AAA is quite interesting this year. Hoping for a lot of things but really at the top of the list for me is that Bloss establishes himself and Barger forces his way to the majors.

Getting very crowded in AAA. Wonder if we'll see some AAA for A ball player deals at some point.

Orelvis at second base, Barger third base in the opening day lineup.

Joey Loperfido scored the first run of the season for the Bisons. Single, passed ball, ground out, RBI ground out.

Orelvis was scratched due to a viral illness.

I heard Atkins on the radio recently, and he mentioned Bloss and Easton 1st and 2nd as pitching depth.  Any idea what it is the team sees in the guy? 

Nice win for Buffalo this afternoon. Joey Loperfido had two hits and hit the first home run of season.

The Bisons also had good pitching.

The only player who stood out in the Buffalo game who stood out in the box score is Loperfido, who put one out at 113 mph. Struck out twice as well, showing in a single game both his promise and his peril about as strongly as you can.

I guess they're gonna give Palmegiani a legit chance to bounce back from his disaster year last year. Not that his production has ever been too interesting for a 1B type tho.

It's the likes of him and Tirotta that I hope the team doesn't hesitant too long to move on from if the likes of McAdoo and Schreck perform well in AA early on.

Easton Lucas has the pitcher's frame that the Jays love, as well as a solid pitch mix - he just needs better command.

I'm lukewarm on McAdoo and Schreck... I watched quite a few of their at-bats this spring as well as some late last year, and haven't seen anything that really stands out.

Neither one is more than average in the field and they both look like part-timers with the bats.

Fingers crossed they make some positive adjustments...

Reports say Arjun Nimmala and Fernando Perez are heading to Vancouver.

Yeah marc i'm not sold on those two being great prospects either i just hope they're moved up promptly if they're playing well.

Good to see the aggressive promotion for Nimmala. I do think he may struggle a bit, but they seem to think he can take his lumps. I'm always a bit weary with promoting prep guys too quickly given they have a higher tendency to crash and burn if not well managed.

" I'm always a bit weary with promoting prep guys too quickly"

I hate to be a grammar Nazi but I see this word misused so often. Weary means a feeling of extreme tiredness while the correct word is wary which is a feeling, or showing, caution about a possible negative outcome.

Nobody gets "woolly." Women get "weary."

Trenton Wallace couldn't get out of the first inning in todays game, five runs on the board before Buffalo came to bat.

Barger two run home run reduces the deficit.

It feels to me like Lucas is viewed in the Yarbrough role.  He still has options, (which is possibly why they cut bait on Yarbrough in the first place) and he's that odd career reliever who has always been deployed as a bulk inning guy.  If I squint I can see it.  Atkins does not prevaricate when he talks about the depth charts, perhaps.
Correct or not, I like how the FO has been developing back-of-the-roster guys, the optionable depth, some of the AAAA guys they can train for a specific role. 

Nimmala had the aggressive promotion last year as well, and I recall one of the development guys saying they don't mind 'slapping them in the face', metaphorically, with those promotions.  I can see the case for aggressive and conservative assignments, the only thing that troubles me is an orthodoxy.  Players these days are so much different in their understanding of themselves as athletes, the science is better, the training - aggressive or not, it's gotta be a trainer-player decision.  
I have no idea what data shows on aggressive promotions and development?

Making Nimmala repeat a level wasn't really an option imo. He smashed A so well after his complex stint that he really could have been bumped up to Vancouver at the end of ladt year on merit.

Hey, IB, never apologize for correcting sloppy/mistaken use of language. (And there’s an increasing amount of it right here in River City.) Caring about precision and accuracy isn’t being a ‘grammar nazi’. At all.

Big slugger Christian Feliz has been released. Roque Salinas and Nick Fraze also reached the end of the road.

Rochester defeated Buffalo 8-3 today in a rain shortened game. Trenton Wallace gave up five runs in the first inning, Kevin Gowdy and Hayden Juenger also gave up runs. The pitching star was Paxton Shultz who came on in relief of Wallace. Schultz threw 3.1 innings with just one walk allowed.

Addison Barger hit a two run home run in the first inning but the Bisons had just three hits.

