Blue Jays 2019 Top Prospects: #26 – Santiago Espinal

The Jays Journal staff is moving right along with pumping out content on your favourite Toronto Blue Jays prospects. Today, we cover Jays Journal’s number 26th ranked prospect, Santiago Espinal who has developed himself into a very intriguing middle infield option.

Espinal began his 2018 season in the Boston Red Sox organization before he was traded to the Blue Jays for Steve Pearce. As the baseball world knows, Pearce was named the World Series MVP in 2018. Pearce was a beast when he got to the Red Sox and has since become a fan favourite. Espinal however, is looking like he could get to the majors as soon as 2019.

Name: Santiago Espinal
Position: SS, 2B, 3B      Age: 24
Height: 5’810   Weight: 175 lbs
Throws: Right            Bats: Right
Acquired: via trade with the Boston Red Sox for Steve Pearce on June 28th, 2018

The Red Sox drafted Espinal in 2016 and began his career with the GCL Red Sox where he finished his first season. 2017 saw Espinal play an entire season with the Greenville Drive where he slashed .280/.334/.358 with a wRC+ of 102. In 2018, Espinal began his season with the Salem Red Sox and improved on his 2017 season with a slashline of .313/.363/.477 and a wRC+ of 136.

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Scouting Grades (according to MLB.com):

• Hit – 50
• Power – 40
• Run – 55
• Arm – 55
• Field – 55
• Overall – 45

It was becoming quite clear that Espinal brought a decent stick to the table as a middle infielder. He only hit 11 home runs between 2017 and part of 2018 in the Red Sox system before he was traded to the Blue Jays, where he was placed in Florida with the Dunedin Blue Jays. That stop in Dunedin was quick as he got to the New Hampshire FisherCats after just 17 games with Dunedin.

Espinal was a key part of the FisherCats run to an Eastern League Championship. With New Hampshire, Espinal posted a wRC+ of 111 and slashed .286/.354/.395. It’s clear he can contribute with the bat, proving that he’s not just a glove in the middle infield. His glove is very good though, and he’s also got above average range and a solid arm.

The Blue Jays are clearly very high on Santiago Espinal. In the Steve Pearce trade, they kicked in money to the Red Sox to ensure they got Espinal. They have already invited him to spring training for 2019, so Blue Jays fans are going to get an up close look at Espinal during the spring. The Blue Jays are high on this kid and he adds to an already stacked crop of prospects up the middle for the Toronto Blue Jays.