Dalton Pompey promoted to Double-A by Toronto Blue Jays

In what was likely a slightly overdue promotion, the Toronto Blue Jays have advanced Mississauga native Dalton Pompey to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats.

Pompey, 21, has seen his stock skyrocket this season after making quick work of the Florida State League with an .868 OPS and 29 stolen bases. He was named the best center fielder in all of minor league baseball last season with the Low-A Lansing Lugnuts and has now become arguably one of the Toronto Blue Jays top five prospects.

Many thought Pompey would be advanced after the mid-season break with Daniel Norris and Derrick Chung but the presence of Kenny Wilson in New Hampshire potentially hindered the opportunity for the Jays to play both players every day. Pompey is the much more highly regarded prospect but Wilson, who was on the Blue Jays 40-man roster to start the season, might not be worth giving up on quite yet.

I’m not sure what will be the plan with Wilson as the Fisher Cats currently have Mike Crouse, Jonathan Jones and Matt Newman also as members of their outfield. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Wilson shifted to left and Jones left as the odd man out and will either be demoted or released.

It should be interesting to see how Pompey fares at Double-A against a much higher level of competition. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him get off to a slow start but if he continues to rake the prospect world could soon be buzzing even more about the potential of Dalton Pompey.

Pompey is Rule 5 eligible after this season and will likely be added to the Blue Jays 40-man roster after the season is over. How well he does in New Hampshire and then Buffalo will likely determine how long until he has a chance to crack Toronto’s roster but he could be playing with the Jays by the end of 2015.