It was quite the year for Roberto Osuna
(Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium - Vancouver, B.C.) - When Baseball America went to print with its annual Top Prospects List, the well-known "insider" had former Vancouver Canadians right-hander Roberto Osuna listed as its 93rd ranked talent. Within just the Blue Jays organization, Osuna would be consider the 7th most likely prospect to find his way toward the bright lights of the Major Leagues.
Fast forward just a few months and Osuna had gone from potential arm that could be found at Double-A New Hampshire to suddenly heading North with the Toronto Blue Jays after dazzling the brass with a standout Spring Training down in Dunedin, Florida.
Few thought that the Blue Jays would 'rush' a talent like Osuna while many thought that at best, the native of Mexico would find his way to Triple-A Buffalo considering he had just turned 20 years of age back on February 7th.
However, with a number of opportunities within the Blue Jays taped together bullpen, Osuna, with his impressive March and April, was suddenly a part of the parent club's plans. Along with another former Vancouver Canadians, Miguel Castro, the two gave Toronto hope that the crops down on the farm were ripening a little ahead of schedule and with Osuna in particular, there was a possibility one of the many holes within the bullpen might have found repair.
The closer's job was Castro's out of the gates, as the 6-foot, 6 inch, flamethrower dazzles and then fizzled after just a few weeks in the Major Leagues. Osuna, in the shadow of the fanfare that surrounded Castro, just continued to go about his business racking up one quality appearance after another.
Brett Cecil got the job next as Jays closer, but outside of a few good outings and a nagging set of injuries, the fit just never seemed to last the test of time.
Enter, Roberto Osuna.
It was almost sacrilege to think that Osuna was the closer for a Blue Jays team that at the time was fluttering around .500 for the season, but still had potential to compete in the American League East, a division that some might say was experiencing a 'down' year by a wins and losses standard. The Yankees were the front runners with the likes of Toronto, Baltimore, Boston and Tampa all jockeying for position in New York's rear view mirror.
The Blue Jays hung around in the East, with a handful of baseball prognosticators thinking that with a few player moves, Toronto could contend for a spot in the post-season with a Wild Card birth. Few would know at the time where former Blue Jays General Manager Alex Anthopoulos would take the franchise in the following weeks as the Montreal native revamped the roster with a number of moves that featured LHP David Price and SS Troy Tulowitzki.
Suddenly, the Jays were the talk of baseball, and the team in the East that would drop the gauntlet as they tried, successfully, to track down the division leading Yankees.
While all of the hype and passion suddenly flowed back into Canada's baseball team, quietly, Roberto Osuna continued to work, throw strikes and secure key games for a team on the rise.
His numbers could be looked at a number of ways. With a 1-6 record and a 2.58 ERA, it would be easy to wonder what happened in picking up a half dozen losses. But his 20 saves, 68 appearances and 75 strikeouts to just 16 walks suddenly made you realize that Osuna was putting up some big numbers in tough situations.
Yes, he got tired nearing the end of the season, and yes, there were moments where Osuna looked his age. But few 20-year old closers, if any before him, could have handled the swings of the season better than Osuna. His composure, his almost aloof demeanour on the mound, helped him gain the respect of not just baseball insiders, but fans who had clamoured for years to beg Toronto to go out and get a bonafide closer. Little did anyone realize at the start of the season that the team's big arm was the #93 prospect on Baseball America's list and was right under the franchise's nose.
What lies ahead for Osuna?
A combination of rest and work. Osuna has come a long way from his pudgy frame that showcased flashes of brilliance back at Nat Bailey Stadium in 2012. Now, a leaned out Osuna has visions of helping the Blue Jays in any way possible. Be it as a starter, a role some suggest could be revisited, or once again as the team's shut down arm when the chips are on the table.
Unless something falls from the trees in the off-season via free agency, it would be a certainty that Osuna, at worst, would be considered a front runner for the closer role in 2016.
One thing that can be said with absolute certainty, Osuna won't have to worry about where he's placed on Baseball America's Top Prospects List in 2016. That's for guys trying to break through and onto a Major League roster. It's safe to say that when John Gibbons breaks camp with his roster in hand in April of next year, Osuna's name will be among those ready to defend the American League East crown.
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