Drew Hutchison has received the call to The Show.

Taken in the 15th round of the 2009 draft, Hutchison wasn’t even on the radar of a lot of teams prior to the draft. Toronto scouts, though, saw something special and convinced the organization that he was worth a $400,000 gamble. The 2009 draft was a circus for the Blue Jays organization. It signed its first overall pick, college right-hander Chad Jenkins who has been a disappointment, but then failed to sign the next three picks. Those picks included James Paxton – now one of Seattle’s top prospects, Jake Eliopoulos, and Jake Barrett – a potential first round draft pick in 2012. The selection of Hutchison and fellow top rookie Jake Marisnick, an athletic outfielder in high-A ball, could help salvage the otherwise disappointing draft.

In just his third pro season, Hutchison, at the age of 21, is now a big leaguer. He was ranked as the fourth best prospect in the Jays system during the pre-season Top 15 prospect list for the club. He had an excellent 2011 season, which saw him pitch at three different levels: low-A, high-A and double-A. After making just three starts at double-A last year, he returned to the level this season and made another three starts.

The right-hander has above-average control for his age and he mixes his pitches well. Hutchison can reach 93-94 mph with his four-seam fastball but he tends to work with a two-seamer in the 89-91 mph range with good movement. His second best pitch is a changeup and it’s a potential strikeout pitch. The third weapon is a slider, which remains inconsistent.

Hutchison likely needs more minor league seasoning. He’s been good – but not dominant – at double-A this year and has just six starts above A-ball. He’s known for having solid makeup and a tough demeanor so he should be able to handle the stress of the sudden call-up. Hutchison will make his big league debut on Saturday against the Kansas City Royals and may be up for just one start before being sent back to double-A. With Toronto in the midst of a 20-game stretch without a break, though, Hutchison could stick around.

The club also considered Joel Carreno and Jesse Chavez, both pitching at triple-A Las Vegas, for the fifth starter’s role.

The Arizona Diamondbacks have gone fishing for a replacement for injured outfielder Chris Young. The organization purchased the contract of prospect A.J. Pollock from triple-A.

Prior to the 2012 season the outfielder ranked as the 13th best player in the minor league system, which has one of the strongest collection of prospects in the game. He was the club’s first round pick (17th overall) out of Notre Dame in 2009.

Pollock, 24, has faced some adversity in his career and missed the entire 2010 season after elbow surgery but he has rebounded admirably. The right-handed hitter came back last year and hit more than .300 in double-A with 41 doubles and 36 steals (43 attempts). Moved up to triple-A in 2012 he was hitting .340 with six doubles in the 12 games prior to his promotion. The knock on the outfielder is that he lacks the range for centerfield but doesn’t possess the power that teams typically covet with their corner outfielders. His ceiling currently sits at platoon or fourth outfielder.

With Jason Kubel and Gerardo Parra swinging from the left side, Pollock could be a nice complement (along with Justin Upton) from the right side. The time frame is currently unknown for Young’s return from a torn ligament in his shoulder but Pollock should have a significant opportunity to prove the scouting reports wrong.

Look for him to provide the Diamondbacks offence with a decent average with a good number of doubles and some steals mixed in. Despite the fact that he’s a rookie, Pollock is a better top-of-the-order option than either Willie Bloomquist or Aaron Hill (although Pollock could stand to be a little more patient).

Nick Ahmed, SS, Atlanta Braves
Current Level: A+
2012 Top 15 Prospects Ranking: NR
Current Value: Monitor closely

Atlanta targeted Ahmed with its second round draft pick in 2011 with the hope that he could move quickly through the system in need of middle infield depth. The shortstop is not flashy in the field but he’s steady, makes all the plays and has a strong arm. At the plate, he’s more if a No. 2 hitter with good barrel control and the ability to play small ball. He’s shown his ability to get on base early in 2012 by walking eight times in his first 11 games. He’s struck out just three times. Ahmed also possesses good speed and has stolen six bases in as many tries. He’s definitely worth keeping an eye on even if he’s currently stuck behind Tyler Pastornicky and Andrelton Simmons on the shortstop depth chart.

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Tyler Austin, OF, New York Yankees
Current Level: A-
2012 Top 15 Prospects Ranking: 11th
Current Value: Ready to Explode

Already on his third position (3B, 1B, RF) after playing catcher as an amateur, Austin has done nothing but hit despite his uncertain defensive home. He hit more than .350 in 2011 and he’s currently above .400 in low-A ball. He also has 11 extra base hits in nine games. Austin was also successful in all 18 base stealing attempts last year so he’s not a one-trick pony, although he’s a smart base runner as opposed to a fast one. Austin is yet another example of the rich getting richer.

