Two top prospects headline Blue Jays Org. All-Stars

Each offseason, MiLB.com goes position by position across each organization and honors the players -- regardless of age or prospect status -- who had the best seasons in each farm system. Next up in our 2023 Organization All-Stars series are the Toronto Blue Jays.

2023 organization summary:
Triple-A Buffalo: 76-72
Double-A New Hampshire: 62-72
High-A Vancouver: 77-54 (Northwest League champions)
Single-A Dunedin: 62-70
FCL Blue Jays: 17-37
DSL Blue Jays: 28-25
Overall record: 322-330 (17th among MLB organizations)
Midseason Farm System Rankings: 25

Blue Jays 2023 Organization All-Stars

C: Phil Clarke
AA/AAA: .264/.384/.394, 70 G, 38 R, 6 HR, 18 RBI, 33 BB
Toronto’s system is thin on backstops, and the 25-year-old Clarke provided dependable defense and a solid bat as Double-A New Hampshire’s everyday catcher. He led Toronto Minor League backstops in homers, and ranked second in OPS and wRC+.

1B: Spencer Horwitz (TOR No. 16)
AAA: .337/.450/.495, 107 G, 61 R, 30 2B, 10 HR, 72 RBI, 78 BB
A former 24th-round pick, Horwitz had always been a solid on-base guy over his first four seasons of pro ball, with a career .407 on-base percentage entering this year. But he was otherworldly in that department in 2023, ranking third among 707 Minor League full-season qualifiers in OBP. He also hit .337 and walked more than he struck out over 484 plate appearances, making him simply one of the most difficult outs in the Minors this season.

2B: Michael Turconi
A+/AA: .264/.387/.439, 104 G, 68 R, 22 2B, 10 HR, 51 RBI, 70 BB
A 15th-round pick in 2022, Turconi spent much of his first full pro season being an on-base machine for High-A Vancouver, where he put up an impressive .299/.418/.486 slash line in 74 games. Turconi slumped a bit upon a midseason promotion to Double-A, but still walked and reached base at a strong clip at that level, where he’ll likely begin 2024. The 24-year-old also compiled 37 extra-base hits, including five triples.

3B: Damiano Palmegiani (TOR No. 18)
AA/AAA: .255/.365/.478, 128 G, 119 H, 70 R, 33 2B, 23 HR, 93 RBI, 73 BB
The Blue Jays have liked Palmegiani so much and for so long that they drafted him twice, and at the upper levels in 2023 he took steps toward fulfilling those big dreams the club has long had for him. The power-hitting hot cornerman led Toronto’s system in extra-base hits and total bases, ranked second in homers, RBI and doubles, and third in walks.

SS: Orelvis Martinez (TOR No. 2, MLB No. 88)
AA/AAA: .243/.340/.496, 125 G, 70 R, 25 2B, 28 HR, 94 RBI, 67 BB
Toronto’s second-ranked prospect has been one of the game’s best young power-hitting prospects for a while, and he put everything together in 2023, leading the organization in homers as a 21-year-old. He’s walloped 86 homers over the past three seasons, including 11 in only 55 games at Triple-A in 2023.

OF: Alan Roden (TOR No. 7)
AA/AAA: .317/.431/.459, 115 G, 92 R, 10 HR, 68 RBI, 24 SB, 68 BB, 149 wRC+
A third-round pick in 2022 out of Creighton, Roden emerged as one of the most advanced bats in the Jays’ system during his first full professional season. The 23-year-old walked more than he struck out, whiffed only 12 percent of the time and led all Blue Jays Minor League qualifiers in wRC+. His 24 steals ranked fifth in the system.

OF: Rafael Lantigua
AAA: .305/.425/.469, 129 G, 101 R, 142 R, 40 2B, 12 HR, 85 RBI, 28 SB, 98 BB
A true utility man, Lantigua played six positions in 2023 and made at least 10 appearances at five. Around half of those came in the outfield, so he gets the nod here. That said, Lantigua’s inclusion was more a matter of “where” than “if,” given his offensive production. The 25-year-old led all Blue Jays Minor Leaguers in hits, doubles, runs and walks, ranked third in steals, total bases, extra-base hits, RBIs and OPS, and fourth in hitting.

OF: Devonte Brown
A+/AA: .237/.354/.454, .807 OPS, 82 R, 19 2B, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 21 SB, 60 BB
Brown was a regular producer in the ACC for five seasons at North Carolina State, but went undrafted. He’s since proven a fine find for the Blue Jays, who signed him as a minor league free agent after his college career and watched him reach Double-A in his first full pro season. He displayed an intriguing mix of power and speed in 2023, pairing 18 homers with 21 steals and legitimate on-base ability. Not only did Brown steal 21 bases, he was super-efficient on the basepaths, going 21-for-22 in stolen base attempts.

RHP: Chad Dallas (TOR No. 13)
A+/AA: 9-3, 3.65 ERA, 23 GS, 123 ⅓ IP, 1.19 WHIP, 144 SO, 49 BB, .216 opp. avg
The Jays’ fourth-round pick in 2021, Dallas made big strides in his second season of pro ball, emerging as a workhorse as he put his shaky debut behind him and spent most of the year as Double-A New Hampshire’s most dependable starter. The 23-year-old righty racked up numbers in the process. He led Toronto’s system in innings, wins, strikeouts and starts, and placed second among qualified pitchers in ERA, WHIP, and opponent average.

LHP: Ricky Tiedemann (TOR No. 1, MLB No. 31)
RK/A/AA/AAA: 0-5, 4.70 ERA, 15 G, 44 IP, 82 SO, 23 BB, 1.23 WHIP
The 21-year-old fireballer and Blue Jays’ top prospect has grown into the second-ranked left-handed pitching prospect in the game per MLB Pipeline. He showed that upside often in 2023 as Toronto carefully managed his workload. While Tiedemann’s overall numbers might look pedestrian on paper, his highs were extraordinary. Thrice, Tiedemann pitched at least three innings and recorded every out of his outing via strikeout. On Aug. 29, he did that across 3 ⅔ innings – that’s 11 outs and 11 strikeouts. When rehabbing at the lower levels, Tiedemann was nearly unhittable. At Double-A against hitters mostly older than him, he was simply often dominant, racking up 58 strikeouts in 32 innings.

RP: Ian Churchill
A/A+: 3-0, 0.89 ERA, 31 G, 2 SV, 40 ⅔ IP, 4 ER, 0 HR, 52 SO, 25 BB
Churchill is a late bloomer and maybe the best kept secret in Toronto’s system. The 24-year-old lefty enjoyed a brief but quietly-excellent debut after the Blue Jays made him a 10th-round pick in 2022. He followed that up in 2023 with the most dominant season in Toronto’s system. He’s yet to allow a home run in parts of two pro seasons, pitching to a 0.85 ERA overall.