Article: The Minor League Non-Roster Invitees that Could Contribute To The Blue Jays Bullpen In 2025

[Simon Li]

The Blue Jays have released their non-roster invitees to spring training, with five pitchers who pitched for a Jays minor league team that has not yet been added to the 40-man roster. After a disastrous season from the bullpen, the Jays are looking to see if reinforcements can come internally in addition to their bigger-name major league reliever acquisitions.

Last season, only three pitchers in the Jays system not on the 40-man pitched innings for them, being LHP Brandon Eisert (who was just traded to the Rays after being designated for assignment), 37-year-old Paolo Espino, who pitched some spot starts, and Brendon Little, who did an admirable job as the second lefty in the pen after Genesis Cabrera. Every other pitcher was either acquired in a trade, waiver claim or was already on the 40-man prior to the beginning of the season. Hopefully, the Jays are looking to change that, with these five pitchers having ample opportunity to shore up the middle-to-low relief appearances.

Braydon Fisher - RHP
Acquired in the Cavan Biggio deal from the Dodgers, Fisher was their fourth-round pick in the 2018 draft out of high school. Fisher has consistently racked up gaudy strikeout numbers throughout his minor league career but, at the same time, has struggled immensely with his command. Last season with the Dodgers in Double A and Triple A, he had a 5.68 ERA in 19.0 IP and also ran a 2.88 FIP with a 33.3% K rate to a 16.7% BB rate without giving up a single homer. 

After coming to the Jays, in 34.2 IP, he improved his ERA to 4.67, striking out his opponents at a 28.8% clip and dropping his walk rate by 4%. He struggled with the contact he gave up but seemed more in control. With the Jays, he increased his first strike percentage, getting ahead more in the count, leading to an increased swinging strike rate and O-Swing rate. 

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Lazaro Estrada - RHP
Just recently re-signed to a two-year minor league extension, the 25-year-old right-hander out of Cuba has quietly been one of the most productive pitchers in the Blue Jays minor league system. Having started his career slowly after some injuries and the lost COVID year, Estrada slowly worked his way up the minor league system, first as a reliever and then building up innings as a starter more recently. This season, across three levels, he pitched to a 3.29 ERA/3.31 FIP with a 28% K rate and an 8.2% walk rate for an impressive 19.9% K-BB%. 

His bread and butter is his 93 mph fastball and a low 80s breaking ball, each capable of generating solid chase and whiff rates. I expect him to use that combo more often if he gets converted back into a reliever after starting the last year or so, as the Jays might need bullpen help immediately. 

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Mason Fluharty - LHP
The Jays drafted this 23-year-old lefty in the fifth round of the 2022 draft, and he has been excellent since his pro debut. Sitting only 88 mph with his fastball, Fluharty flummoxes batters with a unique arm slot and a nasty sweeper to get whiffs and a cutter to induce soft contact. Fluharty pitched to a 3.63 ERA/4.15 FIP with a 27.4% K rate and a 9.0% BB rate in a high offensive environment in Triple-A Buffalo. It is hilarious seeing a guy with a 4th-percentile fastball velocity have this much red on their Statcast summary, with all three of his pitches flashing plus (courtesy of TJStats). 

Despite his excellence, Fluharty may have a platoon issue, giving up a .727 OPS to righties compared to his solid .658 to lefties. He’ll have decent competition for one of the main lefties in the pen, as Brendon Little, Easton Lucas, Josh Walker, and Lovelady are all vying for spots.

(via @TJstats)

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Hayden Juenger - RHP
An exciting draft pick out of college in 2021, the sixth-rounder has yet to live up to the hype many expected. He made his way up to Triple A in 2023, but with mediocre results, which tapered a lot of expectations. In 2024, Juenger repeated Triple A and performed much better, dropping his ERA from 6.33 to 4.19 and his FIP from 4.82 to 4.20. His strikeout rate also dropped from 26.4% to 21.7%, which is not optimal for a reliever, but that came with a lower walk rate and better contact quality. He relies on a four-pitch mix with a 94 mph fastball, an 89 mph cutter, an 86 mph changeup, and a slider, all being average or below pitches, according to TJ Stuff+.

(via @TJstats)

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Ryan Jennings - RHP
Jennings was a fourth round pick in the 2022 MLB draft for the Jays and was expected to move quickly through the system as a reliever. Still, due to necessity, he was primarily used as a starter for the majority of his professional ball career. Surprisingly, he found decent success as a starter, moving up to High-A ball with very solid peripherals, before the Jays finally bit the bullet and converted him back to a reliever after getting promoted to Double-A New Hampshire. He pitched to a 1.00 ERA as a reliever in Double A, in 9 IP, with a 30% K rate and a 10% BB rate, only giving up an opponent’s BA of .121 and not giving up a single homer. He carried that success to the Arizona Fall League, where he went scoreless in 10.0 IP, with a 1.85 FIP and a 26.3% K-BB% rate, flashing four plus pitches in an extremely high offensive environment. Although I expect him to start the season in Buffalo, Jennings could come up for the Jays and be an important part of their bullpen in 2025. 

(via @TJstats)

The Blue Jays have struggled to develop pitching to help out the major leagues, and with many of their high-profile pitching prospects going down to injuries, it's nice to see them have this group of relievers that they've acquired and developed. Atkins and Co. have drafted no small number of high-probability relievers, and it looks like they're finally coming around to help out the major league roster. With the development complex up and running for the previous few years, hopefully, things are finally coming to fruition for their minor-league pitching.

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[Orgfiller]

Awesome breakdown. In particular love the use of the Stuff+ graphics, really gives a clear picture for some of the highlighted guys. I didn't know anything about Ryan Jennings so that's a nice find. The stuff looks legit in the bullpen, and the age isn't super concerning given that he was still being tried as a starter as early as this season.

[Laika]

I've been interested in Ryan Jennings for a year now. I think he has a chance. It's more of a SP profile though. Maybe he gets a chance in the pen and then it he is okay, some day a chance to stretch out?

[Simon Li]

17 minutes ago, Laika said:

I've been interested in Ryan Jennings for a year now. I think he has a chance. It's more of a SP profile though. Maybe he gets a chance in the pen and then it he is okay, some day a chance to stretch out?

I think his profile suits best as a reliever actually, he's already 25 years old, and will turn 26 during the 2025 season. He was good as a starter against younger competition, but I think his best path moving forward is as a reliever.