The game ended in the eighth with the Bisons having two runners on base with one out. A long way back but it was possible until the rains came.

I'm legitimately curious who the infielders are going to be for Dunedin and the FCL Jays (rookie) teams. I have about nine infielders earmarked for those two clubs and, of those, there is one borderline prospect, three deep sleepers, and then roster filler. And I only have two outfielder in the FCL.

No Buffalo game today, it is raining outside in case you didn't notice.

FCL in particular does seem short on infielders, but maybe they'll challenge Rafael Flores or Juarlin Soto? For OF I could see any/all of Bonilla, Guzman and Tejada repeat. Licourt will surely be there, and Munoz is still kicking around I thought. An outside shot of one of A Arias, Ramon, or Archila isn't out of the question.

Who are you expecting to be the position players for Dunedin/FCL Marc?

Munoz was released.

My feeling was, with the addition of the second DSL club, the Jays were going to slow-play the move of those prospects to North America. Kids in the DSL don't count on the minor league limit of 165 total players across the five NA levels.so it makes sense to wait if you can. Jays haven't had much luck developing DSL players.

My infielders in FCL are Aldo Gaxiola, Gavin Smith, Kendry Chirinos, and Drew Jemison (Owen Gregg on 60-day DL). Outfielder are Yorman Licourt and Enmanuel Bonilla.

Dunedin: Infielders: Sam Shaw, JR Freethy, Peyton Powell, Jacob Lojewski, Carter Cunningham (1B/OF). Outfielders: Yhoangel Aponte, David Guzman, Jean Joseph, Railin Tejada, Alexis Hernandez.

Thanks Marc. The 2nd DSL team is long overdue, nice to hear some confirmation on that.

I can see a case for Guzman moving up (though I'd like to see him do better in the FCL), but I would be pretty surprised to see both Guzman and Tejada in Dunedin. With Salinas released, the Vancouver OF situation is pretty muddy too.

BA TOP 10 MLB DRAFT

1.Jamie Arnold,LHP,Florida State
2.Ethan Holliday,SS,(Okla.) HS
3.Tyler Bremner,RHP,UC Santa Barbara
4.Seth Hernandez,RHP,(Calif.) HS
5.Aiva Arquette,SS,Oregon State
6.Marek Houston,SS,Wake Forest
7.Dean Curley,SS,Tennessee
8.Kruz Schoolcraft,LHP/1B,(Ore.) HS
9.Jace LaViolette,RF,Texas A&M
10.Billy Carlson,SS/RHP,(Calif.) HS

https://x.com/BaseballAmerica/status/1906512015428133333

Long way from draft so names will change a lot but Jays need to try to get middle of the order bat. They've spent so much draft capital on pitchers for years and desperately need some potential impact bats. Don't look for a fast mover or a high floor guy, get someone who has potential to hit 35 HR's a year. 6-8 last year were Caglionone, Wetherholt, and Moore. Go get a guy like that.

Jays signed RHP Jarlin Ugarte 6'4" 220lb. So physically developed. Don't know how old or where he is from.

'25 IFA's so far

RHP Jarlin Ugarte 6'4 220 04/27/07 VEN
RHP Raduan Perez 6'7 220 '08 VEN
RHP Marcelino Theodore 6'4 190 '06 DR
RHP Androu Etienne 6'7 190 '06 DR
RHP Jorge Gonzalez 6'5 200 '06 DR
RHP David Hernandez 6'6 190 '05 DR

BA.Mid-season rankings
MLB.pre[season rankings

2.Ethan Holliday,SS,(Okla.) HS........Hit: 55. Power: 60. Run:40. Field: 50. Arm: 55.
#1.MLB..Hit: 50 | Power: 65 | Run: 50 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 | Overall: 60

9.Jace LaViolette,OF,Texas A&M........Hit: 50. Power: 70. Run:60. Field: 55. Arm: 50.
#2.MLB..Hit: 45 | Power: 65 | Run: 55 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 | Overall: 60

11.Xavier Neyens,3B,(Wash.) HS........Hit: 50. Power: 65. Run:45. Field: 50. Arm: 55.
#8.MLB..Hit: 50 | Power: 65 | Run: 45 | Arm: 60 | Field: 50 | Overall: 55

