The Toronto Blue Jays are calling up one of the best prospects in baseball. Catcher Gabriel Moreno will join the team for this coming weekend’s series against the Detroit Tigers, reports MLB.com. He will be activated at some point in Detroit this weekend.
Moreno, 22, owns a .323/.377/.406 batting line with a home run in 35 Triple-A games this season. He is nearly five years younger than the average Triple-A player, and last season Moreno authored a .373/.441/.651 batting line with eight homers in 32 Double-A games around a thumb injury.
Our R.J. Anderson ranked Moreno the ninth best prospect in baseball coming into the season. Here’s his write-up:
Moreno’s upside and progress on both sides of the ball make him a highly promising backstop prospect. Moreno hit .367/.434/.626 eight home runs in 37 games across three levels last season; he then appeared in 22 games in the Arizona Fall League, where he batted .329/.410/.494 with a walk for every strikeout. In addition to adding strength at the plate, Moreno has improved his receiving capabilities behind it. The eventual implementation of the automated ball-strike system might render some of his work moot, but it speaks well of his eagerness to get better — and his chances for stardom.
The Blue Jays are summoning Moreno because Danny Jansen, the club’s most-of-the-time catcher, will miss time with a broken finger. Alejandro Kirk has been on a rampage the last few weeks — he’s hitting .365/.436/.604 since May 1 — though there are DH at-bats available, so Toronto can put Kirk and Moreno in their lineup together.
Even including Wednesday’s loss to the Royals (KC 8, TOR 4), the Blue Jays have won 11 of their last 14 games, and they sit comfortably in an American League wild card spot at the moment.
