Sure, we feature a ton of prospects in our Top 50 lists each season, but as Yan Gomes has taught us recently, some of the least heralded prospects sometimes deserve just as much attention as the most heralded. Of all things, we shouldn’t take their accomplishments lightly, whether it’s a hot streak, a promotion, or a great half season!

One such prospect is none other than Lansing’s Kevin Pillar, one of my favourite dark horse Jays prospects. You can follow him on Twitter: @KPILLAR4.

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Joe Musgrove is another big-bodied pitcher from the 2011 Draft. (East County Sports)

Starting pitcher / 19 years old / 6′5″ 230 lbs

Born: December 4, 1992 in El Cajon, California

Bats: Right Throws: Right

High School: Grossmont (El Cajon, CA)

College: Had committed to San Diego State University prior to signing with the Jays

Acquired: Drafted by the Blue Jays in the 1st round (46th overall) of the 2011 Amateur Draft, signed for $500,000 on June 9, 2011

Pre-2011 Rank: N/A

Quick Facts:

• Was ranked 16th in the state of California by Perfect Game just before the 2011 Draft
• Grew up a fan of the San Diego Padres
• Also played varsity football and basketball in high school
• Follow him on Twitter: @musgrove23Jays
• Was the compensation pick obtained by the Blue Jays when free agent catcher John Buck signed with the Marlins

Career stats:

GCL Blue Jays team ranking (min. 3 GS):

• 2nd in H/9 (7.1) and WHIP (0.969)
• T-2nd in BB/9 (1.7) and fewest walks allowed (4)
• T-3rd in starts (7)
• 6th in in innings pitched (21.2)
• 8th in ERA (4.57)
• 9th in K/9 (6.6)

Scouting report:

A big-bodied right-handed pitcher from Grossmont High school in California, 6-foot-5, 230-pound Joe Musgrove already had a durable pitcher’s frame when he was drafted last year as an 18-year-old. Ranked 90th-best in the 2011 draft crop by Baseball America, the Blue Jays took Musgrove with the 46th-overall selection, higher than anybody had anticipated, including Musgrove himself.

Two other AL East teams, the Rays and the Orioles, were reportedly interested in drafting Musgrove, largely because of his plus fastball and projection to be a workhorse, 200-inning starter in the big leagues. His fastball sat consistently in the low 90′s last season, ranging from 90-96 mph and even touching 98 once. Musgrove also made changes to his workouts over the winter in hopes of adding a few ticks to the pitch, so it will be interesting to see what he’s clocked at when short season ball starts in late June.

Velocity isn’t the only thing with Musgrove’s fastball, though, since it has great movement with tremendous sink, and he will regularly use a two-seam variation of the pitch, especially against left-handed hitters. Musgrove also possesses above-average command of his fastball as well, something he quickly discovered had to be harnessed more often in pro ball after being able to blow his fastball anywhere over the plate to inexperienced hitters in high school.

Musgrove complements his impressive fastball with a a high-70′s hammer curveball, considered to be his best secondary pitch that currently grades as major-league average but has plus potential. He also boasts a low-80′s split changeup that is considered a work in progress. It’s been reported that Musgrove has prioritized working on his changeup and even switching to a circle grip, and considering the importance of a the pitch to Blue Jays coaches, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a much-improved changeup from Musgrove early on this season. The main issue the 19-year-old has with his changeup right now is inconsistent command, which is expected for a young pitcher right out of high school.

Musgrove signed quickly last year and was able to log eight starts, seven for the Gulf Coast League Blue Jays and one with Bluefield after a late-season promotion. On top of just getting accustomed to pro ball, the California native worked on keeping the ball down in the zone and repeating his delivery, two things that he’ll continue to work on this season.

Musgrove has a fantastic work ethic and takes instruction very well, so I’m interested to see the improvements that he’s made to his game after an entire off-season and extended spring training. It’s likely that he’ll pick up where he left off with Bluefield to open the year, but an assignment to Vancouver isn’t out of the question, either, and once the necessary improvements have been made to his off-speed pitches he could see a late-season promotion to Class-A Lansing.

