Now that the top 30 is on the record for another year, I thought I would give you some more stats and details on the list.
We don't have a formal "just missed" article this year but this story will give some additional information about the list. Four of the roster members voted for their top 30 list and the final Batters Box list is taken from the average vote by those four. The top three were consensus, starting at four, Danny Jansen, there was not unanimity. 23 of the top 30 received votes from all four voters. The highest ranked player who did not get four votes was Hagen Danner at number 20. Danner did not show much in his first exposure to pro ball but has an impressive pedigree.
Eight additional players received votes but were not in the top 30. Six of them received one vote but two of them had two. Those two, who topped the just missed list, were Yennsy Diaz and Reggie Pruitt. Yennsy pitched well at times in Lansing but was young for the league. He could be a big riser in 2018. Pruitt started to play well in the second half of his Vancouver season. It was not enough to get him on the top 30 but it should get him to Lansing to start 2018 and hopefully he can build on it.
Ten new players joined this years top 30 and ten were dropped. Five of the joiners were drafted in 2017, Pearson, Warmoth, Adams, Danner and Smith. Erick Pardinho was a free agent signing while Thomas Pannone arrived via trade. That leaves three players who were in the system last year but who played their way onto this years list. They were Jordan Romano, Kevin Vicuna and Edward Olivares. You can read their write-ups as part of the list but they all obviously had good seasons.
Among the ten departures are Danny Barnes and Ryan McBroom, neither of whom are eligible this year. The other eight, with their 2016 rankings, are Harold Ramirez (12); JB Woodman (16); Francisco Rios (18); Christian Lopes (21); Reggie Pruitt (23); Jose Espada (26); Cavan Biggio (27); and Shane Dawson (30). Some had poor seasons, Rios was injured, Pruitt, Espada and Biggio were OK but the higher talent pool pushed them out. Christian Lopes is now a free agent.
Among those in the top 30 in 2016 and 2017 the biggest risers were Ryan Borucki and Danny Jansen who both rose 15 places. Edward Olivares went from outside the top 30 to number 11, that is also a big rise.
Harold Ramirez and JB Woodman had big drops, from the 12th and 16th spots to out of the top 30. The biggest drops within the top 30 were Jon Harris, from 10 to 27; Angel Perdomo from 14 to 28; Josh Palacios from 17 to 29; and Rowdy Tellez from 5 to 16. They all fell short of expectations.
It is hard to pinpoint how the Blue Jays system should be ranked within baseball. The rankings are a combination of prospect depth and the perceived value of your top prospects. The Jays have two highly regarded prospects in Vlad and Bo. The depth is harder to figure out. There are three newly drafted players in the top ten and the players in the 11-20 range all have questions of some sort. I think it is a strong system but I don't think it is a top system. I don't know all the other 29 teams systems that well but I would assume the Jays would be in the 6-12 range.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20171116123900430