Vancouver Canadians Nate Pearson

Nate Pearson was rated the fourth-best prospect in the Toronto Blue Jays system by Baseball America.

C's RecapFour members of the 2017 Northwest League champion Vancouver Canadians earned spots among the top 30 Toronto Blue Jays prospects according to Baseball America. Righthander Nate Pearson, shortstop Logan Warmoth, catcher Riley Adams and shortstop Kevin Vicuna all made the 2018 edition of the Baseball America Prospect Handbook. On the cover of this year’s edition is none other than Blue Jays super-prospect (and sadly, non-Vancouver Canadian) Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Vancouver Canadians Logan Warmoth

Logan Warmoth was ranked eighth in the Blue Jays farm system by Baseball America.

2017 first-round picks Pearson and Warmoth were rated fourth and eighth on the list while 2017 third-round pick Adams placed 20th. Vicuna—a 2014 free-agent signing out of Venezuela—was rated 25th. Those four are among a dozen former C’s who are among the top 30 prospects.

Baseball America grades Toronto with the eighth-best farm system in the majors, a jump of 12 spots from 2017.

Player grades for the chart below are based on the traditional 20-80 scouting scale:

  • 75-80 – Franchise player/number one starter
  • 65-70 – Perennial All-Star/number two starter
  • 60 – Occasional All-Star/number two-three starter/game’s best closer
  • 55 – First division regular/number three-four starter/elite closer
  • 50 – Number four starter/elite set-up reliever
  • 45 – Second division regular/platoon/set-up reliever
  • 40 – Reserve player/swingman/long reliever

Risk factors are described below:

  • Safe – player is ready to contribute in the majors this season and has shown a realistic ceiling
  • Low – player is likely to reach his ceiling and become a big leaguer barring injury
  • Medium – player still has some tools to sharpen for major league caliber skills but is fairly polished
  • High – player is a first-year draft pick, has plenty of projection involved or has a worrisome injury history
  • Extreme – teenager in rookie ball, a player with a significant history of injuries or struggles with a key skill (pitcher’s control or hitter’s strikeout rate) that is a significant barrier to reaching his potential
No.# Player Position Grade Risk 2017 Rank
1
 Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
 3B 75 High 1
2
 Bo Bichette
 SS 65 High 9
3
 Anthony Alford
 OF 55 Medium 2
4
 Nate Pearson
 RHP 55 Very High NR
5
 Lourdes Gourriel Jr.
 SS/2B 55 Very High 3
6
 Eric Pardinho
 RHP 55 Extreme NR
7
 Danny Jansen C 50 High 22
8
 Logan Warmoth SS 50 High NR
9
 Richard Urena SS 45 Medium 6
10
 Ryan Borucki LHP 45 Medium 16
11
 Sean Reid-Foley RHP 50 High 4
12
 T.J. Zeuch RHP 50 High 8
13
 Ryan Noda 1B/OF 50 Very High NR
14
 Edward Olivares* OF 50 Very High NR
15
 Reese McGuire C 45 High 13
16
 Conner Greene** RHP 45 High 5
17
 Miguel Hiraldo SS 50 Extreme NR
18
 Leonardo Jimenez SS 50 Extreme NR
19
 Carlos Ramirez RHP 40 Medium NR
20
 Riley Adams C 45 High NR
21
 Rowdy Tellez 1B 40 Medium 7
22
 Harold Ramirez OF 40 Medium 14
23
 Max Pentecost C/1B 45 Very High 12
24
 McGregory Contreras C/1B 45 Very High NR
25
 Kevin Vicuna SS 45 Very High NR
26
 Kevin Smith SS 45 Very High NR
27
 Jordan Romano RHP 40 High 24
28
 Hagen Danner C 45 Extreme NR
29
 Jon Harris RHP 40 High 10
30
 Yennsy Diaz RHP 40 Very High 28

Red – Played with Vancouver. * – Traded to San Diego ** – Traded to St. Louis

2014-2015 C’s lefty Ryan Borucki made the biggest jump out of the former C’s as he jumped from 16th to 10th. Borucki—tabbed by BA to be the team’s top rookie in 2018— replaces the 10th ranked Blue Jays prospect from last year in 2015 righty Jon Harris, who fell all the way down to 29. 2016 righty T.J. Zeuch fell out of the top 10 as he is now 12th, falling from eighth last year.

A trio of 2014 Canadians saw their stock tumble with designated hitter Rowdy Tellez falling from seven to 21, catcher Max Pentecost slipped from 12 to 23 and right-hander Sean Reid-Foley sinking from four to 11. 2014 shortstop Richard Urena solidified his position in the top 10 by placing sixth, an increase of three spots.

Vancouver Canadians Riley Adams

Riley Adams was rated 20th by Baseball America in the Blue Jays farm system.

Pearson, Warmoth, Adams and Vicuna are joined by 2012 C’s outfielder Carlos Ramirez—now a right-hander who made it Toronto in 2017—as former Vancouver players making their top 30 debuts.

Vancouver Canadians Kevin Vicuna

Baseball America rated Kevin Vicuna 25th among the Blue Jays top 30 prospects for 2018.

As for players on the list who have not made it to Vancouver from the lower-levels of the system, first baseman Ryan Noda (ranked #13) ended 2017 in Bluefield with a .507 on-base percentage but he may be heading to Lansing in 2018. There is also speculation that Noda’s Bluefield teammate shortstop Kevin Smith (#26) will also skip YVR and head to Lansing with Warmoth bypassing the Lugnuts and starting in Dunedin instead.

2017 second-round pick Hagen Danner (#28) may ply his trade as a catcher at some point with Vancouver after beginning his career in the Gulf Coast League but the high-schooler might spend more time in the GCL or be assigned to the Bluefield Blue Jays instead.

Righthander Eric Pardinho (#6) and shortstops Miguel Hiraldo (#17) and Leonardo Jimenez (#18)—2017 international free-agent signings from Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Panama respectively—are a long way away from Vancouver as they will likely begin their pro tenures with the Dominican Summer League Blue Jays or the GCL.

Outfielder McGregory Contreras (#24) held his own at Bluefield last year by slashing .279/.335/.421 with 15 extra-base hits as a 19 year-old and if a gun were pointed to my head, I would push all my chips to the middle of the table and bet on Contreras suiting up in Canadians red and white in 2018.

If you can’t get enough of prospect lists, check out this piece by my Batter’s Box colleague John Northey right here.

C-Tweets

cs-tweetHere are some of the Tweets that have been made by Vancouver Canadians players and team officials and by members of the media regarding C’s past and present. This covers the time period between pitchers and catchers reporting and spring training action. Tweets range from photos and observations to prospect ranking and prospect stories.

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Published by Niall O'Donohoe

My name is Niall O’Donohoe and I am an avid follower of baseball. My blog beginnings began in 2007 with Batter’s Box under the alias #2JBrumfield. The blog formerly known as Niall On Baseball, C’s Plus Baseball strives to deliver plus coverage of the C’s through photos, observations and interviews of the players striving to make it to the major leagues. If you like what you see here, please spread the word about CsPlusBaseball.ca through your favourite social media platform. This blog began just before the C's championship season in 2017 and the goal is to deliver awesome content about Canada’s only affiliated professional minor league baseball club. Thanks a million for being here!

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