Lourdes Gurriel

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #5 prospect in 2018
  Gurriel, the younger brother of Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel, signed a seven-year, $22 million contract with the Blue Jays in October 2016. He didn't play in 2016 as he worked in preparation to sign, and his debut in 2017 got off to a rocky start. Gurriel opened the year on the disabled list, played one game on April 19 and re-aggravated the injury, then finally returned two months later. He went to the Arizona Fall League after the season to make up for lost work. A long layoff from competitive baseball combined with injury setbacks could explain some of Gurriel's 2017 struggles. At his best, he has shown good strike-zone discipline, though he got too aggressive in 2017, perhaps as he shook off rust and got used to facing better pitchers than he ever faced in Cuba. Gurriel is a long-armed hitter, so his swing will always have some length, but he doesn't strike out excessively and has above-average raw power. In his final season in Cuba, Gurriel improved his speed to above-average, though the leg injury held him back in 2017. Gurriel's split time between shortstop and second base. His range might be stretched at shortstop, but he has a strong arm and could fit well at third base. He also has experience in the outfield. While a lot of signs point to Gurriel's debut being a one-year blip that isn't in line with his true talent level, he will have to prove that on the field in 2018.
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  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #3 prospect in 2017
  Gurriel's father, with the same name, starred for Cuban national teams (winning Olympic gold in 1992) for more than a decade, as did his older brother Yulieski. The brothers came to the U.S. in early 2016, with Yulieski signing with the Astros for a $47.5 million major league deal. Lourdes waited to sign until he turned 23 in October to get out from under the international bonus pools and signed a seven-year, $22 million contract with the Blue Jays in November. Scouts often have compared Gurriel to his father and brother, but he's a prospect on his own, with a lean, athletic frame. He has a fairly polished offensive approach, knows the strike zone and has the bat speed to catch up to good fastballs, even though his swing has some length. It also features some loft and leverage, giving him above-average power potential. Gurriel has run better in recent years, rating from average to above-average. He played shortstop, third base and left field in Cuba and profiles best at third or in left field. He has a solid-average arm. The Blue Jays are fairly set on the left side of the infield with Troy Tulowitzki and Josh Donaldson, so the outfield looks like Gurriel's best path to helping Toronto in the short term. He's expected to open his pro career at Double-A New Hampshire, likely giving third base a try before a move to the outfield.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked International League #12 prospect in 2018
  After an injury-plagued season last year, Gurriel showed what he could do when healthy this year. The touted Cuban bounced back and forth between Double-A, Triple-A and the majors, hit everywhere, and secured his spot as the Blue Jays’ everyday shortstop for good in late August. Gurriel showed the skills that earned him a seven-year, $22 million contract in his time at Buffalo, hitting for average and power while effectively playing both spots in the middle infield. He moved to a different level eight times during the season, but impressively never seemed to lose his rhythm despite constantly moving around. Gurriel knows the strike zone but is extremely aggressive and rarely walks. Managing his strikeouts moving forward will be key, because he has the potential to be an above-average hitter or more as long as he doesn’t get too overaggressive.

Top 100 Rankings

• Ranked Baseball America's #73 prospect in 2017

• July, 2018 Scouting Report
  After a layoff from competitive baseball coming over from Cuba in 2016, injuries slowed Gurriel and hampered his performance in his first season with the Blue Jays in 2017. He has looked more comfortable and more athletic in 2018, combining to hit .299/.328/.467 between Double-A and Triple-A. Defensively he’s probably stretched thin as an everyday shortstop, but he has the offensive potential to fit at second or potentially third base as well.
• December, 2017 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Gurriel, the younger brother of Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel, signed a seven-year, $22 million contract with the Blue Jays in October 2016. He didn't play in 2016 as he worked in preparation to sign, and his debut in 2017 got off to a rocky start. He opened the year on the disabled list, played one game on April 19 and re-aggravated the injury, then finally returned two months later. He went to the Arizona Fall League after the season. Scouting Report: A long layoff combined with injury setbacks could explain some of Gurriel's 2017 struggles. At his best, he has shown good strike-zone discipline, though he got too aggressive in 2017, perhaps as he got used to facing better pitchers than he ever faced in Cuba. Gurriel is a long-armed hitter, so his swing will always have some length, but he doesn't strike out excessively and has above-average raw power. In his final season in Cuba, Gurriel improved his speed to above-average, though the leg injury held him back in 2017. Gurriel's range might be stretched at shortstop, but he has a strong arm and could fit well at third base. The Future: While a lot of signs point to Gurriel's debut being a one-year blip, he will have to prove that on the field in 2018.