Blue Jays Minor League Report: Enmanuel Bonilla hit his first professional home run, Gabriel Martinez is heating up, and more!
2 months ago
After just two games played on Wednesday, the affiliate teams’ schedules were packed on Thursday.
The Blue Jays minor league teams went a combined 2-5, with one team being absolutely blown out of the water, and another team shut out 2-0.
Let’s dig in.
Triple-A, Game 1:
The Buffalo Bisons played two games on Thursday, losing the first one 5-2. This brought their overall record to 36-42, and their second half record to 0-1.
The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Davis Schneider
It’s a good day when the 24-year-old hits an extra base hit.
In the first game, Schneider went 1-3 with a strikeout and a double. There was an error on the play that nearly allowed him to score a little league home run.
With game two included, Schneider is slashing .261/.386/.527 with 15 homers, 30 extra base hits, and a BB% of 16.6 and K% of 24.2% in 277 plate appearances. It may be time to call him up.
Players worth mentioning:
Zach Pop made another rehab appearance in this game, finishing with a line of 1 IP, 1 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K with a home run given up. Still, it’d be nice to have the early season Pop in the Jays bullpen.
Nathan Lukes drove in one of two runs the Bisons had in the first game with a single. For the season, the 28-year-old outfielder is slashing .327/.421/.551 with two homers in 57 plate appearances. Buffalo is much better with him in the lineup.
Cam Eden drew a walk on Thursday, which is essentially a double for him. He stole second (again), making him 31/32 in stolen base attempts this season. For the season, he’s slashing .235/.350/.311 with two homers in 236 plate appearances.
Triple-A, Game 2:
In game two of the double-header, the Bisons fell 4-2, brining their overall record to 34-43, and their season record to 0-2.
The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Otto López
Don’t let Otto López get hot. On Thursday, he went 3-4 with three singles while also scoring a run.
For the season, he’s slashing .251/.307/.309 with a homer in 264 plate appearances, but is slashing .291/.348/.339 in 181 plate appearances since the start of May.
Players worth mentioning:
Spencer Horwitz has been hot all season, and on Thursday he went 2-4 with his 35th RBI, second on the team behind one Davis Schneider. For the season, he’s slashing .301/.418/.397 with two homers in 280 plate appearances.
Jordan Luplow was hit in the hand in the first game, but stayed in that game and excelled in the second game. In game two, he went 2-4 with a strikeout and his 23rd RBI of the season. With Buffalo, he’s slashing .231/.315/.408 with five homers in 149 plate appearances.
Jimmy Burnette had a tough start to his Triple-A career, but has really turned it around as of late.On Thursday, he finished with a line of 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K and now has an 8.10 ERA and 4.76 FIP on the season. Since June 8th, he has a 1.93 ERA, a 2.16 FIP, a 43.6 K% and a 12.8 BB%. Keep an eye on him!
Double-A:
The New Hampshire Fisher Cats lost 2-0 to the Portland Sea Dogs, bringing their second half record to 0-1, and their full season record to 35-34.
The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Luis Quiñones
The 25-year-old had a rough go of things in his last outing, but bounced back in a big way on Thursday. He finished with a line of 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K.
For the season he has a 4.26 ERA and a 4.30 FIP in 38 innings pitched. He has a 30.5 K%, and more importantly, his 10.4 BB% is down considerably from the 15.9% mark he had last season.
He’s mainly pitched in a bulk role this season, and pitched in Buffalo for a game as well.
Players worth mentioning:
Chad Dallas has arguably been the biggest breakout prospect in the organization this season. Selected in the fourth round of the 2021 draft, he had a 2.03 ERA and a 3.03 FIP in 26.2 innings pitched in High-A. His success has continued in Double-A, posting a 2.87 ERA and a 4.31 FIP in 37.2 innings pitched in New Hampshire. His K% has dropped from 36.3% to 23.7%, but Dallas is the real deal. He finished Thursday with a line of 4.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K.
Trevor Schwecke was the only player with a multi-hit game, as he went 2-4. This season in Double-A, T-Schweckles has a .250/.353/.396 slash line with three homers in 118 plate appearances.
Connor Cooke is a future big league closer, I’m not taking any questions. On Thursday, he finished with a line of 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K. For the season with New Hampshire, he has a 4.60 ERA and a 2.98 FIP, along with a 44.3 K% and an 8.6 BB%. Nasty 3,000 RPM slider, and a fastball that sits in the mid-90s, but has touched high-90s.
High-A:
Another day, another Vancouver Canadians win. They beat Spokane 12-5, bringing their overall record to 42-29 and their second half record to 4-2, second in the league. I’m telling you, this team is magical, and some players may get moved to New Hampshire to help with their second half push for a playoff spot.
The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Gabriel Martinez
Gabby Martinez is heating up.
On Thursday, he went 3-5 with five RBIs, hitting his sixth home run of the season.
For the season, the 20-year-old outfielder is slashing .250/.310/.382 with six homers in 243 plate appearances, along with a 7 BB% and a 16.9 K%.
Players worth mentioning:
Dasan Brown is heating up, just like Martinez. On Thursday, he went 1-5 with a strikeout, but also hit his fifth home run of the season. The 21-year-old Oakville-native is slashing .230/.293/.333 with five homers in 248 plate appearances.
