Blue Jays Minor League Report: Jordan Luplow hit his sixth home run of the season, two pitchers made their professional debut, and more!

Photo credit:Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

By Brennan Delaney

4 months ago

I can’t believe we’re already in July!

On Monday, Blue Jays affiliates went 2-3, but hit quite a few home runs.

As always, let’s start with Triple-A, and work our way down to the Dominican Summer League.

Triple-A:

The Buffalo Bisons defeated the Worcester Red Sox 8-1, bringing their overall record to 37-43, and their second half record to 3-2, 2.5 games behind Norfolk.

The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Jordan Luplow

Jordan Luplow is emerging as a potential bat for the big league team.

On Monday, he went 3-4 with a walk, a double, and a home run.

For the season, the 29-year-old outfielder is slashing .241/.331/.440 with six homers in 163 plate appearances with the Buffalo Bisons. Moreover, he has an 11 BB% and a 17.2 K% for a 90 wRC+.

He does mash left-handed pitching, though.

Players worth mentioning:

Paxton Schultz has pitched wonderfully for the Buffalo Bisons. On Monday, he finished with a line of 5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K. With the Bisons, he has a 2.74 ERA and a 5.19 FIP in 23 innings pitched, along with a 20 K% and an 11.6 BB%.

Nathan Lukes gives Buffalo a boost every time he’s in the lineup, and Monday was no different. He went 3-5 with a double and an RBI. For the season, the 28-year-old outfielder is slashing .362/.448/.586 with two homers in 67 plate appearances with the Bisons.

Tyler Heineman’s value to the Blue Jays can’t be understated. Not only is he a fantastic defensive catcher, but he has a good hit tool, even if his numbers aren’t great this season. On Monday, he went 3-4 with an RBI and three singles. With the Bisons, he’s slashing .244/.333/.267 with no homers in 52 plate appearances.

Double-A:

The New Hampshire Fisher Cats fell 9-3 to the Portland Sea Dogs, bringing their overall record to 36-38, and their season record to 1-5. Thankfully for them, a new series starts on Tuesday.

The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Damiano Palmegiani

It’s been a little while since Damiano Palmegiani featured in a minor league report, but he’s still having a great season.

On Monday, the 23-year-old first baseman/third baseman went 2-4 with a walk and a double, along with an RBI.

For the season in Double-A, he’s slashing .264/.369/.452 with nine homers in 282 plate appearances. Moreover, he has a 21.6 K% and a 12.8 BB% for a 126 wRC+.

His nine homers are ranked as the third most in the organization, tied with Alex De Jesus, Peyton Williams, and Cade Doughty.

Players worth mentioning:

Will Robertson had a good game on Monday, going 2-3 with a walk and a double. For the season, the 25-year-old outfielder is slashing .184/.288/.374 with eight home runs in 222 plate appearances. His eight homers is the seventh highest in the organization.

Steward Berroa continues to be one of the most exciting prospects in the organization. On Monday, the 24-year-old outfielder went 2-5 with an RBI while also nabbing his 30th base of the season. For the season, he’s slashing .232/.360/.371 with four homers in 242 plate appearances, along with a 16.1 BB% and a 26.4 K%.

Single-A:

The Dunedin Blue Jays fell 13-11 to the St. Lucie Mets, bringing their overall record to 37-38, and their second half record to 5-4, a game behind the Clearwater Threshers.

The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Jeffrey Wehler

The 24-year-old infielder may just be a little too good for the Florida State League.

On Monday, he went 3-5 with five RBIs, along with a home run and a triple.

Although he is quite a bit older than the average position player at the level, he’s slashing .378/.481/.644 with two homers in 54 plate appearances. He also has a 16.7 BB% and an 18.5 K%, along with six extra base hits.

Players worth mentioning:

Manuel Beltre went 1-3, but reached base on a walk and a hit by pitch. Moreover, he scored a game-high three runs. For the season, he’s slashing .257/.368/.372 with a 12.2 BB%, 19.7 BB%, and three homers in 229 plate appearances. Fellow Blue Jays Nation writer Tyson Shushkewich had a discussion with the 19-year-old, which you can read here

Ryan McCarty hit his seventh home run of the season on Monday, going 1-2 with two strikeouts and two RBIs. For the season, the 24-year-old infielder is slashing .246/.346/.459 with seven homers in 218 plate appearances.

Florida Complex League:

The FCL Jays defeated the FCL Tigers 5-2, bringing their season record to 7-14.

The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Sammy Hernandez

The 19-year-old catcher struggled in Single-A, which makes sense given his age. However, he’s been a different beast in the FCL this season.

On Monday, he went 1-3 with a strikeout and three RBIs, along with his fourth double of the season in the Florida Complex League.

This season, the 14th round pick in the 2022 draft is slashing .344/.400/.625 with a homer and five extra base hits in 35 plate appearances with the FCL Jays.

With the Dunedin Blue Jays, he was slashing .192/.241/.317 with two homers in 112 plate appearances.

Players worth mentioning:

Victor Arias is having a strong season with the FCL Jays. On Monday, he went 1-3 with a walk, a strikeout, and a homer. For the season, he’s slashing .184/.349/.490 with three homers (a career-high) and a 17.5 BB% and 36.5 K% in 63 plate appearances for a 112 wRC+.

Dominican Summer League:

The DSL Jays fell 5-4 to the DSL Arizona Black, bringing their season record to 8-12.

The Blue Jays Nation Player of the Game: Maykel Minoso

Maykel Minoso has been great this season. On Monday, he went 1-2 with two walks and two RBIs.

For the season, the 18-year-old catcher (who actually celebrated his birthday on Monday), is slashing .296/.383/.338 with no homers in 81 plate appearances. Moreover, he has an 11.1 BB% and a 13.6 K% for a 98 wRC+.

Players worth mentioning:

Enmanuel Bonilla’s hit streak lives on. On Monday, he went 1-2 with a walk and two strikeouts.He currently has a 13 game hit streak, has a hit in 16 of his last 17 games, and has reached base in all 20 professional games. For the season, he’s slashing .293/.398/.400 with a homer in 88 plate appearances.

Sann Omosako made his professional debut on Monday. He is one of three Brazilians in the organization, and he finished with a line of 1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K. From what I’ve seen of him, he has a lot of remaining projection.

Diego Linares also made his professional debut on Monday, but had a much better outing than Omosako. He finished with a line of 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K.

Setting up for Wednesday’s Minor Leauge Report:

All six affiliate teams are/were in action.

The Buffalo Bisons take on the Rochester Red Wings in Rochester. Casey Lawrence is set to take the mound at 6:45 PM EST. The New Hampshire Fisher Cats visit the Hartford Yard Goats at 6:10 PM EST, with Chad Dallas toeing the rubber.

The Vancouver Canadians take on the Hillsboro Hops at 10:05 PM EST, with 2019 draft pick Michael Dominguez getting the ball for that game. The Dunedin Blue Jays take on the Tampa Tarpins at 6:30 PM EST, with Lazaro Estrada starting the game.

As for the rookie league teams. The DSL Blue Jays have a suspended game in the bottom of the first, so we won’t cover that game tomorrow. The FCL Blue Jays took on the FCL Tigers with Hyun-Jin Ryu returning to the mound. If you want the spoilers, Cam Lewis wrote about his outing here.

As always, you can follow me on Twitter and Instagram @Brennan_L_D.