Blue Jays farm report: SS Kasevich making strides at double-A

Josh Kasevich always wanted to be a shortstop, and ahead of March 13-15, 2020, when his University of Oregon Ducks were set to visit the UCLA Bruins, coach Mark Wasikowski finally gave his third baseman the nod. The switch was a long time coming for the freshman, who played the position during middle school, switched to the corners and pitching during high school and was then recruited to play the hot corner in college.

Still, he kept working toward a move to the middle and, just as it was set to happen, the pandemic lockdown arrived.

“We were on the bus (for the UCLA series), suddenly (the season was) cancelled and we went home for COVID,” Kasevich said. “Coach said, ‘Come back and be ready to play short next year.’ So, I took that really seriously and trained really, really hard all throughout COVID, came back ready to go and then haven't looked back since.”

Not in the least, as Kasevich quickly acclimated to shortstop, performed well enough there to become a second-round pick of the Toronto Blue Jays in 2022 and worked his way up to double-A New Hampshire, where he’s batting .303/.358/.379 while playing elite defence.

Back in spring training, farm director Joe Sclafani described the 23-year-old as “the best the defender we have at short in the system,” which is pretty remarkable for someone in only his fourth season playing the infield’s most important and demanding position.

“Soft hands, I think I've always had, movement-wise, not really,” Kasevich said of moving over. “I was a little bit of a bigger kid, played a lot of first base in high school. So, senior year (I) got into a lot better shape and carried that into my freshman year in COVID. I started being able to move better and kind of make the more athletic plays and just carry that on to now.”

Complementing his strong glove are strong bat-to-ball skills and tremendous plate discipline that has his strikeout-to-walk ratio nearly even in pro ball. A focal point last year, when he batted .284/.363/.365 in 94 games for the high-A Vancouver Canadians, he was getting the ball in the air more often and, over the winter, he worked on “cleaning up bat path,” with the aim of improving his “contact quality and increasing my hard-hit rate.”

“I know the kind of player I am. I'm confident in that,” Kasevich said. “(More damage) will come with time, and hitting the ball hard is always positive. So, I'm really focused on just consistently barrelling balls right now.”

Through 46 games, he has 12 doubles and one homer, six extra-base hits shy of his total a year ago with the Canadians. Along with Fisher Cats teammate Alan Roden, who through 47 games is batting .263/.371/.430 with six homers, 10 doubles and a triple, Kasevich is an example of the Blue Jays’ attempts to draft position players with good contact skills and strike-zone control and help them add more power later.

Tied into his skillset is Kasevich’s cerebral approach to hitting and ability to build and stick to an approach at the plate, giving him a chance to push his game up a level. He sifts through scouting reports to identify “what they’ve got, their hot zones, stuff like that, and then finding a plan that works.”

“Everybody's different in how they want to go attack a pitcher,” he said. “I try to keep it simple, stay through the middle with my direction and then be on time to your plan.”

One lesson that Kasevich is applying from a year ago is to better balance attacking pitcher weaknesses versus sticking to what he does best. He did a lot of the former and less of the latter in college, but against better competition in pro ball, found himself “getting away from my strengths.”

“In the middle of last year, I went back to just sticking to my strengths, getting on time to one pitch in one zone,” he said. “That gives me the best chance to adjust to the other pitches that he might throw in that at-bat, just giving yourself the most room for error.”

Here’s a look around the Blue Jays farm system:

Triple-A Buffalo Bisons

Spencer Horwitz’s bat continues to garner attention and rightly so, as he headed into Thursday’s action batting .332/.455/.510 while showing the Blue Jays he has nothing left to prove in the minor leagues. But while he awaits an overdue opportunity, the 26-year-old is also up to 11 games at second base, a position he’d played only seven times in years prior, in trying to create additional pathways to big-league opportunity. His work there is drawing positive reviews, but it’s a big jump to game speed in the majors and experience can’t be fast-tracked. Either way, his promotion is beginning to feel like it’s on the horizon. … Scary moment last weekend when a back-swing caught catcher Payton Henry, who had to be carted off the field, in the head. He’s home recovering but the incident underlines the delicate balance catchers face as they inch closer to the plate to better frame pitches. Getting to the ball a few inches earlier can make a massive difference in how umpires perceive a pitch. … Lefty Mason Fluharty continues to pitch well with a 2.96 ERA in 27.1 innings over 22 games, but one thing to keep an eye on is his platoon splits. He’s holding lefties to a .130/.273/.239 slash line but righties are .271/.357/.438 against him.

Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats

Adam Macko, the Slovak-born, Alberta-raised lefty, was an interesting addition to the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster over the winter but he continues to reward the club’s faith in him. In 49 innings over 10 starts, he’s struck out 63 while walking only 17, allowing 21 earned runs. He’s got double-digit whiff totals in five of his 10 outings, including a season-high 19 on May 26 versus Somerset, and is definitely putting himself on the radar. … Eric Pardinho’s dogged determination after Tommy John surgery in 2020 and subsequent issues in his recovery is paying off in a big way this season. Now in his third season as a reliever, the 23-year-old from Brazil is very much acclimating to the role, allowing just three earned runs in 21.2 innings across 17 outings with 30 strikeouts and just nine walks. His velocity is all the way back now, sitting nearly 95 m.p.h while touching 98, and the splitter he incorporated a year ago has much better action this season.

Advanced-A Vancouver Canadians

Connor O’Halloran, the lefty from Mississauga, Ont., selected in the fifth round last year, threw five shutout innings in his Vancouver debut after seven strong starts at low-A Dunedin. The Blue Jays like the way he fills the zone and attacks hitters, and while he sits low-90s with his fastball, complemented by a slider and changeup, he’s able to keep hitters off balance with his mix. Focal points for him will include gains in strength and movement that could help him unlock a bit more velocity. … Starter Kendry Rojas, sidelined with a shoulder injury, is throwing bullpens and is a few weeks away from returning. … Outfielder Dasan Brown of Oakville, Ont., has pushed his numbers up across the board, batting .269/.371/.425 through his first 43 games, with 12 stolen bases in 13 tries.

Low-A Dunedin Blue Jays

Landen Maroudis underwent surgery to repair his UCL with an internal brace last week, dashing the buzz the 19-year-old right-hander created with the way he threw the ball this spring. A fourth-round pick last year, he was 45 pitches into his third start of the season when he was injured. He joins fellow Dunedin pitching prospect Brandon Barriera, the 2022 first-rounder, on the sidelines recovering from a major elbow injury. … Big strikeout numbers from starters Juaron Watts-Brown (56 in 42 innings) and Fernando Perez (53 in 48 innings). Perez, 20, has walked only 12 for an especially promising strikeout-to-walk ratio of 4.42, a metric that, along with WHIP, the Blue Jays tend to value. Reliever Kai Peterson has an astonishing 41 strikeouts in 21.1 innings but also has walked 21 and given up 16 earned runs despite allowing only one homer.

FCL Blue Jays

Infielder Cade Doughty, a second-rounder in 2022, continues to recover from an oblique injury and could resume action this weekend in a Complex-League game. If all goes well, he could be off to Dunedin next week, with a bump to New Hampshire soon after. … Outfielder Enmanuel Bonilla, the Blue Jays’ prized addition at $4.1-million bonus in the 2023 international signing period, is off to a strong start in the FCL, batting .265/.347/.458 in 22 games. The 18-year-old is playing centre field. … Outfielder Sam Shaw of Victoria is batting .238/.392/.350 through his first 22 games, with 19 walks and only 12 strikeouts.