C’s Chat – 2023 Vancouver Canadians SS/3B #27 Alex De Jesús – C's Plus Baseball

The latest C’s Chat is with 2022-2023 Vancouver Canadians shortstop/third baseman Alex De Jesús.

The Dominican infielder was a free-agent signing of the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 3, 2018 and received a $500,000 signing bonus. He began his pro career with the Dominican Summer League Dodgers Shoemaker squad in 2019. He doubled on the first pitch he saw from the DSL Pirates1 club and added a sacrifice fly on June 1. That was part of a 10-game on-base streak to begin his career. De Jesús went deep for the first time versus DSL Rangers1 on June 17. After slashing .296/.381/.444 in 13 games played in the Dominican, De Jesús was promoted to the Arizona League Dodgers Mota squad. In his first game on American soil, he belted a home run in his first at-bat and later doubled and walked against AZL Cleveland on June 21. He would end the month with five multi-hit games, going 11-for-21 before getting a hit in his next two games in July to extend his hitting streak to seven. De Jesús put together a batting line of .276/.326/.374 with 11 extra-base hits and 25 runs batted in over 44 games in the Arizona League and was rated as that league’s 11th-best prospect by Baseball America.

De Jesús had to remain home in the Dominican Republic in 2020 when the minor league season was cancelled due to the coronavirus. He got back in the field with the Rancho Cucamonga Earthquakes and had a two-homer game in a 4-for-5 effort at Inland Empire on May 8 but endured early struggles as Baseball America cited De Jesús “got into bad swing habits during the coronavirus shutdown and hit .210 with a 38% strikeout rate the first two months of the 2021 season at Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, but after he made adjustments to get back to his former swing, he hit .314/.440/.490 the rest of the year.” In total, he finished up with a slash line of .268/.386/.447 with 38 extra-base knocks and 73 RBI in 97 games.

It was a return to the Ranch for De Jesús in 2022 but an .881 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in 37 games with the Quakes—including a two-homer game against Inland Empire on April 16—led to a promotion to the High-A Great Lakes Loons. In his first Midwest League contest, he hit a home run against Fort Wayne on May 31. His signature game with Great Lakes came on June 16 when he hit for the cycle against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, marking the start of an 11-game hitting streak. At the end of July, De Jesús was hitting .282/.376/.421 with 17 extra-base hits in 50 games with the Loons. He would not play for them in August because he was traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Toronto Blue Jays on August 2 along with pitcher Mitch White in exchange for C’s pitcher Nick Frasso and lefthander Moises Brito.

De Jesús reported to Dunedin to play two games at the Florida Complex League level, hitting his first home run with his new organization versus the FCL Phillies on August 8. After collecting two more hits in his next game with the F-Jays, De Jesús was promoted to Vancouver where he singled and walked in his C’s debut at Eugene on August 11. He had a four-game hitting streak in Everett, contributing three hits and four RBI, including the game-winning ribbie on August 16. De Jesús also had a leadoff single that led to a three-run rally in the top of the ninth for a comeback win on August 19. His first home run in a C’s uniform came in Spokane on August 30 and he homered again on August 31 to contribute to another win against the Tribe. Though he hit just .211 in 24 regular season games with Vancouver, De Jesús batted .364 against Eugene in the Northwest League final with a hit in all three games, including two hits and two RBI in Game 3.

In 2023, De Jesús returned to Vancouver and did not have a good time of it for the majority of April until his two-run, 10th-inning home run walked off Eugene on April 30. After hitting .180 in the season’s first month, De Jesús would pick things up including a two-homer game with a double against Hillsboro on June 13. He socked two more homers with a single in Eugene on June 22. On June 28, De Jesús authored another walk-off win with a bases-loaded walk in the 10th inning against Spokane. That was part of a month of June in which he batted. 316/.421/.582.

De Jesus’ best individual performance came in Hillsboro on July 4 when he hit for the cycle for the second time in his career. Unfortunately, De Jesús was bitten by the injury bug for the first time in his career with stints on the injured list n late July and early September, causing him to miss chunks of August as well.

De Jesús will end the 2023 campaign with batting totals of .248/.340/.466 with 11 home runs among 35 extra-base hits and 59 RBI in 82 games. He is eligible to come off the injured list on September 10 and he could return to the team in time to play in his second straight Northwest League final.

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C’s Plus Baseball spoke with the 21-year-old De Jesús during the team’s series against Spokane in August. This interview has been edited for clarity.

C’s Plus Baseball – Let’s talk about when you first got here. You were traded from the Los Angeles Dodgers. How did you find out about the trade?

Alex De Jesús – I remember that last year, we were on the road, playing against Cleveland (Cleveland’s High-A farm club in Lake County) and we were at practice. I remember I already had done my defensive work and everything and I was at batting practice. During batting practice, I got pulled out and they gave me a phone and that’s when they told me that I got traded. So I just had to stop everything I was doing, pick up all my stuff and just wait for the Blue Jays to contact me and send me the flight information and everything.

CPB – You must have been blindsided. How did you feel when you found out you were going to another team?

ADJ – Yeah, it was kind of quick, you know, because I really wasn’t expecting that. It was pretty soon, pretty fast. It was kind of shocking at first because it was my first time passing through that and all that. So I talked with my parents and they just told me like, ‘Man, it’s part of it. It doesn’t mean it’s something bad. It’s probably very good because the new team wants you.’ So I just saw it that way and took it a little better.

CPB – One of the good things that you did with the Dodgers organization, hitting for the cycle and you did it again here too. What was it like to hit for the cycle, not just once but twice?