Expected 2012 team: Bluefield Blue Jays (Rookie)

Ultimate ceiling if he puts it all together: No. 3-4 starter

-JM

No. 27: Roberto Osuna

Pitcher / 17 years old / 6′2″ 230 lbs

Born: February 7, 1995 in Juan Jose Rios, Mexico

Bats: Right Throws: Right

High School: N/A

College: N/A

Acquired: Signed by the Blue Jays as an international free agent on August 30, 2011 for $1.5 million

Pre-2011 Rank: N/A

Quick Facts:

• Nephew of former Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Antonio Osuna
• Nicknamed “little canon” after his uncle’s nickname “El Canon”
• The second-youngest pitcher in Mexican League history
• His father, of the same name, also pitched in the Mexican League
• Is the first Mexican free agent to be signed by the Blue Jays
• Was initially expected to sign for $4 million

Career stats:

Video:

Osuna striking out the side (starting at the 0:23 mark) in the Lansing Lugnuts’ annual Crosstown Showdown, April 5, 2012:

Scouting report:

In the summer of 2010, the Blue Jays heavily scouted 15-year-old Mexican pitcher Luis Heredia, going down to the wire in their attempt to sign him once he had turned 16 and was eligible to ink a contract. One of the top international prospects available at the time, as many as seven teams were interested in Heredia and it was reported that the Jays offered the highest bid at $2.8 million.

But the Pittsburgh Pirates, having already known Heredia for over 10 years and possessing strong ties to Veracruz, his team, wound up winning the bid and left the Blue Jays virtually empty-handed, something that the Jays surely weren’t going to let happen again if another young Mexican prospect emerged in the future.

So months later, when 15-year-old Roberto Osuna was already touching 94 mph on the radar gun, then-Blue Jays international scout Marco Paddy was made signing him a priority after being easily impressed. The funny thing, though, was that Osuna somewhat came to the Blue Jays himself.

“You’re with the Blue Jays, right? I know you scouted Luis Heredia, I want you to scout me this year,” Osuna said to Paddy at the time, according to a Toronto Sun article.

That didn’t mean that there wasn’t a list of teams competing with the Jays to sign Osuna, as it was reported that as many as 200 people from more than 10 teams would watch him pitch.

The day Paddy met Osuna for the first time, he pitched in an under-16 international tournament where he allowed a pair of earned runs with 13 strikeouts in seven innings, finishing that tournament with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 20:2. Already pitching at a Double-A level according to Paddy, Osuna signed with the Mexican League’s Mexico City Reds shortly after the tournament.

The highest level of baseball in Mexico and considered Triple-A/professional-level, the Mexican League is comprised of grown men and former major leaguers with an average age of over 29. That didn’t stop a 15-year-old Osuna, playing for Mexico City, the most acclaimed and popular team in the league, from holding his own against players well into their 30s.

In 13 games, Osuna gave up 12 earned runs on 25 hits in 19 2/3 innings for a 5.49 ERA, with 11 walks and 12 strikeouts. He struck out the first batter he faced swinging and two of his first three, while becoming the second-youngest pitcher in Mexican League (Liga Mexicana de Beisbol) history at 16 years, two months. Pitching well beyond his age and already mixing up his pitches, the Blue Jays had seen enough and offered Osuna a $1.5 million bonus when he became eligible to sign in July of last year. The Jays made sure to make the most lucrative offer — as Mexican League clubs pocket 75% of the amount with the player getting the rest — and in the end, they got their man.

It’s easy to see why the Blue Jays and more than 10 other organizations were so impressed with Osuna. Having just turned 17 in January, the right-hander has a quick arm with a smooth delivery and an advanced feel for pitching. His fastball velocity has been inconsistent, ranging from 88-94 mph, but he apparently hit a minimum of 92 with it while pitching for the Lansing Lugnuts in their Crosstown Showdown last month. The fastball has mild arm-side movement and projects to be a plus pitch with the potential to be graded even higher down the road, considering he’ll almost certainly add velocity to it.

Complementing his fastball is a 72-77 mph, 11/5 curveball/slider (slurve) that projects to be an above-average to plus pitch, though a lot of work will be needed to reach that. Still, the pitch was rumored to consistently sit in the low-80s last month with good two-plane movement, so it appears that Osuna has already made improvements to the pitch since signing almost one year ago. He also shows a good feel for a 77-80 mph changeup that, according to Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus, has splitter-like movement with some late drop.

