Orioles’ Adam Jones tips cap to Blue Jays prospect Alford

MLB insider Jon Paul Morosi discusses exciting debuts for Blue Jays top two prospects, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette, but says their 3rd best prospect, Anthony Alford could help the team this season.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette get most of the attention when discussing Toronto Blue Jays prospects, but don’t overlook Anthony Alford.

While Alford is usually the third man mentioned in Toronto’s farm system, Baltimore Orioles outfielder Adam Jones, a five-time all-star, clearly likes what he sees out of the 23-year-old and thinks he deserves more recognition.

Alford has been raking this spring, batting .333 while piling up an impressive 1.025 OPS in 12 Grapefruit League games. Over his 27 at-bats, the 2012 third-round draft pick has one home run, two triples, three doubles and five RBIs. He’s also scored seven runs and stolen a base. Not a bad start to spring training for Baseball America’s 60th-ranked prospect.

The native of Columbia, Miss., got a taste of MLB action last May, picking up one hit in four games before suffering a wrist injury. Three of those contests came in Baltimore, where Jones got a first-hand look at Alford’s talent.

Toronto appears set in the outfield with Kevin Pillar, Randal Grichuk, Curtis Granderson and Steve Pearce all figuring to break camp with the team. Alford and fellow prospect Teoscar Hernandez could still find themselves as contributors on the major-league club in 2018 if injuries force the regulars to the disabled list.

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