Aurora Announces 2023 Minor League Players of the Year
by Francis Ferry,
NLN baseball beat writer
Manny was Aurora's first pick, 10th overall, out of Arizona State, and instantly was dubbed the 'Catcher of the Future' (ask Miguel Galvez and Rusty Butler about that one...) as the third catcher to win the award. In two seasons at ASU, Castro started all but one game of the 96 games he played in, hitting .334 with 18 HR and a .913 OPS. Coaches praised his cerebral manner behind the plate and pitchers loved the way he managed a game behind the plate.
After the draft he was shipped directly to A Ball and in 68 games at SLRC he hit just .244 with 3 HR in 68 games - showing fatigue down the stretch. But he came into the 2023 season with a head of steam - posting a .323 average with 14 HR and 51 RBI in 94 games - tying Nick Heath for the HR lead and only 1 RBI behind Heath in RBI - despite his August 14th promotion to Gatineau. In 16 games for the Balloonists, he hit .410 - which has the organization planning on his starting 2024 at AAA Thornton, with a spring training invitation.
If the 2023 season is any indicator of Castro's abilities and future, that future may be now. Jesus Negrete, rumored to be on the trade block, will be sidelined until after the start of the season - and will require an extended injury rehab in the minors. Aurora managed to win down the stretch - and take the PEC, with Butler and rookie Luis Villanueva manning the catchers position. At 29, I think Butler has shown what he is - a middling back-up. Villanueva, at 25, just got his first shot - and hit a respectable .267 in 60 AB. One could say that the position is up for grabs, and a fine spring by Manny may put him right in the Opening Day line-up. Head Scout Joe Horn is on the record as saying, 'Count on it!'.
Xavier Díaz is the third straight closer to win Aurora's award, and perhaps reflects the Borealis' continued struggle to draft and develop top-notch starting pitching. Díaz was a 2021, 8th round selection out of Central Florida (the same draft that produced 2022 winner Júlio Martínez) and was instantly hailed by scouts and coaches for his willingness to listen and learn - something his college 4.20 GPA could've told you. Then again, with major shoulder injuries in 2019 (a torn labrum) and 2021 (severe swelling in the same shoulder), he had ample time to keep up with his studies. Those injuries probably dropped him in the draft as teams shied away from him - as, no doubt, his junior-year's stats that had him post a 9.19 ERA over 15 IP in his lone full college season.
For the Borealis, after the draft Díaz pitched in 29 games for Mokule'ia, posting a 3.46 ERA and a 5:1 K:BB ratio. Promoted to SLRC for 2022, where he pitched in 55 games, posting a not-to-shabby 3.97 ERA, a 5-3 record with 28 saves. This year he dropped the ERA to 3.60 with 35 saves - second only to Bryant Burris' 36 saves as best in the organization. He does seem to have some struggles with his control as his WHIP of 1.32 and 1.25 the past two seasons reflects the increase in free passes the past two years.
At just 24, Díaz seems to have a bright future - if he can wrangle his control - something the Major League folks have no appetite for (just as Junior Cook). With an aging bullpen, and a year at Thornton, which predictably he will spend in 2024, and we could see this former-8th rounder in the Bigs!
Previous Winners:
Aurora Minor League Hitter of the Year
2022: 2B Pablo Medrano (AAA)
2021: 2B Gabriel McIntyre (AAA)
2020: 2B Jack Speed (AAA)
2019: C Miguel Angel Gálvez (AAA)
2018: OF Paul Carlisle (AAA)
2017: C Rusty Butler (AAA)
2016: LF Artie Thompson (AA/A)
2015: 3B Mike Britt (AA)
2014: 2B John 'Gypsy' Foster (AA)
2013: 1B Ken Coleman (AAA)
Aurora Minor League Pitcher of the Year
2022: CL Júlio Martínez (AA)
2021: CL Manuel Galloca (AAA)
2020: MR John Gray (AAA)
2019: SP Hyeon-Cheong Yong (AAA)
2018: SP Hyeon-Cheong Yong (AAA)
2017: SP Edgardo Rojas (AAA)
2016: CL Terry Burns (AA)
2015: SP Chris Graves (AAA)
2014: SP Christian George (S A)
2013: SP Nathan O'Reilly (AA)
NOTE: I've listed previous winners here because, aside for record purposes, the links for all previous winners (2014-2019) are broken.
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