Osuna throws from a high three-quarter arm slot with a high leg kick and, although not a concern given the fact that he’s just 17 years old, he tips his off-speed pitches by either slowing his delivery, throwing from a different arm slot, or fumbling with the grip in his glove. The main knock on Osuna is his immature and somewhat overweight body, which I can confirm after seeing him in spring training in March. Even though I had read scouting reports on Osuna before, I was surprised at the thickness of Osuna’s frame in person, so his coaches will surely keep an eye on his conditioning going forward.

Given his age and his proximity to the majors, Osuna is a very raw prospect and could go down a variety of different paths in his development. Baseball America considered the risk on Osuna extreme, but since pitchers at his age don’t come around every day, the reward could very well be extreme as well.

2012 team: GCL Blue Jays (Rookie)

Ultimate ceiling if he puts it all together: No. 3 starter

-JM

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No. 28: Joel Carreno

Pitcher / 25 years old / 6′2″ 220 lbs

Born: March 7, 1987 in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic

Bats: Right    Throws: Right

High School: N/A

College: N/A

Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free-agent by the Blue Jays on October 11, 2004

Pre-2011 Rank: 21

Quick Facts:

• Name is pronounced Jo-elle Carr-ehn-eeoh
• 2008 New York-Penn League Mid-Season All-Star
• 2008 New York-Penn League Pitcher of the Week for July 6-12
• 2011 Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for May 16-22
• 2011 Eastern League Mid-Season All-Star

Career stats:

New Hampshire Fisher Cats team ranking (min. 5 GS):

• 1st in losses (9), starts (23), innings pitched (134.2), hit batters (12), walks (68), wild pitches (16) and strikeouts (152)
• 2nd in H/9 (6.3) and K/9 (10.2)
• T-2nd in wins (7) and home runs allowed (12)
• 3rd in hits allowed (100)
• 5th in ERA (3.41) and WHIP (1.25)
• 8th in K:BB (2.24)
• 10th in BB/9 (4.5)

Scouting report:

Coming off of a breakout 2010 campaign that saw him finish second in the High-A Florida State League with 173 strikeouts (including a league-record 15 in one six-inning game), Joel Carreno moved further up the minor league ladder in 2011, pitching in two different roles.

As a starter with Double-A New Hampshire, Carreno stumbled out of the gate last season to the tune of a 6.56 ERA in five April starts and gave up eight home runs in only 23 innings because of, like the year before, failing to mix up his pitches enough.

He bounced back with a lights out May, where he allowed just four earned runs in five starts, nearly doubling his strikeout total from the month before but issuing 21 walks in just under 32 innings . His best start of the season came on May 28, when he fanned a season-high 11 batters while allowing just two hits in seven scoreless innings.

Carreno generates so many whiffs because of his plus slider, an offering that sits in the low-80s and is particularly nasty against right-handed hitters. It’s easily his best pitch, to the point where he overuses it and relies on it when he runs into trouble. He complements the slider with an 89-94 mph fastball that has late life, though he runs into bouts of inconsistency with it and has trouble finding the strike zone with it. A two-pitch pitcher for the majority of his career, Carreno added a mid-80s changeup just over one year ago in an effort to diversify his arsenal, but the pitch is an average offering at best right now.

Carreno continued to pitch well for the Fisher Cats through the summer, and although he issued his fair share of walks in the process, he used his slider to rack up the strikeouts and give his team a chance to win every time he was out on the mound. Making the infamous jump between High-A and Double-A, Carreno maintained his very good strikeout rate at 10.2 per nine innings while giving up a career-low 6.7 hits per nine, but was more wild than he has ever been in the past, easily leading his team in hit batters (12), wild pitches (16) and walks (68), with the latter averaging out to a career-high 4.5 per nine frames.

Given the Blue Jays’ emphasis on developing and using a changeup, some of  Carreno’s wildness last season could possibly be attributed to his coaches and the organization forcing him to rely less on his slider and use his changeup and fastball more. Regardless, what you get from Carreno is straightforward: an overpowering slider that will pile up strikeouts, but bouts of inconsistency and wildness combined with his inability to mix up pitches as much as he should raises questions about his ability to stick as a starter.

The Blue Jays might have felt the same way, as Carreno made his major league debut out of the bullpen after being called up in late August last year. After issuing three walks and giving up eight hits, including a home run in four August appearances (7 1/3 innings), he allowed just three hits over his final seven appearances with nine strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings. Overall, Carreno finished with a 1.15 ERA in 15 2/3 innings in his first big league stint, demonstrating that he could be a valuable reliever down the road.

