Prospect Breakdown; Meet Javier Garcia

Meet 20 year old Starting Pitcher Javier Garcia.  The Mexican born "plump" pitcher was signed by the Vista Panthers as a raw 17 year old back in 2014.  He came over the Jersey Shore in the deal that sent Antonio Ruiz out of down and also brought OF Miguel Rosa to Jersey's farm system.  At the time Garcia was just an out of shape kid who threw in the low 90's and had a fairly bleak future.  He was already in his 3rd year of playing A ball in Vista's system and seemed to regress from his first 2.  He was still young at 18, but not a good sign.

That's when the trade happened.  With Jersey promoting kids to fill their IF positions, the struggling Antonio Ruiz. who was once considered a blue chip prospect, was the odd man out.  Garcia was one of the hand picked teenagers by Josh Swain.  He had this to say, "He had great mechanics.  He was a bit sloppy and left the ball out of the plate way too much, but we saw some potential.  Now we didn't see him as a guy we could turn into an Ace, but at age 18, we knew we would have a lot of time to work with him over the years."

He came to Manhattan to started 17 times in 2015 and looked more like his 2014 self than the regressed Garcia we saw in 2015 with Vista.  During the offseason he was put on a muscle training program and worked with Dan Macias at Jersey's Florida complex and the results were more than noticeable.  He came into the 2016 season with a much lively fastball and while before he touched on 93 MPH, he was dialing it back and hitting 97-98 on the radar gun consistently.  He spent most of the 2016 in A ball pitching better than ever before, giving up less hits and considerably less HR while keeping his K rate over 10 K/9.  He was called up to AA Gainesville late in the season in time to get 12 starts where he would struggle, but was to be expected being 19 at a level where most guys are much older.

We turn to the current season.  Just past the half way point and Garcia has gotten 18 starts at AA and scouts have said his fastball is hitting 99 MPH.  His K/BB rate is at it's highest point since his last season in A ball and while his K/9 has slipped under 10, he is walked less than ever.  Swain says  there is no time table for promotion to AAA or the BSA, but he will have to be put on the 40 man roster aher this year to avoid the Rule V draft.  He also stated his main problem is still leaving that ball up over the plate.  Statistically for his career he has also had a groundball rate of under 50% and his propensity to give up the long ball will not suite him well in Jersey, that is the main focal point to work on.  "If we can get him to where he is at his A level of HR giving up at less than 1/2 per 9/IP that would be ideal.  Right now he is at 1, the way the ball flies out in the Ballpark at the Shore, he would get eaten alive in some starts.  That's our goal for Mr. Garcia at this point."

We suggest you keep an eye on Javier Garcia over the next few years.  While he is not a blue chip prospect, he very well could be a valuable addition to the back end of the rotation in the future.

Jose Ramos, Rookie Phemon; Wins CL Pitcher of the Month

Coming into this season Jose Ramos was just a 20 year old heading back to AAA after a trying 2nd half the season after dominating AA in 26 starts.  He showed so much promise that OSA named him the 7th best prospect in the entire BSA before the 2016 starter.  Management had no plans to even consider moving him to the big club this season.  

"Ramos is a kid with special talent.  Being so young we have moved slowly with him since he joined the organization in 2013.  We gave him 2.5 seasons in AA before he finally felt comfortable and his true talent starting coming out before sending him to AAA last season.  We expected him to struggle in the starts that he had.  In his 7 starts he had an ERA of around 4.50 and only had a 2:1 K/BB ratio, so we knew he had a ways to go.  At the beginning of the season I never really thought we would be talking about him in a light like this," commented GM Josh Swain on Ramos.  

Ramos struggled in April and came through about with the same statistics and ratios he had last season, but was walking fewer.  In his first 2 starts in May he notched 2 wins pitching 15 innings, giving up 2 ER and having a 4:1 K/BB ratio.  His signature start though came against Topeka on May 18th.  Ramos went 7 shutout inning, giving up 5 hits, walking 3 and tying a league record with 15 K's.  It got the attention of the baseball world, and also put him at 7-0 for AAA Tuscaloosa.  He would continue baffling AAA hitters up through his last AAA start on June 30th where he would throw his first career shutout, giving up just 3 hits, walking no one and striking out 11.  This took his record to 11-1, his ERA to 2.95 and fIP of 2.30.  How do you keep a guy down after that performance?

He made his BSA debut on 7/5/2013, 2 days before the All Star break to face the Madison Bombers at home.  He wasn't overwhelming but did go 8 strong innings, giving up 3 ER on 4 hits, walking 1 and striking out 3 for a no decision.  He would get his first win 11 days later in his next start across the country against Pocatello.  He again would throw 8 innings, this time only allowing 1 ER, 6 hits, 1 walk and 6 K's.  He would beat rival Chicago before be humbled by the bats of Niagara Falls to bring his record to 2-1 entering August.  

