Do you like power hitters? Well, this prospect will tickle your fancy.
Just a quick recap of the mid-season list: We’ll look at the player’s stats, my observations, and finally other publications (Prospects Live, MLB Pipeline, Baseball America)’ scouting reports.
Let’s take a look at Damiano Palmegiani.
Getting to know Damiano Palmegiani…
Position: First base/Third base
Bats: Right
Born: January 24, 2000
Acquired: 14th round, 2021 draft (Blue Jays)
Current Team: Triple-A Buffalo
Previous Ranking: 10
Has there been a more consistent, yet underrated prospect in the Blue Jays system?
The Venezuelan-born, Canadian-raised corner infielder broke onto the scene in the lower minors in 2022. He started the season with the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays, slashing .256/.351/.508 with 11 home runs in 228 plate appearances.
Palmegiani was promoted to High-A Vancouver in the spring, where he helped lead the team to a playoff berth. He slashed .224/.335/.443 with 13 homers in 272 plate appearances.
The power-hitting corner infielder has had a great 2023 as well. With the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, he slashed .249/.351/.463 with 19 homers in 461 plate appearances. The 23-year-old was promoted to Triple-A Buffalo at the start of September and is slashing .438/.542/.875 with a homer in 24 plate appearances.
Palmegiani’s best tool is his power tool, as he hit 24 last season between Single-A and High-A, which was third in the organization. As it stands, his 20 homers in 2023 rank third, just behind Davis Schneider’s 21 in Triple-A, and 25 from Orelvis Martinez, who led the organization in 2022 and 2021.
As for Palmegiani’s hit tool, he won’t ever hit for a high average, but he could hit for an average of around .250. While there is a little bit of swing and miss in his game (27.1 K%), Palmegiani has a great eye at the plate, owning a 12.1 BB% throughout his minor league career.
Defensively, he’s better at first base than he is at third base. In New Hampshire, he played 594 innings at third and only 112 innings at first. In his five games with the Bisons, he has yet to play third base in his six games played.
Palmegiani is a fringe-average runner but has yet to be caught stealing in his 12 attempts in the big league. This shows great instincts on the base paths, even if he isn’t a burner.
The 23-year-old will likely start the 2024 season with the Buffalo Bisons. If he can continue to hit as he has the past three seasons in the organization, he may force the Blue Jays hand in calling him up.
Next up:
In the next article, we’ll take a look at a prospect on the 40-man roster who has had a fantastic season.
In case you missed it…
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 50: Garrett Spain
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 49: Connor Cooke
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 48: Michael Dominguez
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 47: Alejandro Melean
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 46: Trenton Wallace
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 45: Brennan Orf
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 44: Robert Robertis
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 43: Sam Shaw
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 42: Rafael Lantigua
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 41: Yhoangel Aponte
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 40: Nick Goodwin
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 39: Irv Carter
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 38: Jimmy Robbins
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 37: Otto López
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 36: Peyton Williams
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 35: Trent Palmer
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 34: C.J. Van Eyk
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 33: Dasan Brown
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 32: Tanner Morris
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 31: Connor O’Halloran
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 30: Kendry Rojas
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 29: Zach Britton
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 28: Adrian Pinto
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 27: Rainer Nuñez
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 26: Hagen Danner
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 25: Hayden Juenger
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 24: Manuel Beltre
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 23: Chad Dallas
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 22: Josh Kasevich
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 21: Adam Macko
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 20: Yosver Zulueta
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 19: Jace Bohrofen
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 18: Cade Doughty
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 17: Enmanuel Bonilla
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 16: Alex De Jesus
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 15: Gabriel Martinez
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 14: Dahian Santos
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 13: Landen Maroudis
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 12: Alan Roden
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 11: Juaron Watts-Brown
- Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 10: Tucker Toman
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