2012 team: Las Vegas 51s/Toronto Blue Jays

Ultimate ceiling if he puts it all together: Setup man, possible closer

Despite having already started for both the Jays and Triple-A Las Vegas this season, Carreno currently finds himself back in the bullpen after replacing left-hander Evan Crawford, who was optioned to Triple-A yesterday. I’d like to see the Jays continue to try and market Carreno as a starter, but the fact that he has MLB experience will help his trade value regardless and I wouldn’t be surprised if he was shipped out of town in a package by Opening Day 2013.

Should he still be around and in the picture, though, he’d slot nicely into a Blue Jays bullpen that should see Darren Oliver, Francisco Cordero and even Jason Frasor all depart over the offseason.

-JM

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The short article is definitely worth a read, as it has quotes from Jimenez, LaCava and current Blue Jays reliever Evan Crawford, who spent only a few weeks with Jimenez at Double-A New Hampshire this season prior to getting called up to Toronto but raved about the catcher, saying that “he’s one of the most athletic people I’ve ever met in my life” and that “he’s going to be something special.”

Coming off of an impressive 2011 campaign that saw him set new career-highs in doubles (29), walks (28), batting average (.303) and on-base percentage (.353) in a career-high 102 games, Jimenez is off to a slow start offensively with New Hampshire this season with a .236 average and .585 OPS in 14 games but has, however, already caught six of 13 basestealers for a 46% mark.

More importantly, Jimenez has been reunited with Fisher Cats manager Sal Fasano, as the pair developed a special bond when they were previously together in 2010 with the Class-A Lansing Lugnuts.

Getting to know him both as a player and a person, Fasano not only had high praise for Jimenez but taught him the intricacies of being a catcher, including how to frame pitches. Another year under Fasano this season should only help Jimenez continue to grow.

Here’s a clip of Jimenez making a tag at home during Arizona Fall League play in 2009:

- JM

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Now, making his full season debut as a member of a dominant Lansing Lugnuts starting rotation, Syndergaard hasn’t allowed an earned run in three outings, with 14 strikeouts to three walks in nine innings of work. He has been working hard on developing his curveball, and I was able to catch up with the big Texan this week in Lansing to discuss the progress that he’s made on the pitch, prospect hype, velocity and much more.

The video below was taken from the third inning of Syndergaard’s start this past Monday, when he racked up his sixth strikeout of the night (fourth swinging) after retiring South Bend Silver Hawks designated hitter Gerson Montilla with a curveball. Even if Montilla hadn’t swung so far out in front of the pitch, it would have been a called third strike on the outside corner of the plate at his knees.

-JM

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No. 29: Griffin Robert Murphy

Starting pitcher / 21 years old / 6′3″ 200 lbs

Born: January 16, 1991 in Highland, California

Bats: Right Throws: Left

High School: Redlands East Valley (Redlands, CA)

College: N/A

Acquired: Drafted by the Blue Jays in the 2nd round (61st overall) of the 2010 Amateur Draft

Pre-2011 Rank: 19

Quick Facts:

• Was scouted by every AL East team except the Orioles
• Went 11-1 with a 1.35 ERA in 73 innings (15 games) as a high school senior, including 104 strikeouts and 20 walks for an uncanny 5:1 ratio
• Baseball America 2010 High School All-America 3rd Team selection
• In preparation for the rigors of a minor league baseball schedule, he was forced by his father to travel to baseball showcases and tournaments by himself and plan everything in advance

Career stats:

GCL Blue Jays team ranking (min. 25 IP):

• 1st in starts (11), hits allowed (48), runs (27) and home runs (6)
• 2nd in innings pitched (41.0)
• T-2nd in earned runs (20)
• 3rd in strikeouts (39)
• T-3rd in losses (2)
• T-4th in walks (16) and wild pitches (5)
• T-5th in wins (2) and HBP (3)

Video:

MLB.com draft video from 2010 can be found here

Extra Information and previous experience:

The Blue Jays selected the top-ranked high school lefty in the 2011 draft, but they also did so the year before when they took Southern California product Griffin Murphy, who significantly boosted his stock by upping his average fastball velocity by over three miles per hour and into the low 90s weeks before the draft.

