2011 MCB Down on the Farm All-Stars: OF Danry Vasquez

The Detroit Tigers Minor League affiliates seasons are now officially in the books. With another season completed, the time has come for me to announce the 2011 MCB Down on the Farm All-Star Team.

In an effort to reward less talked about prospects, only players that did not receive a call-up to Detroit this season were eligible. While you may recognize some of the names, remember these awards aren’t a pronouncement of the Tigers top prospects. The awards were based heavily upon the best overall statistical season per position.

Similar to previous years, the breakdown of the roster will consist of one player per position, a designated hitter, five starting pitchers and five relievers.

2011 MCB Down on the Farm All-Stars: OF Danry Vasquez 

TEAM: GCL Tigers

STATS: 206 AB  .272/.306/.350/.655

8 doubles, 1 triple,  2 home runs, 30 RBI, 7 BB and 34 SO

BACKGROUND:

In July of 2010 the Detroit Tigers spent $1.2 million inking then 16 year-old Venezuelan prospect Danry Vasquez. Despite his age Vasquez was instantly considered a top 20 prospect for the Tigers. Now 17-years-old, the 6’3″, 169 lb. left-handed batter arrived stateside this year to play outfield for the Tigers in the Gulf Coast League.

BEHIND THE NUMBERS:

Vasquez finished his first season batting a respectable .272 over 206 at-bats. He also tallied 8 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs and 30 RBI. Although he drew just 7 walks, Vasquez demonstrated solid discipline for his age, striking out in just 15% of his plate appearances. 54 games is definitely a small sample size of data. Regardless, the results are encouraging considering the fact that Vasquez is just 17-years-old. I’m not sure what you were doing when you were 17-years-old. I know what I was doing though, and it sure as hell wasn’t playing professional baseball in a foreign country. On the surface his numbers may appear pedestrian but trust me, his performance was anything but.

FUTURE:

I realize that it’s difficult to get excited about a prospect with an eta that’s several years down the road. However, signing Vasquez was big, his production this season was even bigger. I normally reserve these awards for players at or above Class-A ball. Vasquez was easily the exception to the rule though. Vasquez possesses the tools and raw ability that make scouts drool. It’s reasonable to expect peaks and valleys throughout his journey though so expectations must be tempered. It’s also practically impossible to project the seventeen-year-olds future. However, in the handful of games I observed, I quickly came to the conclusion that the hype is real.

As for next year, Vasquez could possibly begin next season in Class-A West Michigan. It would be an aggressive assignment but then again we’re talking about the same organization that threw Daniel Fields to the wolves in the FSL. At any rate, congratulations to Danry Vasquez for an outstanding season.

2011 MCB Down on the Farm All-Stars

C Rob Brantly

3B Nick Castellanos  

SS Gustavo Nunez

2B Brandon Douglas

1B Jordan Lennerton

Next Up: OF

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