Along with big John Talley, Nestor Molina has been turning heads for the Dunedin Blue Jays during the 2011 campaign. Originally signed as a non drafted second baseman in 2006, Nestor Molina has been one of the best pitchers in the entire Toronto Blue Jays farm system. Tonight Molina makes his 16th start of the season, as the Dunedin Blue Jays take on the Jupiter Hammerheads. Will Nestor be able to keep his dream season rolling? Or will Chad James and his Jupiter teammates turn Molina’s dream into a nightmare?

Earlier this week Toronto Blue Jays 2010 1st round draft choice Deck McGuire was finally promoted to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats after an incredible season in Dunedin. Coincidentally, both Deck McGuire and the aforementioned Nestor Molina will be pitching tonight.

Heading into this evening’s action against the Jupiter Hammerheads, Nestor Molina will be playing his 19th game of the season. In his last 6 games, 5 starts and 1 relief appearance, Molina has gone an impressive 5 and 1 with a 2.22 ERA with a 56/7 K/BB ratio in an impressive 52.2 IP. On the year, Molina is 9 – 3 with a 2. 51 ERA 101 / 11 K/BB ratio while holding opponents to a 236 batting average.

In theory, Molina’s statistics should be enough to award him a promotion to double A New Hampshire before the season’s end. However, right now, with the recent promotions of McGuire to New Hampshire and Chad Beck to the Las Vegas 51s, it makes sense to keep Molina with Dunedin for the time being.

Update: As of this writing, Nestor Molina left after 5 innings giving up 8 hits, 2 earned runs while striking out 4.