No. 39: Deivy Alexander Estrada

Starting pitcher / 19 years old / 5′11″ 175 lbs

Born: August 22, 1992 in Valencia, Carabobo, Venezuela

Bats: Right    Throws: Right

High School: N/A

College: N/A

Signed: As an international free agent by the Blue Jays in 2009

Pre-2011 Rank: 26

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I’ll be doing season-in-review posts separately for each affiliate in the coming days, instead of blending them in here.

Highlights include the Fisher Cats closing out the year with a three-game win streak, a tough walk-off loss for Dunedin to end the year, a pair of one run games with good pitching in Lansing, the Vancouver Canadians in playoff action in their first season, and a tough championship loss for Bluefield.

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Deivy Estrada (more…)

#26: Deivy Alexander Estrada

Right Handed Pitcher / 18 years old / 5’11″ 180 lbs

Born: August 22nd 1992, in Venezuela

Bats Right   Throws Right

High School Team: NA

College: NA

Signed: as an international FA out of Venezuela

Jersey Number: #57 for the GCL Blue Jays

Stats: (more…)

Just imagine what that rotation would have looked like if Roy Halladay had stuck around…….ugh. Can you say first place?

The following are my “Top 20 Jays Minors Starting Pitchers” that are stepping up the ladder and are providing wave after wave of pitching for the Jays. I have discounted Rzepczinsky and Mills as we know what they have to offer. As we all know, you can never have too much pitching, and health issues can quickly unravel even the best season.

1 – Kyle Drabek, 23 years old (this month), AA New Hampshire, 6’1″ 190 lbs, RHP (#1-3, 2011)

• 12-9/ 2.92 ERA/ 142 IP/ 110 hits allowed/ 54 walks/ 110 Ks/ .213 average against
• There is no doubt that Kyle may very well be one of the most highly touted Jays SP prospects to bless our system in quite a long time. Others who came up the ranks, such as Roy Halladay and Chris Carpenter, had a rougher time getting established. Kyle has the potential to be a true #2 pitcher, with the chance of being a #1. He has swing and miss stuff that drops off and tails away from hitters. RHB are hitting .198 against him, showing just how dominant he is against them, while lefties are only hitting a lowly .228 – not too shabby. There’s a reason Drabek was untouchable for a long time in the Doc Halladay deal, he’s a top fo the rotation starter that will be ready to take that role on full time -and for a full season innings wise – in 2011.

2 – Zach Stewart, 23 years old, AA New Hampshire, 6’2″ 205 lbs, RHP (#2-#4, 2011)

• 8-2/ 3.67 ERA/ 115.1 IP/ 108 hits allowed/ 48 walks/ 92 Ks/ .251 average against
• Sure, the Jays gave up Scott Rolen in acquiring Stewart, a player that could have helped bring the Jays to the playoffs this season, but the Jays will get many years of performance from Zach. He’s getting better as he gains confidence after being swithed from a RP to a SP, and now has a 2.54 ERA over his last 10 games with a lower .237 average against. He may need a little more seasoning than Kyle does in order to be successful in The Show, but he should be a more than adequate #3-4 once all is said and done.

3 – Asher Wojciechowski, 21 years old, SS Auburn DoubleDays, 6’4″ 235 lbs RHP (#2-3, 2012)

• 0-0/ 0.75 ERA/ 12 IP/ 6 hits allowed/ 4 walks/ 11 Ks/ .146 average against
• I’d love to slide Noah Syndergaard in here, but simply due to playing at a higher level and being more seasoned and closer to the majors, I went with Asher. He’s a big guy, strong, a workhorse that pounds the bottom of the zone on a great downward plane. He’s currently on the DL and will hopefully return before the season ends, but everything he showed after signing points to the fact that he could begin the 2011 season as high as HiA Dunedin, possibly AA New Hampshire. He’s more seasoned than the other 2 sandwich picks, and if Deck McGuire doesn’t sign, he will be the first 2010 drafted SP to make an impact with the Jays.

4 – Noah Syndergaard, 17 years old, GCL Blue Jays, 6’5″ 200 lbs, RHP (#2-3, 2013)

• 0-1/ 0.82 ERA/ 11 IP/ 7 hits allowed/ 4 walks/ 5 Ks/ .194 average against
• Noah is already big and strong and will only turn 18 at the end of August, leaving him plenty of time to add an inch or two and lots of strength. Of all of the pitchers taken in the 2010 draft, Noah and Aaron Sachez come with the highest ceilings and greatest tools. His fastball is dominant, a true power pitcher, and his curve ball and change ups are already showing above average potential. Although it may take him a little longer to get up the ladder, Noah should be ready for LoA Lansing at the very young age of 18 in 2011, making him a very impressive SP in the Jays system. (more…)

The Good

In reality, this should be named “The Great” category because there are a bunch of things to be really excited about in the minors for the Jays.

• Marc Rzepczynski threw 7.2 innings of shutout ball, allowing only 3 hits, 1 walk while striking out 9 in AAA. It’s fair to say that he’s back on track and should be the next arm in the rotation is and when the Jays need one!
• Brett Wallace is also getting back on track, perhaps due to Jarrett Hoffpauir’s promotion that serves as motivation to crank it up.  He has hit .372 over his last 10 games with a .404 OBP and 2 HRs in his last 5 games.
• Mike McCoy is taking his demotion in stride, hitting 2 HRs over his first 3 games in AAA and sporting a .467 OBP over his first 12 ABs there. (more…)

To say that this prospect to watch is a huge reach would be an understatement, but his performance at his age is just too good to ignore. Deivy was the youngest regular pitcher on the DSL Jays squad by 2 years and performed much better than anticipated. I’d love to be able to add what pitches he throws, his velocity, and other attributes, but I was unable to find any of these facts anywhere. All I know for certain is that whatever he’s doing, it’s working a lot better than it should at his age.

In 13 games (10 starts), Deivy threw 44 innings, got 48 Ks to his 13 walks, maintained a 2.66 ERA and 1.205 whip. That’s pretty impressive for a 16 year old, even in the DSL. He only allowed 1 HR and kept hitters to a .244 average.

The best comparison I could come up with was Jhoulys Chacin, who is one of the best pitchers in recent memory to come out of the DSL. At age 18, he started 11 games in the DSL, threw 72 innings, had 67 Ks, a 1.49 ERA and 1.073 whip.

If we compare Deivy’s performance at 16 to Jhoulys’s at 18, we can see why some of us are so anxious to see how much better this kid can get. There are many other questions to be answered, however. Will he grow much more, and if he does will it make him better or worse? Will he listen to people who teach him how to get better as (or if) he moves up to the GCL and higher levels? And finally, if he doesn’t add any height or weight to his slight frame, will he be durable?

Despite all of those questions, I am very happy to put Deivy on my list of prospects to watch. Performing at that level at such a young age shows poise, adds maturity, and should make him that much better in 2010. He’ll repeat the DSL and I’ll update his information as he goes along. If he ends up being at or above the caliber of Jhoulys Chacin, Jays fans everywhere will be one very happy group.