Blue Jays Officially Activate Top Prospect Gabriel Moreno
His time has come.
Six years after joining the organization as an international free agent, Gabriel Moreno has been officially activated by the Blue Jays ahead of his big league debut. He is expected to catch Toronto starter Kevin Gausman against the Tigers on Saturday.
"When I was 12 years old, that's when I realized this is what I wanted and this is my dream," Moreno said with help from interpreter Hector Lebron.
Initially signed for $25,000 out of Venezuela, Moreno flashed elite contact skills when he first joined Toronto's organization but really raised his stock in 2018. Coming back from an offseason 12-15 pounds heavier, with some new swing mechanics, and the same athleticism he always flashed, that's when the Blue Jays really saw this MLB potential, VP International Scouting Andrew Tinnish said.
"Certainly at that point, I think we felt like this guy has something that could maybe get them up here someday," Tinnish said.
Since that season, Moreno has done nothing but hit across the minors. He owns a career .845 OPS during his time in Toronto's system and earned his way to the big leagues with a .324/.380/.404 slashline for Triple A Buffalo. Moreno climbed industry prospect rankings in recent years and currently sits as the No. 4 rated minor leaguer on Baseball America and MLB Pipeline's Top 100 lists.
Moreno joins the Blue Jays in place of an injured Danny Jansen, who is expected to miss multiple weeks with a recent finger fracture. He'll join young catcher Alejandro Kirk as the primary backstops for a Blue Jays team that's won seven of their last 10 games.
The Blue Jays optioned Zack Collins to make room for Moreno on the 26-man roster.
Mitch Bannon is a baseball reporter for Sports Illustrated covering the Toronto Blue Jays and their minor league affiliates.Twitter: @MitchBannon