DerdThe latest from around the Blue Jays farm system.

Regular readers will know that I have always been high on Pinto, who can get on base, steal, and hit for some power. About the only thing he’s struggled with since coming to the organization is stay healthy, although he’s had close to an injury-free calendar year. Scouts may not love the swing, but this guy just has a knack for getting into scoring position.

I have been banging the drum for Batista being the best part of the return the Blue Jays got for Danny Jansen. He locates to all four quadrants of the strike zone, has some deception in his delivery, and gets a lot of whiffs.

Beckles is a 6’3”/215 Dominican who originally signed with the Yankees. After a couple of non-descript DSL seasons, New York let him go; Beckles signed as a free agent with Toronto in June of last year. There aren’t a whole lot of scouting reports out there on him, but it appears that Beckles can draw a walk, and perhaps is just starting to tap into his power.

Joseph was not a top IFA signing from the ‘21-‘22 period, but Baseball America called him a name to know, “a wiry, bouncy athlete whose diligence and attention to detail on defense are evident in the way he shines in centrefield.” He made his full season debut with Dunedin last year, with 21 extra base hit in 69 games, but had difficulty putting balls in play regularly. He started the season in Extended, but looks to have earned a longer look.

Yes, Single A relievers are a dime a dozen, but southpaw Coleman has been brilliant. Drafted out of LSU (with whom he won a College World Series) by the Dodgers in the 16th round two years ago, Coleman didn’t sign with LA. The Blue Jays scooped him up in June of last year. Coleman has a max effort delivery and a lower arm slot that makes him tough for hitters on both sides of the plate. He touches 97 with his FB.

Watching the C’s

I spent last week watching the Vancouver Canadians. Manager Jose Mayorga did not necessarily arrive in the Pacific Northwest with a prospect-laden roster beyond Arjun Nimmala, but there have been some notable performances.

Nimmala has turned out to be exactly as advertised. He’s not walking more, but he’s definitely cut down on the strikeouts, and is in the Top 10 in many Northwest League offensive categories. It’s scary to think that he’s only 19, and is far from a finished product. On the defensive side, he showed a tendency to rush throws at times, a trait that likely gets reduced with added reps. Given that he’s an average runner, Nimmala does not have extensive range, but his instincts, footwork, and hands help reduce the effect of that.

The true test for Nimmala will come when he reaches AA; my gut tells me that won’t be for a while yet. There was considerable debate among the player development staff about starting him with an aggressive assignment to Dunedin; while the Jays don’t mind top prospects facing some adversity, there has to be a limit. While they want to make sure Nimmala is consistently challenged, there are a lot of on and off field boxes for him to check.

Sean Keys is a player I was looking forward to getting a longer look at. The 4th round pick in last year’s draft broke the mold of the contact-first hitters Toronto has drafted in the higher rounds over the past several years. While he struggled at the plate in his first month with Vancouver, Keys showed some promise. He walked as often as he struck out, working the count and showing a patient, advanced approach. There is not doubt that he can hit the ball hard - Keys 32% line drive rate is second in the NWL. The Blue Jays would no doubt like to see some more more loft in that swing.

Fernando Perez had his best start of the season when I watched him last week. The system’s 11th ranked prospect (according to MLB Pipeline) had his struggles earlier as he adjusted to life at High A. No one in the system pounds the strike zone like Perez, but because he doesn’t have a high-octane fastball, he relies on pitching on the black - something he had trouble doing prior to this start. When he’s on, Perez is using all of his pitches to get hitters to chase.