Toronto Blue Jays Organizational Depth: First Base

View from the pressbox (image courtesy of Charlie Caskey)

Short-Season Vancouver Canadians

Ryan McBroom, 23 years old, Bats Right, 6’3″ 230 lbs

• Drafted in the 15th round of the 2014 MLB draft
• Previously drafted by the Royals in the 13th round of the 2013 draft

Stats

McBroom displayed a ton of power for the Canadians in 2014, and only added to that in 2015 with Lansing. That performance should put his name near the top of the organizational depth at first base in the process, and he will likely begin the 2016 season in Dunedin.

There’s no doubt that his power will play at the position, but we’d like to see him turn a lot of those doubles into HRs from here on. If he’s not capable of doing that, he may be limited offensively to the numbers put up by someone like Lyle Overbay. More gap-to-gap power than HR power. There’s nothing wrong with that, but you need power elsewhere on the club if that’s going to be a fit.

So long as he keeps hitting like this, Ryan will keep getting moved up. Unfortunately for him, the next guy on the list will likely get a look at each level before he gets there, raising the bar of what’s expected offensively.

Low-A Lansing Lugnuts

 Rowdy Tellez, 20 years old, Bats Left,  6’4″ 245 lbs

• Drafted in the 30th round of the 2013 draft
• Received a record setting amount for a 30th rd pick at $850,000
• Jays spent a lot on Tellez after it was evident they wouldn’t be able to sign Phil Bickford

Stats

Without having seen Vladimir Guerrero Jr hit yet, Rowdy Tellez is my favourite 1B prospect in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. His infectious personality, his hitting ability, and even his defensive potential provide for the perfect package that you can’t help but cheer for.

He hit well enough in Lansing through 270 AB to earn a promotion to Dunedin, and he didn’t miss a beat when he got there. He actually improved his OPS after the move, going from .796 to .801, something that’s hard to do when you’re hitting in Dunedin which is notoriously pitcher friendly.

Tellez struck out so little during the 2014 season that the bar was set fairly high for him in 2015. He managed to maintain his power numbers while keeping his strikeout rates to just under 19%. I expect Tellez to begin the season in either Dunedin or New Hampshire. That decision may come down to how quickly the Jays need and want him to be ready for the majors, and how well-equipped they feel he is to handle the pressure and AA pitching.

Here’s a must watch video from both McBroom and Tellez

Next: We head to our Spring Training home next