15.Brandon Compton,OF,Arizona State...Hit: 40. Power: 60. Run:50. Field: 45. Arm: 50.
#54.MLB..Hit: 50 | Power: 55 | Run: 45 | Arm: 45 | Field: 45 | Overall: 50

Wow, Jays going for big guys in the IFA market this year - 6 pitchers all 6'4" or taller, just one is 20, rest younger so they might have some growth left. Might have to loan some to the Raptors. I like that they are grabbing a few older prospects (IFA near 20 are 'older'). Funny to see we are getting close to guys from the 2010's being signed. The Baseball Cube has 18 guys signed so far this year...
Orlando Marcelin, LHP, Haiti, 6' 2, 160
Elian Reyes, OF, Dominican Republic, 6' 4, 185
Androu Etienne, RHP, Dominican Republic, 6' 7, 190
David Hernandez, RHP, Dominican Republic, 6' 6, 190
Cesar Cerezo, LHP, Venezuela, 6' 3, 199
Cristopher Polanco, SS, Dominican Republic, 5' 10, 174
Daniel Dominguez, OF, Venezuela, 5' 11, 163
Keegan Pieternella, C, Curacao, 5' 8, 169
Luis Felipe, OF, Dominican Republic, 6' 3, 225
Elaineiker Coronado, SS, Venezuela, 5' 10, 160
Marcelino Theodore, RHP, Dominican Republic, 6' 4, 190
Nicolas Vergara, OF, Venezuela, 6' 1, 172
Alexander Valiente, RHP, Cuba, 6' 1, 185
Ire Martinez, LHP, Venezuela, 6' 1, 170
Raduan Perez, RHP, Venezuela, 6' 7, 220
Yeicer Crespo, C, Venezuela, 5' 9, 220
Kennew Blanco, SS, Venezuela, 6' 3, 205
Renyel Campos, C, Venezuela, 5' 10, 161

Last year they signed 20 guys, 19 IFA, 1 UFA, which sounds low for the UFA side especially but might be just based on what they have records for. The IFA's we won't know for certain if they made it for many years. Orelvis Martinez was signed in 2018 after all and is still a prospect. Of course, that same year Addison Barger was drafted by the Jays in the 6th round.

Just saw on Fangraphs that they updated their top 100. 4 Jays in the top 114 - Bloss #59 (Fully Baked No. 4 Starters), Nimmela #70 (Extreme Variance), Roden #82 (2 arrows up meaning he has improved in rank and Future Value, Polished Low-Variance Bats), and Tiedemann #112 (Injured or Distressed). Future Value ranks from 65 (Sasaki) to 50 (all Jays).

Good to see upward trends. I actually think the Jays in general have had some good (on paper) drafts the past couple of years with a lot of interesting names that could break out here. Of course, development (and pitcher issues) have been the bigger issue. A 2nd DSL team is another step in the right direction.

Either way, can't wait for Friday for most levels to be in full swing. I need my minor league fix.

Fangraphs has their Jays prospect report out today. They have Jake Bloss at number one.

Apparently Rogers has signed a new NHL contract with a significant increase despite years of reports that the previous contract was under water - Seems Rogers is doubling down on sports properties which is good news for Jays fans - I'm would not be surprised if the Jays extend both Vlad & Bo .

Just read the FanGraphs top 40. Bloss at #1 is a first, others have Trey Yesavage, Ricky Tiedemann, and Arjun Nimmala at #1 instead. Unusual for there to be this much debate about the Jays top prospect. Missing BP's list (not subscribed, seems no one leaked it oddly). I have top 20+ from 12 sources though, with FG leading the way having 72 Jays listed (top 40 plus others of note). Nimmela is #1 on 5 lists, #2 on 3 is easily the top prospect right now. Making all 12 lists Jake Bloss, Arjun Nimmala, Orelvis Martinez, Alan Roden, Ricky Tiedemann, Trey Yesavage, Josh Kasevich, Kendry Rojas, and Adam Macko. Will Wagner is the best to be skipped a lot - probably due to questions on if he was still a rookie or not. I'll dig in more later with that (probably an article - I normally do one each year summarizing the assorted top prospect lists).

