Aug 2, 2017
Future Watch: Guerrero Jr., Bichette thriving in Dunedin
Each week, TSN baseball reporter Scott Mitchell takes a look at how the consensus top 10 prospects in the Blue Jays’ minor-league system have fared over the past seven days.
Each week, TSN baseball reporter Scott Mitchell takes a look at how the consensus top 10 prospects in the Blue Jays’ minor-league system have fared over the past seven days.
With Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus and MLB Pipeline all releasing mid-season rankings recently, we’ve shuffled up the list to reflect the changes for the second half of the season.
1. 3B Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Affiliate: High-A Dunedin Blue Jays
Age: 18 (3/16/1999)
Midseason top 100 prospect rankings: Baseball America (2); MLB Pipeline (6); Baseball Prospectus (13)
Projected MLB ETA: 2020
Season stats: .316/.409/.480 with 7 HR, 45 RBI, 6 SB in 269 AB at Low-A; .269/.405/.299 with 0 HR, 9 RBI, 1 SB in 67 AB at High-A 
Suiting up in seven games over the past week, Guerrero Jr. had hits in all of them. Even more impressive was the fact he walked nine times and struck out only seven times, producing a .333/.515/.417 slash line to finish out his first month at the High-A level. His 55:47 walk-to-strikeout ratio this season is otherworldly for an 18-year-old hitter.
2. SS Bo Bichette
Affiliate: High-A Dunedin Blue Jays
Age: 19 (3/5/1998)
Midseason top 100 prospect rankings: Baseball Prospectus (29); MLB Pipeline (30); Baseball America (44)
Projected MLB ETA: 2020
Season stats: .384/.448/.623 with 10 HR, 51 RBI, 12 SB in 284 AB at Low-A; .410/.462/.518 with 1 HR, 11 RBI, 6 SB in 83 AB at High-A
The roll has continued for Bichette at High-A as the 6-foot, 200-pound shortstop popped a .481/.548/.630 slash line over the past week, including games of three hits, four hits and a trio of two-hit outings. Sporting an obscene .390/.451/.599 slash line over his first full minor-league season, Bichette is in the conversation for minor league player of the year.
3. OF Anthony Alford
Affiliate: Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats
Age: 23 (7/20/1994)
Midseason top 100 prospect rankings: Baseball America (38); MLB Pipeline (49)
Projected MLB ETA: Arrived May 19
Season stats: .125/.125/.250 in 8 MLB AB; .143/.182/.143 with 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1 SB in 21 AB at High-A; .316/.418/.452 with 4 HR, 13 RBI, 9 SB in 155 AB at Double-A
Alford is back in full swing after losing six weeks to a broken hamate bone, and there were signs this week that he’s getting his timing down now, too. On Sunday, Alford produced three hits and his first home run since mid-May. Hamate injuries are often thought to sap power, so it’s encouraging that Alford’s is already starting to come back. Depending on what the Blue Jays do this winter, Alford could push for a starting job in the big leagues next spring.
4. 2B/SS Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Affiliate: Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats
Age: 23 (10/19/1993)
Midseason top 100 prospect rankings: Baseball America (90)
Projected MLB ETA: 2018
Season stats: .197/.217/.258 with 1 HR, 8 RBI, 1 SB in 66 AB at High-A; .267/.313/.400 with 1 HR, 10 RBI, 1 SB in 60 AB at Double-A
He still only has 126 at-bats under his belt in his first season since signing for $22 million, but Gurriel Jr. is starting to show the same skillset that his older brother Yuli is exhibiting with the Houston Astros. He doesn’t walk much and no one is really sure what his best position defensively will end up being, but there’s contact skills and some pop in the right-handed hitter’s bat.
