The Blue Jays top-30 prospect list enters the top-10 with Clinton Hollon[1], a high-ceiling righty looking to bounce back from both Tommy John[2] and a suspension
Hon. Mentions Part 1[3] Hon. Mentions Part 2[4] #30: Freddy Rodriguez[5]
#29: Evan Smith[6] #28: Deiferson[7] Barreto[8] #27: Chad Girodo[9][10]
#26: Roemon Fields[11] #25: Rodrigo Orozco[12] #24: Reggie Pruitt[13]
#23: Joe Biagini[14] #22: Carl Wise[15] #21: Tom Robson[16]
#20: Matt Dean[17] #19: Andy Burns #18: Guadalupe Chavez #17: Ryan Borucki
#16: Jose Espada #15: Dan Jansen #14: Dwight Smith Jr. #13: D.J. Davis
[18][19][20][21][22][23][24]#12: Mitch Nay[25] #11: Angel Perdomo[26]
After nearly three weeks of counting down the top young talents in the Toronto Blue Jays organization, it's top-10 time.
Once 2013 first-round pick Phil Bickford[27] went unsigned, right-handed pitcher Clinton Hollon became the Jays top choice in that class at number 47 overall. It's been a difficult road through the past three seasons for the 21-year-old, but his his high ceiling and mound projectability give the Blue Jays one of their more tantalizing arms remaining.
Name: Clinton Hollon
Position: SP Age: 21
Height: 6'1" Age: 195 lbs.
Throws: Right Bats: Right
Acquired: 2013 Draft, 2nd round (47)
Hollon will be facing a delayed start to his 2016 season while he serves the remainder of a 50-game suspension after testing positive for an amphetamine[28] in violation of the minor league drug program late last season.
Once that hurdle has been cleared, Hollon is still "returning" from a Tommy John surgery that wiped out his entire 2014 season. That elbow had been flagged leading into the draft, so while the surgery was not a shock, it's set his development back as Hollon has pitched just 76.0 pro innings as a pro thus far.
He did bounce back well in 2015, however, splitting his season between the Vancouver Canadians and Lansing Lugnuts. Between the two levels, Hollon threw 58.2 innings with a 3.84 ERA and 6.9 K/9. Not dominant, but for an arm coming off that procedure, those results are very comforting.
"Finding success with a four-pitch mix, Hollon uses a fastball, curveball, slider, and changeup in his repertoire. But despite his excellent command, the organization played it safe with the righty as they had him on a 75- to 80-pitch limit all season," wrote Brian Crawford of Baseball Essential[29] back in August.
That fastball will be Hollon's go-to pitch as he continues to climb the ladder, and his most recent MLB.com scouting report[30] tells us that he's begun to jump up from the 92-93 MPH range to touch the mid-90s. Given the natural sinking action that his fastball possesses, this could result in an above-average rate of weak contact and ground-ball outs in the future.
Working hand-in-hand with that fastball, Hollon will also need to fine-tune his off-speed offerings to round out his arsenal as a starter. The finer aspects of pitch control are often slower to return to 100% following the Tommy John surgery, so expect to see him improve in that area as 2016 moves along.
If Hollon can establish himself over a full season in 2016, he could easily climb into the top six or eight prospects on this list and position himself to be steps away in 2017.
References
- ^ Clinton Hollon (www.baseball-reference.com)
- ^ Tommy John (www.baseball-reference.com)
- ^ Hon. Mentions Part 1 (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Hon. Mentions Part 2 (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Freddy Rodriguez (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Evan Smith (jaysjournal.com) < li>^ Deiferson (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Barreto (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Chad (www.baseball-reference.com)
- ^ Girodo (www.baseball-reference.com)
- ^ Roemon Fields (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Rodrigo Orozco (www.baseball-reference.com)
- < small>^ Reggie Pruitt (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Joe Biagini (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Carl Wise (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Tom Robson (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Matt Dean (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Andy Burns (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Guadalupe Chavez (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Ryan Borucki (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Jose Espada (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Dan Jansen (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Dwight Smith Jr. (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ D.J. Davis (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Mitch Nay (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Angel Perdomo (jaysjournal.com)
- ^ Phil Bickford (www.baseball-reference.com)
- ^ after testing positive for an amphetamine (for%20an%20amphetamine%20in%20violation%20of%20the%20minor%20league%20drug%20program)
- ^ Brian Crawford of Baseball Essential (Finding%20success%20with%20a%20four-pitch%20mix,%20Hollon%20uses%20a%20fastball,%20curveball,%20slider,%20and%20changeup%20in%20his%20repertoire.%20But%20despite%20his%20excellent%20command,%20the%20organization%20played%20it%20safe%20with%20the%20righty%20as%20they%20had%20him%20on%20a%2075-%20to%2080-pitch%20limit%20all%20season.)
- ^ his most recent MLB.com scouting report (m.mlb.com)