ADJ – Hitting for the cycle is pretty cool. I really like both of them. Actually, they were both the same way. I remember it was in the same order. First a double, then a homer, then a triple and then the hit. So it’s kind of cool. Twice already in my career and yeah, it’s pretty cool. Pretty grateful.

CPB – And Michael Turconi did it as well. I guess it really kind of just contributes to the really good vibe that this team has.

ADJ – Yeah, this team is very united. We can say we’re all brothers in there. We all have each other’s backs. It’s pretty cool to see one of your teammates doing it too. You just feel very happy about everything. It’s pretty cool. Pretty good vibes in the team.

CPB – You got here to Vancouver last year. I know it was an adjustment period for you. What was that like getting used to a new set of teammates and playing here in Vancouver?

ADJ – It was a little easier because I already knew some of the guys here. So they made the transition a little easier. I had somebody to talk to and everything. The guys here are awesome. They all took me in very well and everything. They did not make me feel like I’m not home. It wasn’t that hard.

CPB – Who did you know from here before?

ADJ – I knew Rainer (Rainer Nuńez) and Miguel Hiraldo. He’s at Double-A now. I knew Miguel because I remember when I was in the D.R. I went to his place where he was practicing and I got to see him. I didn’t talk to him that much at that time but I knew who he was.

CPB – One of the big moments for you last year was a game in Everett where you got a single that helped kickstart a rally and help the team come back to win a game in the top of the ninth. What do you remember about that night?

ADJ – I remember that we were losing and I’m just like,’Man, let’s just compete.’ That’s always my mindset whenever I’m out there. Let’s compete. Thank God that led up to a rally. That’s how this team is built. They just feed off of the good vibes, the good things, the competition, everything. We’re always on that.

CPB – Last year, you got to experience playing in the Northwest League Final. It obviously didn’t go the way we all wanted it to go but you guys gave them a pretty good run for the money.

ADJ – It was pretty cool, a very nice experience. It was the first time I was in a championship series. We were playing the first two games in Eugene, I remember. The last game we played here, everything was very competitive. It was a pretty cool experience. I will always remember that.

CPB – In 2023, things really going well for you so far. You seem to be more comfortable playing here at Nat Bailey Stadium. What’s it like playing here?

ADJ – It’s pretty cool. Fans here are awesome. It’s just awesome to play here. It’s a very nice stadium. Fans are great. You just feel at home. It’s pretty cool. You get used to it very quick. It’s pretty cool.

CPB – As far as going up to the batter’s box, what’s your approach when you go to the plate?

ADJ – I try to keep it as simple as possible. Simple is better for me. Whenever I’m up there, I’m just trying to see the ball and hit the ball. I’m trying to keep it as simple as possible. That’s my approach every time there. I’m always watching the game and everything. Trying to know what the other team is doing. It’s always good to see that. Every time I’m up there on the box, I’m just trying to keep it simple and compete, that’s all I’m doing.

CPB – Third base, shortstop. Do you have a preference between the two?

ADJ – I’m very comfortable with both. I really like them both. I have no problem playing either of them. Anywhere the team needs me, I can do it. There’s no problem with it.

CPB – You’ve had some very big hits. You’ve had a couple of walk-off wins already. I remember the one game was a 0-0 game until your home run won it on a Sunday afternoon. What’s it been like?

ADJ – It’s awesome. Actually, that was my first walk-off, if I’m not wrong, in my career. It was awesome. All the energy. You just feel great. It feels so good. You feel like all the work you’ve done in all your life just comes out to that. It shines. It’s just the moment with your team. It’s just awesome. These guys are always competing. That’s why we have all those walk-offs. That’s the mentality that you have all the time. Compete, compete. It doesn’t matter what inning it is. It doesn’t matter if we’re down 12-0 or anything. We’re always trying to compete all the time.

CPB – If you had to describe yourself as a player, what’s the scouting report you would give on yourself?

ADJ – I’d say that I’m a team player. I’ll try to do anything the team needs. I wouldn’t grade myself in any of the hitting, defense, or anything. I’ll just try to give my best. That would be my description. Team player and a competitor. That would be it.

CPB – When you got traded from the Dodgers to the Blue Jays. you got to go to the Blue Jays Player Development Complex in Dunedin. How different was that compared to what you experienced with the Dodgers?

ADJ – It’s kind of different. The biggest difference was when I got to the complex in Florida. It’s huge. It’s awesome. It’s very modern. Everything is so cool there. We can say there’s some difference there. It’s not saying that it’s competition between teams or anything. It’s pretty cool. It’s been good.

CPB – Is there any way the complex has helped you with your game?

ADJ – They have taught me a lot of stuff. The coaching staff and all that. They’re always on top of us. They’re always watching us, trying to help us, trying to make us get better. They really have helped me on getting to know myself better and all that. Doing stuff that we have to do to get better and keep us healthy.

CPB – Did you have a favorite major league team growing up?

ADJ – I can say the Yankees a little bit when I was growing up mostly because of my Dad. He’s the biggest fan of baseball. I didn’t used to watch that much baseball when I was growing up. My thing was just playing it. I just loved playing it. I didn’t watch it that much, but I just loved playing baseball.

CPB – Final question. The Canadians have five different uniforms. Blue, red, white, black, grey. Do you have a favourite?

ADJ – There’s no competition there. The black one is the best one. That’s the most swaggy one.

Alex De Jesús File

Born – March 22, 2002 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Height/Weight – 6-foot-1, 170 pounds
Bats/Throws – Right/Right
Uniform Numbers – Wore number 6 for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes in 2021 and 2022. Wore number 43 for the Great Lakes Loons, number 13 with the Florida Complex League Blue Jays and number 27 for the Vancouver Canadians in 2022.
Walkup Music – “Ayer Y Hoy” by Mora
Instagram – @adejesus2203