5. RHP Sean Reid-Foley
Affiliate: Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats
Age: 21 (8/30/1995)
Preseason team prospect rankings: Baseball Prospectus (1); Baseball America (3); MLB Pipeline (2); FanGraphs (3)
Projected MLB ETA: 2019
Season stats: 7-9, 4.53 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 90 Ks in 101.1 innings
Reid-Foley’s season hasn’t been anything to write home about, but he’s progressively gotten better as the season has gone on. In July, he posted 4.03 ERA — his best mark of any month this season — and continued that during his first August start by spinning seven innings and allowing three runs against the Bowie Baysox (Baltimore) on Tuesday.
6. SS Richard Urena
Affiliate: Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats
Age: 21 (2/26/1996)
Preseason team prospect rankings: Baseball Prospectus (6); Baseball America (5); MLB Pipeline (4); FanGraphs (4)
Projected MLB ETA: 2019
Season stats: .242/.288/.357 with 4 HR, 48 RBI, 0 SB in 401 AB
After posting sub-.300 on-base percentages in each of the first three months of the season, Urena’s mark in July was a season best .322, providing hope that the switch hitter will finish out a dismal campaign in strong fashion. With a number of shortstop prospects starting to breathe down his neck, Urena’s heading into a key calendar year of development.
7. RHP Conner Greene
Affiliate: Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats
Age: 22 (4/4/1995)
Preseason team prospect rankings: Baseball Prospectus (4); Baseball America (4); MLB Pipeline (6); FanGraphs (9)
Projected MLB ETA: 2019
Season stats: 4-8, 4.89 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, 70 Ks in 99.1 innings
It was the same old story for Greene in his last start as the 6-foot-3, 185-pounder walked six in five innings. Command is holding the fireballer back and has many believing he could at least start his MLB career in the bullpen where his 100-mph gas would play up even further in short spurts. The Blue Jays will develop him as a starter in the minors, but he could arrive in Toronto as a relief option eventually.
8. 1B Rowdy Tellez
Affiliate: Triple-A Buffalo Bisons
Age: 22 (3/16/1995)
Preseason team prospect rankings: Baseball Prospectus (8); Baseball America (6); MLB Pipeline (5); FanGraphs (8)
Projected MLB ETA: Late 2018
Season stats: .203/.271/.322 with 6 HR, 42 RBI, 3 SB in 335 AB
Hitting just .171 over his last 41 at-bats in Buffalo, Tellez continues to slump in his first season at Triple-A. The most troubling aspect of his season is the fact he’s slugging just .322 after hitting 23 homers and slugging .530 in his breakout 2016 season at Double-A.
9. RHP T.J. Zeuch
Affiliate: High-A Dunedin Blue Jays
Age: 21 (8/1/1995)
Preseason team prospect rankings: Baseball Prospectus (7); Baseball America (7); MLB Pipeline (7); FanGraphs (6)
Projected MLB ETA: 2019
Season stats: 3-3, 3.23 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 42 Ks in 53 innings; 0-1, 6.75 ERA, 2.25 WHIP, 1 K in 1.1 innings at rookie ball
After missing two months to a back injury, the Blue Jays finally took the bubble wrap off their 2016 first-rounder, giving him a short start in the Gulf Coast League on Tuesday. The groundball artist out of the University of Pittsburgh was having a solid season prior to hitting the DL and he’ll be tested big time next year at Double-A.
10. C/1B Max Pentecost
Affiliate: High-A Dunedin Blue Jays
Age: 24 (3/10/1993)
Preseason team prospect rankings: Baseball Prospectus (9); MLB Pipeline (12); FanGraphs (15)
Projected MLB ETA: Late 2018
Season stats: .283/.341/.449 with 9 HR, 52 RBI, 0 SB in 272 AB
Pentecost has enjoyed a solid yet unspectacular season as the Blue Jays continue to try to figure out if he can be a catcher long term. They’re pretty sure, however, that Pentecost will be able to hit as he climbs the developmental ladder, and he enjoyed a five RBI night on Monday against the Florida Fire Frogs (Atlanta).