The Blue Jays signed Moreno for $25,000 in August 2016 because they liked the athleticism and tools and believed he could develop into a well-rounded catcher. After a nondescript pro debut in the Dominican Summer League in 2017 and an unbelievably incredible start at the plate in the Gulf Coast League in ’18 that earned him a promotion to the Appalachian League, Moreno got into 82 Midwest League games last year. He hit .280/.337/.485 for the Lansing Lugnuts, adding 12 homers, 17 doubles, five triples and 52 RBIs at just 19 years old.
Moreno’s knack for making hard contact is a product of his outstanding hand-eye coordination and his preternatural feel for getting the barrel to the ball. He’s cognizant of those strengths to a fault at times, as he’ll attack pitches outside of the zone simply because he can reach them. At the same time, he neither strikes out nor walks all that often and he has the ability to use the whole field. There’s enough juice in his bat to safely project double-digit home run totals though he more likely will profile to hit more for average than for power.
Defensively, Moreno impresses club officials with his athleticism and energy behind the plate, and they believe he has a chance to stay there long term. His arm strength is average but plays up because he has solid catch-and-throw skills which culminate with a quick release. Like any young catcher, there are improvements to be made with his blocking and receiving, but all the ingredients are there for Moreno to develop into a big league regular.
Scouting grades: Hit: 55 | Power: 45 | Run: 40 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 | Overall: 50
The Blue Jays signed Moreno for $25,000 in August 2016 because they liked the athleticism and tools and believed he could develop into a well-rounded catcher. After a nondescript pro debut in the Dominican Summer League, the Venezuela native moved stateside in 2018 and promptly raked to the tune of .413/.455/.652 in the Gulf Coast League, earning a promotion to the Appalachian League after his first 23 games.
Moreno's knack for making hard contact is a product of his outstanding hand-eye coordination and his preternatural feel for getting the barrel to the ball. He's cognizant of those strengths to a fault at times, as he'll often attack pitches outside of the zone simply because he can reach them. At the same time, Moreno neither strikes out nor walks all that often. There's enough juice in his bat to safely project double-digit home run totals, though his profile likely will be hit-over-power.
Defensively, Moreno impresses club officials with his athleticism and energy behind the plate, and they believe he has a chance to stay there long term. His arm strength is average but plays up because he has solid catch-and-throw skills which culminate with a quick release. Like any young catcher, he has a ways to go with his blocking and receiving, but all the ingredients are there for Moreno to develop into a big league backup, perhaps even a regular.
