Jays farm system coverage with a focus on MLB prospects and the MLB draft. Striving to make analytics more accessible and accepted. Contributor:
@JaysJournal
Ricky Tiedemann’s rehab start is done and hopefully it’s his last.
3 IP
1 H
0 ER
0 BB
9 K
50 pitches
He hit 97 a bunch. There’s absolutely nothing for him to prove at this level. Please just let him stay healthy, we deserve a great homegrown pitcher.
The July Hitter of the Month is Davis Schneider. The 24 year old utility man put up these jaw dropping stats in July:
100 PA
.348/.540/.725
6 HR, 26 BB to 16 K
210 wRC+
Arjun Nimmala is a Toronto Blue Jay.
I’m thrilled, he was 9th on my board and has superstar upside but a long way to go (he’s just 17!).
Also just want to point out in my final mock draft I had the Jays taking Nimmala so I’m giving myself a pat on the back for that
Arjun Nimmala was transferred to the development list per the Blue Jays transactions page.
He was hitting .167 with a 34% strikeout rate. Single-A at 18 was always going to be a challenge but the consistency in his ABs has been a problem
Arjun Nimmala is at the Blue Jays Player Development Complex per his Instagram. He’s a native of the Tampa Bay Area so he will probably will be spending a lot of time there this off-season.
Why do people feel the need to tear down Varsho and Moreno for a trade they had no decision in? What’s done is done. I’ll always root for guys who were good Blue Jays and left with no ill intent. It reflects well on the farm system too
Brandon Barriera
3 IP
0 H
0 ER
0 BB
3 K
4 groundouts
Only threw 37 pitches so it’s pretty clear the Jays are being cautious with him after returning from injury. Look for that to bump up next start
Ricky Tiedemann is through 3 innings and 47 pitches at Single-A and has been flat out dominant.
3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
The 3 batted balls in play? 2 weak groundouts and a pop out. He’s sitting 94-97 with the heater and topped out at 97.6
#NextLevel
Low 90s with a butterfly knuckleball around 80 mph from
@Jpow98
🦋
With pitches that move like that, it's no wonder the Blue Jays had to sign him.
We're looking forward to seeing him continue to refine this into a true unicorn pitch.
PC:
@LA_Strom
#TreadFam
Unsigned draft picks that have added
@bluejays
to their Instagram bio over the last few days:
- Arjun Nimmala (1)
- Landen Maroudis (4)
- Connor O’Halloran (5)
- Nick Goodwin (7)
- Grant Rogers (11)
- Jackson Hornung (16)
- Aaron Munson (19)
Shoutout to Davis Schneider going 3-3 with a walk today. Not an unusual sight for those that have watched him with the Bisons but he’s showing he belongs
Addison Barger has another home run. Three run shot this time. He’s homered in back to back games. The Jays prospects are firing on all cylinders today.
I will say that the treatment of Spencer Horwitz has been pretty disgusting. If he can’t get a pinch hit opportunity against a RHP in these spots then why is here?
Merrifield has a 46 wRC+ since the start of July
Ricky Tiedemann’s 2nd start in the Arizona Fall League:
5 IP
2 H
2 ER
1 BB
6 K
15 whiffs on 69 pitches (21.7% SwSt%).
He has a 2.70 ERA and 23.7% K-BB% through 10 IP (2 Starts) in one of baseball’s toughest run environments
Blue Jays draft pick accounting so far
1. Arjun Nimmala $3,000,000 (+$746,000)
4. Landen Maroudis $1,500,000 (-$952,900)
7. Nick Goodwin $236,200 (+$2,500)
9. Sam Shaw $285,000 (-$109,100)
$313,500 over slot right now.
Total spendings: $5,021,200
Total draft pool: $6,529,700
1/5
The end of the Bisons game today marks the end of the MiLB calendar for the Toronto Blue Jays. I’ll cover the Arizona Fall League which will start
October 2nd.
They’ll be less activity on this account in the off-season. Thanks to everyone who followed and interacted this year.
