Blue Jays 2016 Top Prospects #26: Roemon Fields

Blue Jays outfielder Roemon Fields dashes into the 26th spot on our countdown.  Fields edges his was just past Chad Girodo who landed in the 27th spot, Deiferson Barreto at 28, Evan Smith at 29 and Freddy Rodriguez at 30.  Jays Journal will continue to countdown our Top-30 Prospects each day until we run out of talent. You can also take a look at which players just missed our countdown here for part 1 and here for part 2.

Fields is a rare talent that surprisingly happened to miss being drafted. Fields was picked up by the Blue Jays as a non-drafted free agent on August 27, 2013.  His talents have had him all over the Jays system in the past couple of years.  He originally started his career with the Vancouver Canadians and bolted his way into the top prospect conversation from there.

Name: Roemon Fields
Position: OF      Age: 25
Height: 5’11”      Weight: 180
Throws: L     Bats: L
Acquired: Non-Drafted Free Agent

Fields got off to a good start as he proceeded to drive pitchers mad with his legs in the Northwest League.  In his debut season he stole an incredible 48 bases in 72 games. He would go on to have a .269/ .338/ .689 slash rating while hitting 13 doubles, four triples, one homer, and driving in 26.  Pretty good for a debut in the short season league.  While doing some research I learned that Fields was working at a post office when he was signed by the Jays just over two years ago.  After delivering in his first season with the Jays Organization he would go on to showcase himself well in 2015.

Fields made his way through all the major stops in the Blue Jays system in 2015.  He started off in Dunedin where he continued to improve as he put up similar numbers at the A+ level with the D-Jays.  Through 66 games he showed that he can handle the pitching at the level to the tune of a .269 batting average.  He would also collect 10 doubles, four triples and a homer.  He also managed to steal another 21 bases as he continues to form his craft of base stealing.

Next stop ws New Hampshire to play with the Fisher Cats.  Fields came out of the gate strong as he batted .351 in his first 22 games with the team.  During those first 22 games he had hit safely in 18 of them and pushed his was into the top of the Cats attack.  The league would make some adjustments and Fields numbers would level out at a .257 batting average.

Even though the batting average fell he was able to steal another 23 bases in just 49 games.  He also showed that he has all the tools to be an everyday center fielder as he collected fielding percentages of .989 (Dunedin) and .990 (New Hampshire) in a total of 108 games at the position, good for an RF/9 of 2.63 across all levels.

The Fisher Cats were happy to have Fields as they pushed themselves into the playoff hunt in early July.  The Cats would not show up for much of the remainder of the season, though.  Most of this could be attributed to the amount of talent the Jays organization traded away at the trade deadline, but Fields shined within the added opportunity.

Fields would end the 2015 campaign in Buffalo with the AAA Bisons. He would only make his way into six games but was able to scrounge together 5 hits with three walks and two stolen bases. Fields continued after the regular season was over with and went to the Arizona Fall League and played for the Salt River Rafters.  He played in 23 games in which he batted .253 with 2 doubles, 4 triples, 11 RBI and scored 10 runs. Once again, his speed is what stood out as he stole 14 bases. Stealing 14 bases in that many games is impressive, but he was also caught 7 times.  This just shows that he needs to work on reading the game better so he can pick the right spots to steal.

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Fields has all the right tools to be an above average center fielder in his career. His incredible speed will allow him to get to some balls that many wouldn’t even get dream of catching. His arm and actual fielding skills may not be as dynamic but his athletic ability will make both of those look much better as his range may be unmatched.

Fields is never going to be a huge home run hitter but it appears but he has the look of a typical leadoff hitter if he can develop his on-base tool. He understands that his role is to get on base, steal a bag and score runs. He has a good swing that will continue to develop to drive well to the gaps as he blazes around the bases. Fields is a player that can stretch an everyday single into a double with some ease.

The lefty has a great work ethic and learns quick. This has been stated by multiple coaches as he has moved up the ranks in the Jays system. Now that the Jays logjam in the outfield has been streamlined it might not be a far stretch to say that Fields gets an extra look this Spring in Dunedin, at least for a prominent role in Buffalo.

Now that Ben Revere has been traded, the left field and reserve positions are open to competition. Could Fields be a dark horse candidate to steal a bottom spot on the roster, because Toronto could use some speed in the lineup or off the bench among all of the Mt. Crushmore thump? Even outside of the unlikely spring explosion, however, Fields is undoubtedly trending in the right direction.  Just remember that speed kills, and pitchers are easily agitated by it.