Toronto Blue Jays Top 20 Prospects List

Great list.

Brandon League is being put in the pen to start the season, which seems like a waste to me - hes got plus stuff and could be a starter.

Any thoughts on where the Jays system ranks overall? I think Jim Callis said somewhere right smack in the middle because they dont have any stars in the making (also evidenced by the lack of A grades here.)

Didn't see a comment about him after the list.  I like what I've heard about him.  Have you seen him pitch? Either way, what do you think his potential could be?

Also, now that D Bush got a taste of the show what are your thoughts on his future success?

Thanks,

Tracy

Gabe Gross has been a disappointment for me, and I'm reducing his grade from B- in the book to C+. This, of course, ensures that he will go on a massive hot streak during the first half of the season now that I've started to lose faith.

Well, for what it's worth, he's on a hot streak now - 4 homeruns in 5 games.  2 off of Crain and 1 off of Millwood.

I heard a lot of bad things about Purcey - he was supposed to be a 1 pitch guy, all this stuff.

I still think Quiroz could pull out a good future.

Im skeptical about John Hattig though. Oh well.

How does this past draft stack up? JP has said that Thigpen and Lind are two of his favourite players from this draft, and Purcey and Jackson both get good grades

Is Quiroz showing anything in spring training thus far?  

I watched League pitch last season for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. He came in and, well, to put it nicely, stopped the bleeding. I went to two Fisher Cats games last season, and I think I was at the one where there was back-to-back home runs, with the first one being a Grand Slam. League came in for relief and pitched well.

I suppose I should say something about the list, given my screen name...  I've been very disappointed with the farm system the last few years.  When JP came in there was renewed optimism amongst those who appreciate what a well run farm system can do for a team on a limited budget such as ours, but we just haven't seen results yet.  It's not all JP's fault... though he has been criticized for dismantling our dominican recruitment which has been instrumental in getting us some elite players.  I was hoping that guys like Arnold, Rosario, and McGowan would be contributing for us now and they all got hurt.  On the hitters side, I have long since thought that Rios is Juan Encarnacion in the making (I really hope I'm wrong), and I don't see another hitter with even the potential to be a key ingredient in a championship team.  Developing guys like Hill and Adams is nice, because we'll need a few league-average hitters playing for small contracts in order to invest money elsewhere, but I think we need to develop at least one or two all-star calibre players through the minor league system before we can compete.  Vernon Wells will only be cheap for a few more years.  

All of this brings up the question whether the Jays should look beyond college-trained players to high school hitters if there is a better chance of getting a future elite player (even if there is a greater chance of a flame-out).  I have seen studies that conflict on the question, i.e. some people say that you are more likely to draft an elite player from high school as opposed to college and some say it is neutral.  I haven't looked at it myself.  Anyways, JP better start delivering on some upper-level talent soon.

John,

What do you think of David Purcy's potential? He went to the same High School as me and I would like to know what his chances are of being a good or quality starter in the big leagues. And I have also heard that he is just a fastball pitcher and in college he was pretty inconsitent. Is the only reason he was a high draft choice is because he is a tall lefty with some heat? Thanks and I would like to hear from anyone who knows a good deal about him.

Justin

John, what is it that you like about League so much?  I don't see anything dominant in his stats.  Maybe I don't know something about him.  It seems like B+ is pretty high in your system for a pitcher...

John,

I too would like to see something on Banks.  I think he's slightly underrated in your book -- but perhaps less underrated than he is in other places.  I thinks Banks will have made his adjustments and pitch very well in AA this year.  How do you see him doing?  He obviously had made some adjustments by the end of the year last year.

Hi!
I would like to know if anybody know if the Minor league teams from the Oakland A's have a schedule for spring training, and if they do,can any of the games be heard on the internet? Specifically the Midland team.