get everyday at-bats but is now back down with the Jays' rookie-league team. He only has a handful of at-bats for the GCL Jays, but he obviously wasn't ready for Lansing. Still, he just turned 19 in January so there's certainly no shame in that.
27. Moises Sierra: Sierra was a guy the Jays took a legitimate look at in Spring Training (not for a roster spot, of course) and the 20-year old outfielder has really shown why thusfar this season, hitting .336/.408/.466 for Dunedin, pretty impressive numbers. He has only 4 home runs but 17 doubles and 2 triples already, so the power is there. Sierra has also improved his baserunning, with 7 steals to 1 caught stealing after being caught half the time last season. He started hot, cooled off in a big way in May, but came roaring back in June (.974 OPS) so it's great to see one of our legitimate position-player prospects hitting this well (there certainly haven't been many).
28. Mark Sobelewski: Soba, a 2008 draftee, was assigned to Lansing this season and he has progressed steadily, if unspectacularly. He raised his walk rate from 2.9% last season (at Auburn) to 9.3% so far this season while lowering his K rate by a similar amount. He is showing some more power than he did with 14 doubles, though he has just 2 home runs. May was a solid month for him but June was awful (.495 OPS), depressing his overall numbers, so he is looking to bounce back. He'll be 23 in December, so he'll need a good second-half to retain prospect status.
29. Andrew Liebel: Liebel, another 2008 draftee, was very good for Auburn last summer and so was assigned to Dunedin this year. The 23-year old has mostly been quite good, putting up solid K numbers and striking out more than 3 batters for each one he walks. He has been the victim of some suspect defense, but is progressing relatively well, all things considered. That said, as a polished-type college arm, he should probably be doing even better.
30. Jonathan Del Campo: Del Campo wasn't all that great for Auburn last season and has really struggled in Lansing this year, with a .212/.238/.280 line. The former 20th round pick improved last season as the year went on, so he'll try for a big 2nd half, but he could find himself back in Auburn now that short-season has started up.
As we have for the last two reports, this one borrows its title from "In My Time of Need" by Ryan Adams - let's hope the second half shows that the Jays have some solid players hidden in the low minors.