With spring training inching progressively closer, it’s time to take a look at some prospects that I’m looking forward to seeing this year. Specifically how they’re used in spring training and what transpires when the serious ball begins.
Orelvis Martinez, at this time last year was no longer considered to be a top-100 prospect by most people and was heading into a huge 2023. Now, Martinez is back to being a top-100 prospect and has gotten a taste of triple-A ball. Orelvis had a 122 wRC+ in double-A and a 105 wRC+ in triple-A, which is huge heading into this year as it demonstrates that he can be an above average bat in the upper minors and that he’s almost ready for the big leagues.
With the Jays’ glaring hole at 3rd base going into 2024, Martinez is a piece that could easily fill that void if given the chance. In 2023, Martinez spent a lot of time between 3rd, shortstop and 2nd base. Towards the end of the year he mainly played 2nd base, but I believe that was more so just to increase positional versatility and if there is a spot at 3rd open for him they wouldn’t hesitate to call on him. Overall, his role will be very fascinating in 2024 and it’ll be really interesting to seeing what happens with him.
Ricky Tiedemann had a tough 2023 season yet remains a top prospect. In 2023 he was injured for a lot of the year, yet was still able to show glimpses of that future ace-potential that Jays fans believe in. Tiedemann will need time to get his innings up and they’ll have to be managed, but considering he’s already made it up to triple-A he should play a valuable role on the 2024 team in some ways.
Tiedemann was just recently ranked the number 29th overall prospect on MLB pipeline which is important because it shows how much potential he has and how big of believers MLB scouts are in hims abilities on the mound. In 2023 Tiedemann only reached 5+ innings when he started in the Arizona fall league. It will be very interesting to see how this changes over a larger timeframe. It’ll be super exciting to see what Ricky does in 2024 because he should get at least a little bit of time with the Blue Jays, and I also can’t wait to see what he can do in larger outings on the mound.
Heading into 2023, Alan Roden was just a college 6th-rounder that seemed like he was going to be alright but not necessarily a top prospect for the Blue Jays considering he was already 23 and had a limited ceiling. Now, a year later Roden has made it all the way up to double-A and is a consensus top-10 prospect in the Blue Jays organization. At high-A in 2023 Roden had a 150 wRC+ and after being promoted to double-A his wRC+ dropped to 147, which is still elite. He doesn’t have much power, just 10 home runs in total in 2023 but he can hit for contact and can get on base at very good clips.
In 2024, one would guess Roden goes to triple A after the way he demolished high-A and double-A. After Springer, Varsho and Kieramier the Jays outfield gets a little bit shaky and this is an area where I think Roden can slot in very well. I could easily see Roden being the Jays 4th outfielder by the trade deadline, especially if injuries or under performances pop up in the outfield. We could see him playing a much larger role than expected and It’s enticing to see what that’ll look like, and how he does once he reaches the majors.
On to 2024
Overall, I’m really intrigued to see the roles that these prospects play on the 2024 Blue Jays, as well as how they do in the minors to increase or decrease their chances to play at the top level. Each of these players has the opportunity to play a bigger role than we expect due variety of factors and next year will be huge years for these 3 as they break into the majors.