Murphy has above-average command of his fastball, which is something that he was praised for prior to the draft given its rarity among high school pitchers. Against left and right-handed batters alike, Murphy can throw his primary offering inside, outside, high or low, consistently hitting spots with it when he needs to. He rounds out his standard starting pitcher’s repertoire with an improved mid-70s curveball and low-80s changeup that is still a work in progress.

Though he has room to improve both of his off-speed pitches, Murphy has shown that he’s been able to throw either of them for strikes on occasion, which bodes well against hitters in the lower levels of the minors, who typically sit on fastballs. Despite this, Murphy had some hiccups in his first taste of pro ball.

After working through the months of extended spring training in 2011, Murphy made his pro debut with the rookie-level Gulf Coast League Blue Jays in June. He overpowered opposing hitters in his first two starts, allowing three earned runs on six hits in nine innings with 14 strikeouts to only two walks, but ran into some trouble in five July starts when he struggled with his command. He issued seven walks, hit three batters and gave up five home runs in roughly 17 innings that month, before calming down in his final four starts of the year and allowing just one run in August.

Murphy finished the year overall with a 4.39 ERA/4.59 FIP in 11 starts, along with averaging over three walks and almost nine strikeouts per nine innings. He did, however, give up over 10 hits per nine as well — an underwhelming stat for an old-for-his-level pitcher facing inexperienced and much younger competition. Given the extreme uselessness of rookie ball numbers, though, it’s important to look at the reasons why Murphy didn’t have as dominant of a rookie-ball campaign as he would have liked.

As you can see in the MLB.com draft video via the link above, Murphy has a lot going on in his quirky delivery and, like the majority of young pitchers, repeating it has been an issue for him. Leaving balls up in the zone more often than not led to him getting hit hard in the middle of the season, and being able to throw downhill more consistently will be the biggest thing he’ll work on in 2012.

Having turned 21 in January without any experience above rookie ball, though, Murphy’s future is becoming cloudy. Failing to make a full season club this year and once again staying back in extended spring training means that he’ll have to impress at his first destination, likely short season-A Vancouver, to have any hopes of getting back on the radar, with a late-season promotion to Lansing almost a necessity at this point.

Expected 2012 team: Vancouver Canadians (Short-season A)

Ultimate ceiling if he puts it all together: No. 4 starter

People have seemed to give up on Murphy because of this, but after seeing him for the first time in spring training in March, I’m intrigued to watch how he fares this season. The pressure will be certainly on him, but as a hard worker with good pitchability, Murphy could make great strides this season, especially if his mechanical adjustments give his curveball–his out pitch–more bite.

-JM

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David Rollins should be an important part of the Lansing Lugnuts' rotation this season.

A 24th-round pick by the Blue Jays in last year’s draft and ranked No. 50 on our top 50 prospects list, Rollins signed quickly and put up good numbers in stints with rookie-level Bluefield and short season-A Vancouver in 2011. He was considered one of Toronto’s biggest steals in the 2011 draft, and after watching him pitch last night, it’s easy to see why.

After issuing a four-pitch walk to open the game, Rollins settled down and dominated the South Bend Silver Hawks for 4 and 1/3 innings. Throwing pitches similar in location to his first four, the 22-year-old induced a groundout and flyout in the first inning before getting a swinging strikeout on a high, low-90′s fastball.

Needing just eight pitches to retire the side in the top of the second inning, Rollins benefited from a double play ball that erased a leadoff single before striking out South Bend first baseman Bobby Stone on four pitches. After taking the first pitch for strike one, Stone, a left-handed batter, whiffed on a nasty changeup and took a high fastball for ball one before swinging right over the top of another changeup low and inside for strike three.

If he’s ever behind in the count, Rollins becomes more aggressive and goes right after the hitter, which is something I noticed after he missed high for ball one against Silver Hawks leadoff man Fidel Pena in the top of the third. After getting a swinging strike and three foul balls, not to mention firing a tough-to-lay-off slider low and inside for a ball, Rollins went back to his changeup for his third swinging strikeout of the night. After fouling off pitches to stay alive in a 1-2 count, South Bend shortstop Nick Gallego legged out an infield single in the next at-bat, which gave me the opportunity to pay closer attention to how Rollins pitches out of the stretch and how he works with a runner on base.

