The Ghosts of Prospects Past 5 - June 8th

Welcome!

Being that it is Draft Day in the MLB today, this seems the perfect time for the first official, BBB sanctioned (or at very least not frowned upon) Ghosts of Prospects Past! Our bi-weekly look at all of the players and prospects that have since moved on from the Blue Jays organization and will haunt our dreams for years to come.

All the same mind numbing reminders of what might and could have been, only now it is on the front page and you don't have to search for it... Undetermined if that is a good thing or not, but we'll see.

For Part 4, click here. I'll be adding Yan Gomes to this list as of next week.

Stats for this article are from May 25th to June 7th.

Notes: For the new people, the offensive numbers are taken from that period because I believe a two weeks sample can be interesting for hitters and helps sort of track the ebbs and flow of the game, but defensive metrics are nearly useless at the small sample size of two weeks so all of the defensive metrics are Season totals.

ANTHONY GOSE - 11 GP
It appears as though Anthony's kingdom of BABIP inflation has come crashing down around him the last two weeks. With just a .188 BABIP in his last 11 games he's seen his slash sit at just .143/.182/.143 with a staggering -14 wRC+ for the period. Just six hits, no extra base hits in them, a stolen base and a caught stealing.

His defensive metrics have him 17th among CF's (26 qualified)  in UZR (-1.0) and 20th in RZR (.901) . For what it's worth, Kevin Pillar has a .952 and 0.8 RZR/UZR, respectively. They have played similar innings in CF, so it isn't an awful comparison.

Last 11 Games: .143/.182/.143 (-14 wRC+) and not much else.
Season: .289/.328/.399 (103 wRC+) with a HR, 10 doubles, three triples, 8 stolen bases

COLBY RASMUS - 10 GP
Colby! Well, to start, his numbers may have been inflated a little for hitting the ball to Chris Colabello yesterday, which I think is just a little selfish. Padding his stats hitting it to a defender who has no chance. Like that time he bunted on the shift...

Seriously, though. Colby has seen a bit of an uptick in his numbers this time through hitting .304/.385/.391 in his last 10. A little lacking on the power having hit no homers and 2 doubles. He has played a bit in every OF position this season so he doesn't actually qualify for any of them, but having played 213 innings in left, if we look at all LF's who have played minimum 210 he sits 15 of 24 in UZR (-1.6) and RZR (.892).

Last 10 Games: .304/.385/.391 (125 wRC+) with 2 doubles.
Season: .242/.308/.484 (121 wRC+) with 11 doubles, 8 HR's, 17 RBI's and a stolen base

BRETT LAWRIE - 12 GP
Alright, quick note for everyone, the fan who was hit with the piece of Lawrie's broken bat is expected to survive. I felt I should make not of this while discussing Lawrie and his last two weeks. So, positive news.

As we've established, Brett had a horrific start to the season. One of my earlier updates had him at -5 wRC. Since then he's been on fire! .310 average for this period, .341 OBP, he hit three homers for seven RBI's, scored 7 runs and earning a 166! wRC+. Since April 28th (the update I referred to was posted on the 28th) he has hit .321/.350/.478 and has a wRC of 137 in that time. If Lawrie stays hot and stays healthy, adding in Kendall Graveman's value (I'll get to him), maybe this ends up one of those rare win-win trades?

Oh, Billy Boy.

Last 12 Games: .310/.341/.595 (166 wRC+) with a three doubles and a three HR's.
Season: .285/.317/.411 (106 wRC+) with 11 doubles, 5 homers and two steals.

ERIC THAMES
In our bi-weekly look at Korean baseball league star Eric Thames, the former Jays LF (and J.P Ricciardi draft pick) is 2nd in the league in average (.360) and Tied for 1st in Homers with 19... Oh, and I know I point this out every time, but he's stolen three more bases since the last update. 15 on the season... I didn't think Thames had wheels...

Season: .360/.472/.788 with 19 HR, 18 doubles, 15 stolen bases, and 60 RBI

TRAVIS SNIDER - 10 GP
Another rough stretch for Snider, his overall numbers have taken about a 20 point hit in AVG and OBP after posting a .235/.278/.265 slash. He does have three hits in his last two games so perhaps a sign that he's coming out of it, but we won't know for sure until next update. His season totals still look fine enough, though the lack of power isn't encouraging. Right now, he's struggling, and it's mostly just upsetting as a Jays fan to see Travis not play well (though, admittedly, I'm a Thames fan and wanted Thames in LF... irrationally, of course).