Ramos got 6 starts in August, 3 at home and 3 on the road.  He went 6.2 IP in everyone of his starts, allowing 4 or less runs in every start and 4 /6 2 or less.  He tallied a 5-1 record, getting his only loss in his last start at Chicago, allowing a season high 10 hits and 4 ER as well as 2 HR.  His shiny 5-1 record compiled with a 2.62 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 24 K's gave him the CL Pitcher of the Month.  This was the first recorded time that we could find of a Jersey pitching winning this award.  Amazing with a staff that has featured pitchers like Macias, Ellis, Brito and Burgess that a 21 year old was the first to win it. 

Even though GM Swain didn't expect Ramos to pitch for the big club this season, he could end up being their savior.  7 wins in his first 10 starts, as well as Ramos making 4 or 5 starts may be the reason they make the playoffs instead of being on the outside looking in.  Either way, the kid has been everything he was advertised to be and more.  I don't expect this will be his last POTM award.

GO D-BAGS

Prospect Breakdown; Meet SS Lawrence Schroeder

 

Growing up in Fontana, California had it's perks.  Hop on I-10 for an hour and be in Hollywood, take a little more time and head south and be in Redondo Beach.  Great weather for the beach, for surfing, for people watching, this was after all Southern California. What Lawrence Schroeder liked the most though is being mere minutes from the Little League baseball facility in San Bernadino, California.  For a week and a half every summer the West Regional tournament was held in San Bernadino.  Though Schroeder never had the chance to to participate he loved watching the kids from all over the western side of the country play baseball. He was especially envious of those last 4 teams who's games are always televised on ESPN and ESPN2.  Playing baseball on TV what a thrill!

Schroeder was always athletically talented.  His father was 6th round draft pick in the NFL and played parts of 2 seasons.  His mother a high school track star.  He excelled in basketball in high school, maturing early hitting his 6'3" height when he was just a sophomore in High School. He made the baseball team as a Junior and quickly became one of the better players on the team.  His high school coach said he was always one of the first ones are practice and almost always the last one there.  The kid loved to practice, loved to get better and it helped the guys around him want to get better too.  

Upon his senior year he was scouted by a few teams and eventually accepted a scholarship to play for the University of Virginia all the way across the country.  They were the only school willing to let Schroeder play both basketball and baseball for them.  He joined the Cavaliers baseball team in 2010, which was a team led by older players  In fact he was the only bat on the team who wasn't a junior and a senior. At first it was hard being the newcomer and by far the youngest kid on the team but in the end he learned more from those guys than any coach out there.  Though they lost to Nebraska 2-1 in the best of 3 series in the first round it was Schroeder's first taste of playoff baseball, and he loved it.  The pressure, everything on the line.  He played in 43 of the team's 48 games, leading the team in doubles and showing off his great eye at the plate.  He only hit .259, but his OBP of .385 was good for 4th on the team.

2011 was another Virginia team led by seniors, but Schroeder like his freshman year was in the thick of things.  He and current Austin River Shark Jerome Miles led the team and became one of the best 1-2 punches in the country.  Schroeder officially put himself on the national radar hitting .400, 9 HR, 17 2B with an OBP of .525 again leading Virginia to the playoffs, and again ending in defeat by way of the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the first round.

2012 was going to be their year.  Virginia named Schroeder team captain before the season started and a slew of young talented players led Virginia for a record of 32 victories which still stands.  The offense featured 5 players in double digit HR's including Schroeder who hit a career high of 14.  He also posted some very high numbers, which many are still in the top 25-30 in college baseball history.  He hit .404 with an OBP of .530 and an OPS o 1.284.  Not to mention that Lawrence had developed a very slick glove at shortstop.  Virginia made the playoffs again and rallied around Schroeder and Miles to knock off their ACC rival Duke in the first round of the playoffs 2-0.  They went on to play powerhouse UConn who led the nation in wins with 39 behind a big pitching staff, current ROY candidate Eliot Helen, former first round picks Ramiro Navarro and Jorge Torres.  Virginia took care of business 2-0, moved on to face Kentucky who they also swept to reach the championship in a bout against the Oregon Ducks.  The series was a joke with Virginia beating them 2-0 to win their first and only national championship.  Currently the 2012 Virginia team is on the 2nd team along with South Florida to sweept through an NCAA playoffs without a loss.  

For the next two years Schroeder would put up decent numbers but nothing compared to the magical summer of 2012. He was a highly touted and ranked prospect going into the 2014 draft, but on draft fell down the draft board and finally was picked by the Jersey Shore D-Bags with the 28th overall pick.  GM Josh Swain said "We were ecstatic and actually very surprised he fell to us.  He was Top 13 on our big board and just kept falling.  It's hard to find a SS with that good of glove/contact with some pop.  The fact he was about to 24 at the time of the draft was also enticing.  We felt he would be one of the faster movers in the entire draft and with need for a SS on the big club, it was a perfect fit."