After throwing to first to check Gallego with the count 1-1, Rollins seemed to ignore him after that and focused solely on retiring Ender Inciarte at the plate. His delivery also seemed to imply that, as it was no different or quicker with a runner on than when the bases were empty — easy for baserunners to time. After Inciarte fouled off two pitches, Rollins used his changeup once again to register another swinging strikeout and strand the runner.

Rollins fell behind 3-0 to the next batter, Silver Hawks left fielder Tom Belza, and battled back to a full count with a pair of strikes low and inside, but Belza managed to rope a single to left field to put runners on first and second, prompting a mound visit from Lugnuts pitching coach Vince Horsman. Rollins escaped the inning unscathed, though, after fielding a comebacker to the mound and throwing to first for the final out.

Facing Helm once again in the top of the fourth, Rollins got ahead 1-2 on two swinging strikes, and after running the count full, he got Helm to ground out. Facing Canadian Marc Bourgeois next, Rollins threw strikes on the outside corner before getting him to chase a high fastball for the swinging strikeout. After retiring Bourgeois, a left-handed hitter, Rollins retired Roidany Aguila, a right-handed hitter, after that with yet another swinging strikeout.

Leading off the top of the fifth, Rollins worked himself into a full count on Bobby Stone before retiring him on a low and inside changeup for the second time. The next batter, Fidel Pena, also worked a full count, but managed to crank a single to center field. With a right-handed hitter on deck, Lugnuts manager John Tamargo headed to the mound, marking the end of Rollins’ night. Rollins finished with a line of 4.1 IP/4H/0R/1BB/7K.

In what was easily the most impressive start of his professional career, Rollins racked up a career-high seven strikeouts. Four were against left-handers and three against righties, and all seven came with the batter swinging. This was largely because he established his 92 mph fastball early and threw his changeup better than he ever has before. He worked inside and outside, high and low, regardless of a batter’s handedness, and mixed in a few sliders as well after not throwing a single one in his previous start.

What’s special and unique about Rollins, though, is the fast pace at which he operates on the mound. Keeping hitters guessing and on their toes, there were multiple times where I’d finish writing a quick note about one of his pitches and look up to see him already in his windup on the next. Consider him the anti-Josh Beckett.

I discussed Rollins’ fast pace with him after the game, where he also talked about his nasty changeup, researching the opposing lineup and pitching in a star-studded rotation. I’ve embedded the audio below:

-JM

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I disagree for two reasons. While Norris was indeed a high school draft pick, he played in the state of Tennessee where cold weather has no impact on the baseball season – he pitched 68.1 innings and struck out an otherworldly 123 batters in his senior year for Science Hill. Most pitchers are hard-pressed to reach the 60-inning plateau with a short season team like Bluefield or Vancouver, so by holding him back from full season ball, Norris will actually throw fewer innings in 2012 than he did in 2011. Barring injury, it’s rare to see a top pitching prospect go backwards in innings like Norris will this year. Second of all, how cool would it have been to see Norris join a rotation that already includes Noah Syndergaard, Justin Nicolino, and Aaron Sanchez? Lansing would have four of the top five pitching prospects in the system, giving them a historically talented pitching staff. I’m a big believer in having your best prospects develop and win together, as beyond the friendships and camaraderie they build, they can also improve their baseball skills by learning from each other. This is even more relevant with pitchers, as, for example, most Blue Jays fans would love for Nicolino share the secret of his devastating changeup with his teammates.

Obviously, the dream assignment never happened. Norris made an appearance with Lansing this month, but it was only during an exhibition game against the Michigan State Spartans. He returned to extended spring training shortly thereafter, where he’ll continue to work until the short season assignments are handed out in late June.

For the Lansing Lugnuts, Justin Nicolino is one of their best arms.

Even without the services of Norris, who I think, is the organization’s top pitching prospect, Lansing hasn’t missed a beat, moving to 7-0 after a 3-2 victory over West Michigan Thursday night. The pitching staff has been the story early on, as their combined 1.76 ERA leads the Midwest League.

