Blue Jays prospects stand out at AFL Fall Stars Game

Pinto homers while Estrada strikes out two in one inning of work during all-star contest.

Relief pitcher and AFL West All-Star Evan Kruczynski of the St. Louis Cardinals throws a pitch during the 2018 Arizona Fall League All-Star Game at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona.
Relief pitcher and AFL West All-Star Evan Kruczynski of the St. Louis Cardinals throws a pitch during the 2018 Arizona Fall League All-Star Game at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona. | Christian Petersen/GettyImages

Three Toronto Blue Jays prospects made their presences felt this weekend at the Arizona Fall League Fall Stars Game and Home Run Derby.

The weekend got started with the AFL's home run contest on Friday, which featured eight players from the developmental league's six teams. Among them was Blue Jays first base prospect Peyton Williams, who finished tied for fifth place with eight home runs during the two-round derby. New York Yankees outfield prospect Garrett Martin edged Milwaukee Brewers third base prospect Brock Wilken 10-9 in the final round to win the night.

As for the all-star game itself, Williams played four innings at first base. But he went hitless in two plate appearances, lining out to left in the seventh inning and flying out to center in the ninth.

Early on in the main event on Saturday, Adrian Pinto gave the AFL American League Fall Stars an early jolt in the second inning. Pinto crushed a 2-0 fastball to left center for a 414-foot, three-run home run that was clocked at 107 miles-per-hour off of his bat. The infield prospect's blast gave the AL squad a 5-1 lead. Pinto played the entire game at second base.

Right-hander Lazaro Estrada, Jays Journal's No. 17-ranked prospect, took the mound in the seventh inning. He threw 12 pitches, eight of them for strikes, allowing just one of the four batters he faced to reach base. After starting the inning with a first-pitch flyout to left field and a first-pitch double, Estrada shut the inning down with a pair of strikeouts. He caught Juan Baez of the Brewers and Leodalis De Vries of the San Diego Padres looking.

The American League Fall Stars hung on to beat the National League Fall Stars 6-5, thanks to a tiebreaking, 437-foot, 112-mph bomb by Thayron Liranzo of the Detroit Tigers minor league system. Liranzo took home Fall Stars Game MVP honors as a result.

Each AFL team is affiliated with five MLB teams. The Blue Jays sent eight prospects to play for the Scottsdale Scorpions, which stand at 14-14 with two games left in the season. The AFL season ends Thursday, with the playoffs set for Friday and Saturday.

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