Schroeder was dissapointed due to his drafted position but was also encouraged.  The 2014 season we saw the breakout of stars in Jersey as Mike Bryant and Matt Doyle lit up the CL with tape measure HR's and names being all over national publications.  "Being not far from Jersey while I was in school I saw them a lot.  They are one of the best team in developing home grown talent, so it really was an honor being drafted by them.  I knew if I was going to make the big leagues, this was a great place for me."

Schroeder signed a 1.29M signing bonus not a week after the draft and was sent to AA Gainesville skipping right over A ball.  While he didn't match his college numbers, he posted respectable numbers in the 67 games he played in with them, he hit 11 HR while hitting .254.  In the winter of 2014 really worked with Schroeder on evening out his swing to produce more line drives and helping him keep his weight back to try and help his power game.  His maturity was evident early on in 2015 as he smacked around AA pitching for 2 weeks and earned a surprise promotion to AAA affiliate Tuscaloosa.  He immediately took over the starting SS position for them, while getting some good time at 2B as well this season.  He has been everything he was advertised as with a slash line of .299/.353/.474 hitting 15 HR and driving in 80 runs in 111 games thus far this season. The one drawback is he striking out a lot, but plans to work on that in the off season. 

While Jersey has no immediate plans to call up Schroeder, his future is bright.  He was named the 31st best prospect before the season started and with his success in AAA so far, things are looking up.  But really should anyone be really surprised?  Even if Schroeder spends the rest of the season and 2016 in AAA, in 2017 we could be looking at a Jersey infield of Doyle, Bryant, Schroeder and Adam Morrow.  What do these players have in common?  All players drafted by Jersey, 3 1st round draft picks, Morrow being the only 2nd round pick of the bunch.   Did we mention 2013 1st round pick 1B/3B 21 year old Richard Coker is starting to tear it up in AA and talks of a promotion have been abound the Jersey clubhouse?  It could be something rare to see that many home grown players in one clubhouse and starting lineup.

For now we will monitor Schroeder's progress in AAA.  They have a 16 game lead in their division and well on their way to their 6th straight playoff appearance and could be on their way to their 4th title in 6 years.  Schroeder is excited to get back into some playoff competition but also added, " I want a shot at Greenville and Toronto!"  While we are excited he is anticipating playing against Jersey's biggest rivals, we will end in saying, young man your time will come.  

GO D-BAGS

Prospect Lookback and Breakdown - Matt "Down Home" Doyle

With the 1st year player draft pool being announced this past weekend, we thought we would take the time to look back at the D-Bag's last year's first round pick, 1B Matt "Down Home" Doyle.

Doyle was a decorated star coming out of University of Texas, having one of the better careers the college level had ever seen.  He left school with the highest batting average ever sitting at .410, with 3 of his 4 years besting the .400 mark.  His OPS still sits 4th as well as his OBP and he ranks in the Top 10 of most every other major category over the college career.

Needless to say, Jersey was ecstatic when Doyle fell all the way to them at pick number 18 in the first round of last's year's amateur draft.  Pre-draft lists and reports had him going between 10-15, but as high as 7, so GM Josh Swain and co. jumped on the opportunity to add the collegiate star.

At age 22 at the time of the draft, the Virginia native was eager to jump into professional baseball and show his merit.  Jersey Shore sent him to their A-ball affiliate Manhattan to play for the Meatheads.  Doyle played in the Meatheads final 21 games after being drafted and things did not go as planned.  Instantly you could tell that pro ball pitching was much different than Doyle had seen at the college level.  He struggled immensely only managing 14 hits in 83 AB's for an impossibly low .169 average.  Combine that with only 3 walks in 86 PA, and his OBP was less than a 1/3 of what it was at Texas.

 Doyle on his struggles, "It was frustrating.  I went from a level where I hit everything, had extreme confidence and was having fun.  I get drafted and I couldn't have been higher, but once you start slumping it messes with your head.  Instead of going out there and having fun, I was out there mad at myself, trying to hard and wasn't getting results.  It was a long off season, so many things going through your head and I just wanted to get back out there."

In the off season Doyle spent time back in his high school gym hitting with his old high school coach just to get back to the basics.  About 3 weeks before Spring Training started Doyle flew down to Jersey's training complex and spent time hitting with Jersey Shore stars Parker Morrow and Mason Bonniface. 

Despite his struggles of 2011, Baseball America named him the 41st best prospect in VBL6 before the season.  Whatever he did in the offseason took immediate effect as he came out in April and hit .291, bashing 4 HR being thrust into the cleanup spot in Manhattan.  Through July his numbers are immensely improved from his first 21 game stint as a rookie.  He has put up a respectable .253/.333/.392 line while hitting 13 HR and knocking in 64 RBI.  He leads the team in RBI and is 2nd in HR.  He knows that those stats aren't going to stick out on a page, but a much needed improvement for the still young 23 year old.

If everything goes to plan Doyle should find himself tested with a promotion to Gainesville for the last month or so of the season.  If he continues to improve we can only help that we will see him manning 1st base for the D-Bags in the future.  

For our next prospect breakdown, we will take a look at 2010 1st round pick: 2B Mike "Coffin" Bryant