Don’t look now, but the Toronto Blue Jays have two of the top infield prospects and they’re both making a charge toward MLB action.
The Toronto Blue Jays currently have two of the top infield prospects in MLB. MLB Pipelines ranks Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as the number one overall prospect in Baseball while teammate Bo Bichette isn’t far behind at number nine. Both of these players will be playing in the Rogers Centre in the very near future.
Guerrero Jr. is currently closer to reaching the Big Leagues than Bichette but they should both be mainstays in the Jays lineup by this time next season. Today, we’ll take a look at what they’ve accomplished thus far starting with Guerrero Jr.
The top dog
Vlad Jr. is so good that he’s not even arguably the best prospect in baseball, he just IS at the top. His bloodlines alone would place him there and he has done everything to make people believe that this could be the second coming of his father, Vladimir Guerrero. All you need to do is watch an at-bat from the younger Guerrero to see the similarities between him and his Hall of Fame father. Here, take a look…
Guerrero receives a 70 grade for his hit tool and that still might be rated too low. The power-hitting right-hander has been amazing with the lumber in the Minors during this season. He played 61 games with Double-A New Hampshire and all he did was hit .402 with 14 home runs and 60 runs batted in before being called up to Triple-A.
To say that the 19-year-old has come down to earth while playing in Buffalo would be a lie. He has hit a robust .356 in 99 plate appearances through his first 23 games. The sky is the limit for Guerrero Jr. offensively and he’s only just beginning to scratch the surface of his potential. His debut with the Toronto Blue Jays should be coming when rosters expand in September.
Now a look at Bichette
The number two prospect in the Toronto Blue Jays system is nothing to scoff at either. MLB Pipelines gives Bichette a 60 grade for his hit tool and a 55 grade for his power tool. Bichette also comes from baseball-rich bloodlines as his father Dante Bichette played in the Majors and his brother Dante Bichette Jr. was drafted 51st overall during the 2011 MLB draft.
The Blue Jays used the 66th pick during the 2016 MLB draft to select Bichette and he has been impressive during his time in the Minors. He hit an eye-popping .427 while playing 22 games in Rookie League following the draft in 2016.
He has continued to impress scouts with his play during the last two seasons. He hit .384 with 10 home runs en route to winning the Midwest League Most Valuable Player Award prior to being called up to Advanced-A Dunedin during the 2017 season.
The 20-year-old continued to rake after reaching Advanced-A, hitting .323 across 182 plate appearances in 40 games. Bichette hit .364 with 14 home runs and 74 runs batted in combined between Low-A and Advanced-A during last season earning a promotion to Double-A to start this season.
He has played in 123 games and has a .279 batting average with a .338 on-base percentage. Bichette has hit only 10 home runs during this season but he shows room for growth in that department. However, the impressive thing about Bichette offensively has been his ability to limit strikeouts.
The right-handed middle-infielder has 95 strikeouts during the 2018 season and, by today’s standards, that’s actually pretty solid. He has also managed to work 45 walks during this year following drawing 42 free passes during the 2017 season.
Bichette has an outside chance of being among the September call-ups for the Blue Jays. However, next season represents his best opportunity to make a real impact with the Big League club.
One final note
We’ve covered the immense potential that both Vlad Jr. and Bichette have and what their future could hold for them with the Toronto Blue Jays. However, there’s another young infielder making waves in the organization who has his own Hall of Fame bloodlines.
Cavan Biggio, son of Craig Biggio, has been nothing short of spectacular at getting on base during his Minor League career. He finished the 2016 season with a .371 on-base percentage while playing in 62 games across two levels of the Jays system. He followed that up with a .342 on-base percentage while playing in Advanced-A Dunedin during last season.
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However, Biggio has struggled to hit for a high average during the last two seasons. He hit just .233 with 11 home runs during the 2017 season. Although his .259 batting average this season is still a little low, Biggio has found his power stroke.
The 23-year-old has been clobbering the baseball with 26 home runs while playing in Double-A. He has an outstanding .374 on-base percentage to go along with an eye-popping .918 on-base plus slugging percentage. He currently finds himself ranked number nine in the Blue Jays system and is well on his way to MLB.
That makes three above-average offensive infield prospects that Toronto currently has knocking on the door of The Show. We didn’t look at their defense today, maybe another time, but that’s because their defense won’t hinder their advancement.
The future of baseball is bright above the border and these three together could do some special things before it’s all said and done. The Yanks and the Sox better watch their backs because this will be a fearsome offensive juggernaut within the next few years.