In an effort to protect their talented young arms, the Blue Jays have employed a piggy-backing system with their pitchers. Justin Nicolino has been pitching in tandem with Aaron Sanchez, while Noah Syndergaard has been working with another impressive young arm, Anthony DeSclafani, a sixth round pick by the Blue Jays last June. One of the two will start the game, and will be immediately followed by the other after they get their work in. When their next turn in the rotation comes around, the order will be reversed, so each pitcher gets an opportunity to open the game fresh. As the month wears on and their arms have been better conditioned, the pitchers will cut the cord and begin working exclusively in their own games.

Needless to say, the strategy has been effective early on. In their 18 combined innings, they’ve allowed 1 earned run (0.50 ERA) and 16 base runners (10 H, 6 BB, 0.89 WHIP) while striking out 24 (12.00 K/9). It’s easy to quote small sample size –- and to be fair, it is only 18 innings –- but the scouting reports on the big three have been so glowing it’s possible they could take yet another step forward this season.

During Tuesday’s Blue Jays broadcast on Rogers Sportsnet, General Manager Alex Anthopoulos joined the booth for half an inning to discuss some of the early happenings in the minor leagues. One thing that was mentioned, and perhaps not emphasized enough, was that Aaron Sanchez has touched 98 mph already. This most certainly is news, as last season’s scouting reports -– including those by expert Keith Law -– had Sanchez touching 95-96 mph, not 98 mph, which is a very big number. It’s always been said that Sanchez has a ton of projection, and at only 19 years old, it appears he’s ready to fulfill it.

Nicolino has received plenty of praise as well, as during the April 5th edition of the “Up & In Podcast”, Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus chose him as one of his favorite prospects outside Kevin Goldstein’s top 101. During the two minutes or so of discussion, Parks mentioned that he had received a 70-future grade (also known as plus-plus) on Nicolino’s circle changeup from a scout, and that his velocity is already ticking up from his breakout 2011 season. He also mentioned that Nicolino could easily make the jump into the top 50 prospects in all of baseball next year.

Kevin Gray, a New Hampshire beat writer, had an opportunity to both watch and talk to Syndergaard at the minor league complex this spring, and came away very impressed. In an interview with the pitcher, Syndergaard confessed he had issues maintaining arm speed with his curveball in 2011, but that he’s already feeling better with it this year. Gray also spoke to Double-A manager Sal Fasano, who said a repeatable delivery will be the key for Syndergaard moving forward. Fasano mentioned that, from what he’d seen, the mechanics were already getting better.

The biggest question for Blue Jays and Lugnuts fans –- though for very different reasons -– is how long will these three pitchers be calling Michigan home? Nicolino will likely be the first to go, as he has the most polish and has the pitching intelligence of a wily big league veteran. I feel like he has a Drew Hutchison-like minor league run in him this year, and could easily close the year with Double-A. The two power pitchers are far more likely to spend a significant amount of time in Single-A working on their mechanics and command, but barring injury or implosion, both should see a summer promotion to High-A Dunedin, where they will finish the year. 2011 was the year that the three stuck their foot in the door, but 2012 could be the season in which they truly explode onto the prospect scene, and earn some well deserved recognition from fans and baseball people south of the border.

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No. 30: Moises Sierra

Moises Sierra has the best arm in the Jays' minor league system. (Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE)

Right fielder / 23 years old / 6′1″ 225 lbs

Born: September 24, 1988 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Bats: Right    Throws: Right

High School: N/A

College: N/A

Acquired: Signed by the Toronto Blue Jays as a non-drafted free agent on December 20, 2005

Pre-2011 Rank: 30

Quick Facts:

• 2009 Florida State League Mid-Season All-Star
• 2009 Florida State League Player of the Week (June 15th)
• 2009 Organizational Player of the Month (June)
• 2009 R. Howard Webster Award winner (High-A)
• 2011 Eastern League Mid-Season All-Star
• Runner-up to teammate Mike McDade in the 2011 Eastern League Home Run Derby

Career Stats:

New Hampshire Fisher Cats team stats ranking:

• 1st in hits (137) and GIDP (12)
• 2nd in games played (133), at-bats (495), runs (81), home runs (18), caught stealings (14) and HBP (12)
• T-2nd in sacrifice flies (4)
• 3rd in RBI (67), total bases (216), walks (39) and stolen bases (16)
• T-3rd in triples (3)
• 4th in slugging percentage (.436), batting average (.277) and OPS (.778)
• T-5th in on-base percentage (.342)
• 6th in strikeouts (93)
• 7th in doubles (19)
• T-7th in errors (4)