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Thursday night saw a number of strong pitching performances erupt throughout the minor leagues.

Cody Buckel, RHP, Texas Rangers
Current Level: A+
2012 Top 15 Prospects Ranking: 15th
Current Value: Holding Steady

Buckel, still just 19, is enjoying his time in the high-A Carolina League. He gave up just two hits and no walks in 6.0 innings last night. He’s now given up four hits and three walks in his first 10 innings of work. That goes along with 16 strikeouts and a high rate of ground-ball outs. Buckel doesn’t have the most dynamic stuff but if he continues to show good command and control of his repertoire he could develop into a solid No. 3 starter at the big league level.

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Pitching is quite often ahead of hitting early on in the season but as you’ll see below there are still quite a few position prospects who are off to strong starts to the year.

C.J. Cron, 1B, Los Angeles Angels
Current Level: A+
2012 Top 15 Prospect Ranking: 3rd
Current Value: Holding Steady

Despite having his pro debut in 2011 cut short due to injury, Cron has come out swinging in 2012, taking full advantage of the friendly confines of the California League. The right-handed hitter currently has a 1.022 OPS in seven games, including a .556 batting average against left-handed pitchers. Perhaps because he’s seeing the ball so well he has yet to take a walk. Although his stats will no doubt be inflated by the league, Cron could very well hit his way to double-A by mid-year.

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The minor league season is now well underway with a plethora of high-level performances by intriguing names from triple-A all the way down to low-A. Below is just a snapshot highlighting five strong starts to the season.

Tony Cingrani, LHP, Cincinnati Reds
Current Level: A+
2012 Top 15 Prospects Ranking: 8th
Current Value: Holding Steady

It’s not easy jumping from short-season ball to high-A ball but Cingrani made it look easy. His first start – in which he allowed just one hit in 6.0 innings – was all the more impressive when you realize it took place in the hitter friendly California League. The southpaw also walked a batter but he struck out five. Of the balls put into play, Cingrani recorded more outs via the fly ball than the ground ball so that gives him something to work on for his next start.

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Read the methodology behind the ratings here. Remember that the grading scale is 20-80, with 50 representing league average.

#30 – Baltimore
#29 – Houston
#28 – Oakland
#27 – Pittsburgh
#26 – San Diego
#25 – Minnesota
#24 – Chicago AL
#23 – Seattle
#22 – Kansas City
#21 – Cleveland
#20 – New York Mets
#19 – Los Angeles Dodgers
#18 – Colorado
#17 — Miami
#16 — Diamondbacks
#15 — Cincinnati
#14 — Cubs
#13 — Milwaukee
#12 — San Francisco
#11 — Washington
#10 — Tampa Bay

Toronto’s 2011 Ranking: 8th

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A large number of prospects changed hands this past off-season as teams jumped at the opportunities to acquire some promising young stars. Some of those prospects have a good chance to one day make their former teams regret sending them packing. Let’s have a look at a few of them:

1. Jose Campos, RHP: Sophomore right-hander Michael Pineda was the key target in the swap with Seattle that sent rookie catcher Jesus Montero west but Campos, 19 years old and ready for low-A ball, could really swing this trade in New York’s favor if he develops as hoped. The prospect is still a long way away from reaching his potential but he has the stuff to develop into a No. 1 or 2 starter. He’s definitely not the type of arm you usually get as a throw-in to a deal and the Yankees organization has a strong history of player development. Montero is the type of player that you don’t mind giving up a lot of value for (assuming he also reaches his potential) but the loss of two top starters could really end up stinging (even more than the likes of Jose Cruz Jr., Chris Tillman/Adam Jones, Brandon Morrow).

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There really is no point in sugarcoating things. The 2012 season will probably not be a pretty one on the south side of Chicago. The Detroit Tigers have put together a rather impressive, playoff-worthy team while the White Sox… have not.

Despite the dark clouds hanging over U.S. Cellular, there is a ray of sunshine for White Sox fans. The club appears set to open the season with four rookies on the 25-man roster; clearly fans would prefer to watch their team steamroll its way into the playoffs but watching young players develop should be a small consolation.

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