How You Gonna Keep 'Em Down On The Farm?

Often times, we don't pay attention to the Jays' minor league system until somebody gets called up, at which point we either second-guess the Jays for calling up somebody who wasn't putting up great numbers, or ask why they weren't brought up sooner.

So we thought we'd change that. Who in Las Vegas could potentially make a difference to the big club? Who clearly needs more time in the minors? Who in New Hampshire could benefit from a move upwards and westwards?

Looking over the Las Vegas numbers, the biggest surprise is that the team leader in batting average and OBP is Chris Aguila. I've never heard of Chris Aguila, I'd have guessed he was a Mexican pro wrestler, but there he is--hitting .329 as a versatile outfielder.

(We're on to your secret identity, Chris.)

Aguila has had cups of coffee with the Marlins and the Mets in the past, and spent 2009 in Japan. He's always been what baseball nerds like to call an 'AAAA' player--one of the better players in AAA, but never able to hack it in the majors. At 30 years of age, and not on the 40-man roster, I doubt we'll be seeing Aguila in Toronto unless there's a major injury crisis.

Brett Wallace, on the other hand, is somebody who everybody was expecting in Toronto by the end of the year, and it looks as though he's meeting those expectations. While it's not a bad idea to hold him in Vegas as long as possible for service time considerations, I'd suggest giving him some regular playing time in the last quarter of the season, leading to a Rookie of the Year campaign in 2011.

Wallace is the 51s' leader in slugging percentage by quite a margin, giving him a .995 OPS--also solidly in first place. He's hitting .311 with ten homers. 35 strikeouts, though what you'd have to expect from somebody with his makeup, is a little high, but 14 walks offset that total somewhat.

Moving to the other side of the spectrum, J.P. Arencibia is struggling to a .238/.306/.366 line--which actually makes him the better of the 51s' two catchers--and sleeper favourite Brian Dopirak has a horrid .258 OBP.

On the mound, most of those who deserve shots at the bigs--Brett Cecil, Josh Roenicke, and Rommie Lewis--have already been called up. Brad Mills also stands out: a 2.53 ERA, with left-handed hitters only batting .143 against him, and he'll hopefully get a look if another starter is needed.

Surprisingly, though, most of the names that you'd expect to be on the cusp of that Vegas-to-Toronto flight find themselves struggling in AAA--Jeremy Accardo has been average at best, compiling a 3.60 ERA, David Purcey and Jesse Carlson have been worse in their relief roles, and Merkin Valdez has a 12.46 ERA through five abbreviated appearances.

In New Hampshire, the picture is a bit more rosy. Brian Jeroloman probably deserves a shot at replacing either of the ineffective catchers in Vegas; he's hitting .325 and getting on base neither every second trip to the plate, as is infielder Brad Emaus. Zach Drabek is pitching well, but not well enough to crack Vegas, while Zach Stewart's 6.84 ERA is ugly even for that level. The Fisher Cats' best pitchers are a pair of surprises: Trystan Magnuson, a Vancouver-born righty with a 1.40 ERA through twelve release appearances and the name of a misguided viking, and Randy Boone, who has quietly worked his way through the Jays' system since being taken in the seventh round of the 2007 draft.

Okay, so maybe there's no immediate saviour on the Jays' horizon--Brett Wallace is close, but he'd be more valuable to us in 2016 than in 2010. But there is a solid crop of players who, with the right amount of development, could play major roles for Toronto in seasons to come.