Jays Journal Hitting Prospect Hot Sheet: 28th of May, 2011

As we near the end of May, and approach what may be a very busy promotion period due to the draft and super 2 status worries being put to bed, we need to take a look at who’s hot in the Jays minors system. I’ll cover who’s not tomorrow, and the pitchers after May in complete.

There are many surprises, and many expected performances. One note, before we begin, is that the Jays traded 2B Niuman Romero (26) to the Phillies in return for Future Considerations. He only had 25 ABs with Las Vegas this season (his only one within the Jays organization) which makes his stay with the Jays really brief.

Aside from that bit of news, here’s what I’ve noticed:

The 10 Hottest Jays Hitting Prospects

1 – Travis d’Arnaud (22) New Hampshire Fishercats (AA)

.533 / .659 / .933 line with 6 doubles, 2 HR, and a 9 BB/4SO ratio over his last 10 games. WOW!!! It’s very nice to see that he’s obviously 100% healthy and living up to expectations after a very slow and trying start to the season. I expect a promotion to AAA for him to be in the works very soon. Oddly enough, he was ranked behind Lawrie, as the #7 prospect, on BA’s Prospect Hot Sheet this week despite simply killing the ball.

2 – Brett Lawrie (21) Las Vegas 51s (AAA)

.405 / .415 / .538 line with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 4 HRs and 2 SB over last 10 games. Simply put: promote him already! As mentioned above, Lawrie made the BA Prospect Hot Sheet this week as well as the #5 on their list.

3 – K.C. Hobson (20) Lansing Lugnuts (LoA)

.471 / .500 / .676 line with 4 doubles and 1 HR over last 10 games. With the way Dunedin hitters are going, they need Hobson in their lineup.

4 – Michael McDade (22) New Hampshire Fishercats (AA)

.421 / .488 / .658 line with 6 doubles and 1 HR over his last 10 games. He’s been as consistent as it gets this year.

5 – A.J. Jimenez (21) Dunedin Blue Jays (HiA)

.429 / .459 / .600 line with 4 doubles, 1 triple, and 2 SB over his last 10 games. Aside from Bradley Glenn, the only hitter to be feared in Dunedin.

6 – Danny Perales (26) Las Vegas 51s (AAA)

.410 / .415 / .538 line with 3 doubles, 1 triple and a SB over his last 10 games.

7 – Moises Sierra (22) New Hampshire Fishercats (AA)

.351 / .429 / .622 line with 4 doubles and 2 HR over his last 10 games. A very good sign for a player that has dealt with so many injuries of late.

8 – Michael Crouse (20) Lansing Lugnuts (LoA)

.389 / .400 / .611 with 4 doubles, 2 triples, and 2 SB over his last 10 games. With Jake Marisnick on the mend, more is being asked of Crouse and he is delivering.

9 – Ryan Goins (23) Dunedin Blue Jays (HiA)

.342 / .395 / .553 line with 5 doubles and 1 HR over his last 10 games. Goins was one of the players pointed to as having made huge strides by Sal Fasano in Lansing in 2010, so it’s nice to see him bringing his game up again after a slow start to 2011.

10 – Justin Jackson (22) Dunedin Blue Jays (HiA)

.325 / .426 / .525 line with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 HR and 2 SB over his last 10 games. Of note is the fact that he is absolutely killing LHP to the tune of a .381 average. He also made BA’s Prospect Hot Sheet as the “BLAST FROM THE PAST” profile. Sadly, the BA Staff didn’t notice that Jackson is now playing in the OF and decided to mention that he could be in AA as the SS if it weren’t for Adeiny Hechavarria. See, even the experts get it wrong sometimes…. Jackson has only played 2 games at SS, 11 at 2B, and 26 in the OF this season. In my opinion, it’s a huge reason for his turnaround as he’s been able to concentrate on his hitting.

A few honorable mentions include David Cooper (.333/.396/.452 with 5 doubles in last 10), Travis Snider (.318/.388/.477 with 4 doubles, 1 HR, 2 SB in last 10), and Anthony Gose (.281/.442/.438 with 2 doubles, 1 HR, and 5 SB in last 10). Overall, you have to be happy with how the major pieces in the Jays system are doing at this point. There’s strength all over the field, and there are surely many promotions upcoming in the month of June if we look at the numbers listed above and season long numbers.

– MG

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