Still no Orelvis in the Buffalo lineup. He had a virus on opening day, I guess its lingering.

Jake Bloss gave up five runs in the first inning. He had two outs, two on, and no runs in when Barger made an error. Three hits and a Jon Clase error made it five runs in.

I am hoping the NH, Vancouver and Dunedin rosters are announced today.

NH roster has been announced. A lot of the players are those who finished 2024 on the roster. As expected Peyton Williams and Jace Bohrofen have been promoted. The big surprise is Nicolas Deschamps, one of three catchers. But it might be a sign of the Jays lack of depth in that position.

Dunedin roster is also out. It doesn't look like a strong roster, hoping to be surprised. However Trey Yesavage is on the Dunedin roster, so no to Vancouver so far.

Khal Stephen is also on the D Jays roster.

20 returners on the Vancouver roster, the most returnees ever. As predicted Arjun Nimmala is there as is Fernando Perez.

2024 draftees Sean Keys, Eddie Micheletti and Carter Cunningham will be in Vancouver.

Here are the rosters. I took some liberties in guessing on SP vs RP.

NEW HAMPSHIRE (AA)

SP: Dominguez, Harrison, Jennings, Sanchez, Watson, Van Eyk
RP: Amalfi, Boyer, Burnette, Gregory, Larkin, Lavallee, Milacki, Thurman, Tolhurst, Urbaez
C: Sharp, Brooks, Deschamps
IF: De Jesus, McAdoo, McCarty, Paulino, Rivera, Williams
OF: Bohrofen, Da Brown, De Brown, Martinez, Pinango, Schreck

VANCOUVER (A+)

SP: Gallagher, O'Halloran, Miranda, Perez, Rogers, Watts-Brown
RP: Bonds, Carter, Garkow, Munson, Ortiz, Peterson, Sanchez, Todd, Wentworth, Yeager
C: Parker, Stone, Gilliland
IF: Keys, Pinto, Coffey, Goodwin, Harry, Cunningham, Nimmala
OF: Arias, Hornung, Orf, Ward, Micheletti, Wetzel

DUNEDIN (A)

SP: Cates, Holcombe, Stephen, Yesavage, Flores/Guerra/Simon/Stanifer piggybacks?
RP: Coleman, Eshleman, Flynn, Martin, Mracna, Schueler
C: Duran, Powell, Tibbitts
IF: Arnold, Beltre, Chirinos, Freethy, Shaw, Toman
OF: Aponte, Barry, Hernandez, Munoz, Rudd

Orelvis in the Buffalo lineup today at DH. It will be his season debut.

Former Blue Jay Sem Robberse starts again the Bisons today.

I expect a lot of players here, especially pitchers, will be in line to move up quite quickly. Rogers and Gallagher should be in AA, and Stephen or Yesavage will be up in A+ in no time with a good start.

Jake Bloss gave up five runs in the first inning yesterday. Lazaro Estrada says hold my beer, six runs allowed in two thirds of an inning today. He was yanked after 37 pitches.

I noticed Kendry Rojas and Cade Daughty aren't on any rosters.
Anyone have any intel on those?

With Leo Jimenez and Josh Kasevich on the IL, Addison Barger is playing shortstop. He has made two errors already today in two innings. He made an error yesterday at third base.

Clase, Loperfido, Berroa are playing the OF, Barger might see more time out there soon.

Bisons were beat up so bad that Will Robertson pitched the ninth inning.

Doughty had shoulder surgery, I believe, due to an issue from last year.

Rojas is a mystery as he was fine in the prospects game... and should have been at AA.

Vancouver placed Kendry Rojas on the 7 day IL. Hopefully its just a short stay.

BA just put out an article ranking teams on their IFA signings on top 30 lists
#2 Yankees - 2 teams
#3 Red Sox - 2 teams
#12 Orioles - 2 teams
#22 Jays - 1 team
#27 Rays - 2 teams

Jays have finally added a second team

quote from article
"Some teams have only one DSL team because their facility in the Dominican Republic lacks the space to house a second team. Owners who choose to operate with one DSL team—or opt not to invest in a modern academy capable of supporting a second DSL team—are putting their organizations at a competitive disadvantage."