Alan Roden: Blue Jays 2024 Minor League Player Of The Year
Outfielder Alan Roden’s first three weeks at Triple-A Buffalo following a mid-June promotion did not go to plan.
He hit just .153 in his first 18 games in the International League, a stretch that was “probably the first time he’s gotten punched in the mouth a little bit,” according to Blue Jays farm director Joe Sclafani.
But the 24-year-old lefthanded hitter made an adjustment with his hands at the plate and found a groove. In his next 50 games, he hit .371/.448/.594 with a 1.042 OPS.
In 125 total games at Double-A New Hampshire and Buffalo, Roden hit .293/.391/.475 with 16 home runs and 14 stolen bases.
“He’s done everything that we expected, and then the ability to make adjustments has been just incredible,” Sclafani said. “He turned himself into a potentially impact big leaguer sooner than any of us really thought that he would.
“He put himself in the mix (for the majors) in his second full season, so he’s flown through.”
The Blue Jays drafted Roden in the third round in 2022 out of Creighton. He came to spring training this year having toned down an unorthodox stance in which he started with his hands up high by his head.
With his hands much lower, he posted an .805 OPS through 54 games at Double-A, but when he hit a wall in Triple-A, he pulled his hands up to a midpoint between the two extremes.
The switch created comfort around “where you are at launch when you start your swing,” said the cerebral Roden. “I want to feel back with my hands when my foot’s getting down, so I feel a stretch. I feel like if I’m stretched, I’m ready to move on any pitch and ready to go at any time.”
Sclafani said that Roden is figuring out the pitches and zones to hunt.
“He’s just getting better and better and taking his shots when he has the opportunity,” he said, “because he knows that he can fall back on his contract ability, which is incredible.”