Davis Schneider hit his 20th home run of the year today. He also added a 2B, 1B and BB to his total today. His OPS is up to .965. There’s not much left to prove for him at this level.
A long time coming Top 20 Jays Prospects Update. I haven't touched the list since May but I thought now seemed like a good time. I expanded to a Top 20 and still feel like I'm excluding people I wanted to mention.
Ask me anything!
Was listening to Baseball America's podcast and Geoff Pontes had this to say about Arjun Nimmala after seeing a bunch of FCL games in person:
"I thought he was really impressive. And I think you could even argue of the draftees I saw, Nimmala was maybe the most impressive bat"
Addison Barger
Pre-Injury
31.3% K%
9.6% BB%
Post-Injury
16.8% K%
15.2% BB%
The 140 wRC+ in August is nice but this is the real treat. I think he’s ready for a September call-up.
Orelvis Martinez through 12 games at Triple-A
.250/.351/.438
2 HR
22.8% K%
14.0% BB%
.351 wOBA
95 wRC+
Not where he wants to be in terms of quality of contact but he has continued to limit the strikeouts and draw walks. Solid start to Triple-A
Orelvis Martinez had been playing a lot more 2B than 3B to end the season and is also playing 2B now in the Dominican League. I wanted to talk about where I think his future defensive home may be on the Blue Jays 🧵 (1/7)
And with this I'm making an announcement. I'm excited to be joining
@JaysJournal
as a contributor. You can expect the same quality and quantity of articles from me but they'll be on rather than my Medium blog from now on. (1/2)
If this is it for Ricky Tiedemann's MiLB season it was a great way to cap it off.
4 IP
2 H
0 ER
2 BB
6 K
75 pitches
He looked in control. Great feel for his slider today and was spotting his fastball like he normally does when he's right. Leaned on his changeup more at the end
Bowden Francis has been excellent at Triple-A and that continued today.
4 IP
3 H
1 ER
2 BB
6 K
Considering the offensive environment at the level, a 2.88 ERA is absolutely stellar
Orelvis Martinez came into the game as a pinch hitter for Horwitz who was hit by a pitch. He went 3-5 with a double and a home run.
The Bisons are up 14-2
Shouldn’t be a surprise given the speculation but
#1
Jays prospect Ricky Tiedemann has been promoted to AAA
#NextLevel
His AA stats:
32 IP
5.06 ERA | 2.12 FIP | 2.48 xFIP
16.31 K/9 | 5.63 BB/9 | 0.28 HR/9
.415 BABIP
37% Whiff%
34.30% CSW%
57.6% LOB%
Quick scouting report on new Jays pitching prospect Chris McElvain
- 23 y.o RHP
- 3.75 ERA in 96 IP across A/A+
- 93 MPH fastball with good characteristics, average pitch
- A slider is most used secondary
- Throws a changeup, curveball, and a sinker as well
- Average control
Another big night for Davis Schneider. He went 3-3 with 2 doubles and a walk. His OPS is up to .972. If the Jays are looking to trade him ahead of the deadline he’s making quite the impression on rival scouts
Congrats Davis Schneider!
Here’s the scouting report on my 7th ranked prospect:
- Hits the ball hard often and when he does it’s often in the air
- Good barrel and sweet spot accuracy
- Takes his walks (18.4%) but not a high average guy
- Can play 2B, 3B, LF, 1B
Davis Schneider is indeed en route to Boston, per source. He’s not on the 40-man roster so Blue Jays will need to make a move there.
Amazing story for the 28th-rounder in 2017, whose power numbers picked up at Buffalo. Mostly played 2B/LF this year with reps at 1B, 3B and RF.
Orelvis Martinez with a home run off the Pirates’ Jared Jones who’s a Top 100 prospect himself.
This was 109.6 MPH off the bat which I believe is the hardest ball he’s hit since arriving at Triple-A
Congratulations to the Vancouver Canadians. Northwest League Champions.
10 runs to win it.