Alan Roden once again made it on this report, and for good reason. He went 2-4 on Thursday, with two walks, two singles, and an RBI. For the season, he’s slashing .303/.422/.434 with three homers in 275 plate appearances for a 137 wRC+.
Garrett Spain has been a pleasant surprise this season, and he went 1-3 with two walks and three runs scored on Thursday. For the season, the 22-year-old outfielder is batting .293/.355/.564 with seven homers in 155 plate appearances.
Single-A:
The Dunedin Blue Jays defeated the St. Lucie Mets 6-4, brining their overall record to 35-36, and their season record to 3-2. In terms of where they sit in the standings, they are tied for second with Bradenton and Fort Myers, and behind the first half winner, Clearwater..
The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Angel Del Rosario
The 20-year-old infielder had a great game on Thurdsay, going 2-3 with a walk, three RBI, a double, and a run scored.
For the season, he’s slashing .237/.333/.421 with two homers in 89 plate appearances for a 108 wRC+. He’s improved significantly since last season, where he slashed .211/.285/.258 with a homer in 216 plate appearances for a 62 wRC+.
He hasn’t quite used his speed this season, only stealing nine bases in 12 attempts, compared to 32 stolen bases in 37 attempts in 2022 with Dunedin, and additional eight in the FCL.
Players worth mentioning:
Manuel Beltre continues to impress as one of the youngest players at the level. On Thursday, he went 2-4 with a strikeout and a walk. For the season, he’s slashing .258/371/.382 with three homers in 214 plate appearances for a 113 wRC+.
Nicolas Deschamps had a good game Thursday, going 1-4 with a strikeout, an RBI, and his second double of the season. For the year, he’s slashing .168/.356/.277 with three homers in 132 plate appearances for a 92 wRC+.
Rafael Ohashi nearly had a quality start Thursday, as he finished with a line of 5.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K. For the season, the 20-year-old Brazilian has a 4.58 ERA and a 6.43 FIP in 57 innings pitched, along with a 17.4 K% and a 10.2 BB%, but had a 28.6 K% last season.
Florida Complex League:
The FCL Jays fell 7-2 to the FCL Yankees, brining their record to 5-12.
The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Adrian Pinto
Adrian Pinto was one of three players with a double in the game, and he went 1-3 with an RBI and a strikeout.
The 5’6”, 156 lbs infielder was acquired in the Randal Grichuk trade before the start of the 2022 season, and has a .247/.402/.289 slash line in 125 plate appearances with the Single-A Jays.
He’s currently on a rehab assignment, but he’s definitely an intriguing player to keep an eye on.
Players worth mentioning:
Luis Meza was the top international free agent signing in the 2022 class, and he went 1-3 with a strikeout and a single Thursday. For the season, the catcher is slashing .190/.261/.238 with no homers in 24 plate appearances. He had a tough season in 2022 with the DSL Jays as well, ending the season with a 54 wRC+.
Robert Robertis was assigned to the FCL a few days ago, and went 1-3 with two walks and a strikeout Thursday. Robert x2 slashed .185/.282/.232 with a homer in 195 plate appearances for Dunedin this season. Still, he has an intriguing profile, and this is hopefully just a minor speed bump in his climb up the Blue Jays organization.
Jonathan Peguero had a great 2021 season with the DSL Jays, slashing .266/.384/.372 with two homers in 112 plate appearances for a 120 wRC+. He hasn’t quite been able to find that success stateside the past two seasons, but he went 1-1 with a double on Thursday, which is a good start.
Dominican Summer League:
The DSL Jays lost big time to the DSL Padres Gold, 24-5. Their record now sits at 7-10.
The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Enmanuel Bonilla
Enmanuel Bonilla is showing exactly why he was signed for a franchise record $4,100,000 this past international free agent period.
On Thursday, he hit his first professional home run, going 1-5 with a strikeout and two RBIs. At this point, he had a 10-game hit streak, and hits in 13 of his last 14 games, while reaching base in all 17 games.
Spoiler alert, he once again had a hit on Friday, and now has an 11-game hit streak, and has reached base in 18 games.
For the season, he’s slashing .274/.392/.387 with a homer, four extra base hits, and a 12.2 BB% and 23 K% in 74 plate appearances. Stats are accurate prior to Friday’s game.
Players worth mentioning:
David Guzmán has been one of the more impressive signings in the 2023 international free agent class, as he went 3-5 with a double and an RBI. For the season, the 17-year-old outfielder is slashing .237/.400/.373 with a homer in 75 plate appearances, along with five doubles.
Faruk De La Cruz also had a good game Thursday, going 2-2 with a double. He’s slashing .255/.349/.345 on the season, with five doubles in 63 plate appearances.
Setting up for Saturday’s Minor League Report:
There are eight games on the docket for Friday.
Buffalo takes on Worcester with a bullpen day scheduled for 7:05 PM EST.
New Hampshire plays two games starting at 5:05 PM EST, with Jimmy Robbins and Adam Kloffenstein starting the two games.
Vancouver takes on Spokane at 4:05 PM EST as it’s a “Nooner at the Nat”. Rafael Sánchez will start for Vancouver.
Dunedin takes on St. Lucie at 6:10 PM EST. Pat Gallagher is the likely starter, although it is yet to be determined.
As I write this, the FCL Jays have completed one of their games, but are in the midst of the second game of the double-header (more on this tomorrow). The DSL Jays are about to finish as well.
As always, you can follow me on Twitter and Instagram @Brennan_L_D.
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