Last 10 Games: .235/.278/.265  (52 wRC+) with a double.
Season: .260/.336/.341 (91 wRC+) with a single HR, five doubles, and a triple.

ADEINY HECHAVARRIA - 9 GP
There are some players whose names I just look for instinctively in a box score. In this case, it has everything to do with how much I dislike Reyes' defense at SS. I am, and have always been, a defense first guy. So much so that I've supported Ryan Goins on multiple occasions. But, I might compare and contrast Reyes/Hech in another article.

So, you can imagine how the last two weeks, when I see Hechavarria support a 156 wRC+ and a .323/.364/.581 slash and a HR, triple, and three doubles, have been on me. He's presently sporting a seven game hit streak, for whatever that information is worth.

Defensively, his UZR (4.3)  sits third behind Andrelton Simmons (4.6) and Nick Ahmed (5.2)... If you had to Google who Nick Ahmed was, don't worry, I did too. His RZR is .787 which is a more modest 11th (out of 26).

Last 9 Games: .323/.364/581 (156 wRC+) with three doubles, a triple,  six runs, and a HR
Season: .308/.338/.429 (108 wRC+) three homers, 11 doubles, and two triples. 30 runs scored.


JAKE MARISNICK - 11 GP
Jake Marisnick's early season success was the reason behind me starting this series. His season hasn't exactly held up to that early success. In his last 11 games he's hit just .185/.241/.333 with a 41.4% K-Rate. Just one double and one homer in this stretch. His UZR is -1.7 which is 20th (26 qualified) but his RZR (.921) is 14th.

Last 11 GP: .185/.241/.333 (61 wRC+), a double and a HR.
Season: .265/.305/.413 (101 wRC) with four homers, seven doubles, two triples and 10 stolen bases...

TRAVIS d'ARNAUD - INJURED

THE PITCHERS
NOAH SYNDERGAARD - 2 GP
Noah Syndergaard has made two starts since the last update and the numbers are ridiculous. 

As you may have seen, his start against the Padres last just 4 innings where he allowed 7 runs... He also had 10 K's, 0 walks, and a -1.54 xFIP... I didn't even know that was possible. I admit, this is where my ignorance into some of the advanced metrics come in, because he had a start that lasted 4 innings, he had an 15.75 ERA, an .818 BABIP, but FIP and xFIP tell me it was a fantastic start.

His other start, this one against Philly, is much easier to understand. 7.1 innings of shutout baseball. 6 K's.

Last 2 Starts: 1-1 record with 11.1 IP, 5.56 ERA, 1.44 FIP, and a 1.15 xFIP, 12.71 K/9
Season: 2-3 with a 3.77 ERA, 2.42 FIP, 2.92 xFIP, 10.05 K/9

SAM DYSON - 5 GP

So, he's human after all. Bit of a rough two weeks for Dyson. Hasn't pitched much, struggled with walks when he has. Overall, his season numbers are still fantastic and if he gets over this slump maybe he sees an All-Star team? I'm not sure, but  it is entirely possible and if he can shake off the last two weeks his numbers appear be A.S worthy.
Last 5 Games: 5 IP, 5.40 ERA, 3.91 FIP, 4.47 xFIP. 7.2 K/9, 5.40 BB/9
Season: 28.2 IP, 2.83 ERA, 2.52 FIP, 2.96 xFIP, 8.79K/9

KENDALL GRAVEMAN - 3 GP
Not a fantastic two week stretch but he's been very good since being called back up in May. Had a great start against Boston yesterday and has been a very solid piece for the A's. Part of the Donaldson trade, if he can be a solid back of the rotation starter the A's should be very happy with him. They may not make up for the value of Donaldson, but that won't also mean they won't have value for the organization.

Last 3 GP: 1-0 with 3.38 ERA, 4.29 FIP, 4.17 xFIP
Season: 3-2 with a 4.83 ERA, 5.06 FIP, 4.77 xFIP
Since Being Called Back Up (4 starts): 2-0 in 24.2 innings, 2.55 ERA, 3.88 FIP, 3.96 xFIP

HENDERSON ALVAREZ - INJURED
BRANDON MORROW - STILL INJURED