Interviews:

• Q & A at Bus Leagues Baseball
  

Video:

• Hitting one of his 18 home runs with New Hampshire last season:

Extra Information and previous experience:

After breaking out in 2009 with High-A Dunedin and going 12-for-34 (.353) in eight games following a late-season promotion to Double-A New Hampshire, Moises Sierra’s world came crashing down the following year when he was forced to miss the entire first half of the 2010 season after suffering a microfracture in one of his shins. When he finally resumed baseball duties, he then broke the hamate bone in one of his wrists, which sidelined him for the remainder of the season. By the time the offseason rolled around, all Sierra had to show for his 2010 campaign was a pair of 10-game stints with Dunedin and the Gulf Coast League Jays.

Finally healthy, Sierra spent all of last season with the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, making his presence known with a dynamite first two months. On top of hitting over .300 with an OPS above .800 in his first 46 games, he hit seven home runs — just two shy of his previous career-high of nine that he set in 130 games with Lansing back in 2008.

Sierra could not sustain his hot start as the season wore on, though, as he hit roughly .227 with an OPS below .700 over his next 55 games in June and July. He did, however, start improving his free-swinging approach against left-handers over the summer, and eventually worked his way out of his mid-season rut to put everything together and finish the year strong with a .308 average and an OPS right around .800 in his final 32 games.

When the Blue Jays signed Sierra back in 2005, he was viewed as a possible five-tool player. He was touted for his power potential, and after failing to impress in that aspect earlier in his career, he finally showcased his power last season with New Hampshire, setting a new career-high with 18 home runs.  He was also selected to participate in the Eastern League Home Run Derby last summer, where he made it to the finals and matched teammate Mike McDade shot-for-shot until the very end.

His power comes from excellent bat speed and a thick lower half that really lets him drive the ball, especially to his pull side. It was said that he was more confident at the plate and was seeing the ball better last season, but he could still benefit from continuing to work on his aggressive approach at the plate, which sometimes coaxed him to swing at pitches out of the zone.

Though Sierra’s bat is promising, he’s well-known for his work in the field. An above-average defender, Sierra’s trademark is his cannon of an arm, which is easily the best in the Jays’ minor league system and considered by some scouts to be the best in all of minor league baseball. Sierra’s presence in right field easily deters runners from tagging from any base, and most runners re-think the idea of running from first to third if the ball is anywhere close to him. Easily a plus-plus tool, Sierra’s arm is not only powerful but very accurate, to the point where one-hoppers from deep right field to third or home are the norm, with some arriving without a bounce at all.

While in Florida for one of the Jays’ spring training games against the Pirates at the beginning of March, I remember a play where Sierra caught a deep fly ball with a runner on second. The runner was Pirates infielder Josh Harrison, a relatively-quick runner for his size that has a 72% stolen base success rate in 111 minor league attempts. After deciding to tag, Harrison stopped dead in his tracks and returned to second after seeing the ball rocket right past him to Jays third baseman Brian Bocock on one-hop. Almost half of the section I was sitting in on the first-base side ‘oohed’ and ‘aahed’ after witnessing Sierra’s throw.

Initially projected to have good speed, stolen bases won’t factor much into Sierra’s game when he makes it to the big leagues. Although he has reached double digits in stolen bases in each of his full minor league seasons, Sierra has just a 62.6% success rate to show for his efforts, brought down considerably by his 16-of-30 showing in 2011. His baserunning instincts also factor into that percentage, considering he’s sometimes too aggressive on the base paths and can hurt his team with periodic lapses of judgment.

2012 Team: Las Vegas 51s (Triple-A)

Ultimate ceiling if he puts it all together: MLB everyday RF

Building off of a successful return to full-season ball in 2011, Sierra should see his offensive numbers improve this season from hitting in the Pacific Coast League and through working with 51s hitting coach Chad Mottola. Consistency will be key for him, though, as his offensive production tailed off midway through the season last year before recovering with a late surge near the end.

With speculation that Jose Bautista could move to first base in the near future, staying healthy will also be important for Sierra. He’s already on the 40-man roster and is the closest right fielder to the majors, with other notable outfielders down in High-A and lower.  At the very least, he’ll earn a September call-up to the Jays this year.

- JM

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