Martinez 3-5
Spain 3-5, 2 2B
Goodwin 1-2, BB, HR
Doughty 2-5, 2 2B
Jennings 3 IP 0 ER 5 K
On a night when many closed the book on the 2023 Blue Jays, Addison Barger and Orelvis Martinez both hit home runs.
Look for them to be a part of the plan for 2024 and hopefully add some much needed pop and life to the team.
Congratulations to Bowden Francis on his first big league win tonight. He’s struggled with the long ball as expected but he looks like he belongs.
I’m glad it looks like we might have our first prospect success story in quite some time now
Just touching on the Soto rumours, I’d really hope they don’t include Tiedemann for one year of Soto. I LOVE the idea of extending him but from what we’ve heard he’s 100% testing free agency. With that being said, everyone else should be on the table.
My August Hitter of the Month is Jace Bohrofen of the Dunedin Blue Jays who put up these monster numbers:
14 G
64 PA
.333/.469/.765
6 HR / 4 2B
13 BB / 11 K
Keith Law: Brandon Barriera showed up to camp heavier than anticipated (and then subsequently hit the IL with an elbow issue). Chatter is that the Blue Jays might be weary of taking another high school pitcher in Round 1
I don’t normally post pitcher stat lines until the end of the outing but I’ll make an exception tonight. Adam Macko is dominating.
4 IP
1 H
0 ER
0 BB
8 K
Blue Jays hitters in the Arizona Fall League:
Damiano Palmegiani .400/.536/.650
Dasan Brown .333/.368/.500
Will Robertson .250/.478/.375
That’s 8th, 21st and 23rd in qualified OPS amongst 68 hitters. With Tiedemann dealing it’s a perfect start for the Fall Blue Jays
Arjun Nimmala’s day in the FCL:
1-3, 2 BB, 1 K
It’s only 16 PAs but he’s already walked 5 times. For someone who was characterized as having pitch selection and chase concerns this is a great sign. As he shows maturity in his approach, everything else will open up.
16 y/o Venezuelan SS Kennew Blanco is expected to sign with the Blue Jays in the January IFA window.
There was some confusion about his eligibility but I’ve since confirmed that he’s eligible for this year. His June 21st birthday is ahead of the cut off.
Orelvis Martinez’s hit tool 📈
At AAA:
28.0 O-Swing% (chase rate)- MLB average is 30%
84.3 Z-Contact% (in zone contact rate) -MLB average is 87%
29.3 Whiff%- MLB average is 23.3%
He’s never going to be a good contact guy but his new found discipline pairs nicely with his power
Jace Bohrofen makes it 3 home runs in 3 Single-A games. I had him as a Round 3 target for us and we got him in the 6th. He’s been very very impressive so far
Spencer Horwitz goes way deep (109 MPH, 421 ft) in his first MiLB plate appearance of the season. And it was off a pretty good prospect in Will Warren.
Hagen Danner scouting report:
High 90s fastball that gets good ride on it. He pairs that with a good slider that tunnels nicely with the heater and mixes in a curveball. 25.2% K-BB% is excellent but he’s struggled with the home run. A 26.7% HR/FB is ridiculously high.
Since returning to Triple-A, Addison Barger has a 109 wRC+ (.839 OPS) with a lowly .266 BABIP.
Let's compare the 3 true outcomes:
11.5 BB%, 31.0 K%, 1.15% HR% PRE-INJURY
15.7 BB%, 20.1 K%, 4.48% HR% POST-INJURY
He's making more contact and continues to smoke the ball.
Arjun Nimmala has 11 walks in 7 professional games. He has walked in every game he’s played.
1
1
1
2
3
1
2
Some of this is FCL pitching and it’s obviously only 7 games but I can’t say I expected this at all.
The guys over at MLB Pipeline who are broadcasting tonight just said that they’d bump Palmegiani at least to a 45 grade defender (he was at at 40) and that he’s improved as a defender this year
My
#15
prospect Connor Cooke goes three up three down with 2 Ks.
He lead with a 95 MPH fastball (was 94 MPH last year). Showed off the nasty slider. Spotted his changeup for called strikes.