Toronto Blue Jays 2025 MLB Draft Day Two Recap: College Pitchers and High-Upside Hitters

[Brian Labude]

After a whirlwind ride Sunday night for the first three rounds of the MLB Draft, Day 2 started off with a ton of talent still on the board and dreams ready to be made for those select few that hear their names called. 

The Toronto Blue Jays made two picks on Day 1: Jojo Parker and Jake Cook. A shortstop and centerfielder, furthering the draft philosophy of new Blue Jays Director of Amateur Scouting Marc Tramuta. He loves large bodied pitchers that fill up the strike zone and up-the-middle, athletic position players. 

Day 2 of the draft encompassed Rounds 4-20 and was fast-paced, pure chaos at times, so let's take a look at all of the players the Toronto Blue Jays drafted and what their future might hold. 

Micah Bucknam, 110th Overall Pick, P, 21, Dallas Baptist

Michah Bucknam played two seasons in college for Louisiana State University and then one at Dallas Baptist, after transferring following his sophomore season. This was in fact the second time the Toronto Blue Jays selected him, the first being back in 2022, as a 16th-round pick. Originally born in Nelson, New Zealand, he played high school baseball in British Columbia and is an “adopted Canadian.” The Blue Jays really loved his makeup, enough so they drafted him twice. 

In his lone season at Dallas Baptist, he pitched 62.1 innings, striking out 80 (29.4%), walking 25 (9.2%), and carried a 4.62 ERA. 

MLB Pipeline is high on his secondary pitches, but lower on his fastball, giving the fastball a 50-grade, as it sits 92-96 mph with not the best shape or bat-missing ability. His slider gets a big grade of 65, a mid-to-high 80s pitch that can leak into the 90s. His curveball did not get as big of a grade, 60, but is almost as effective. They point out that better command of his fastball and changeup are the keys to him sticking as a starting pitcher. 

Tim Piasentin, 143 Overall Pick, 3B, 18, Foothills Composite (AB)

Tim Piasentin is another Canadian product and the Toronto Blue Jays started off Day 2 with a theme: draft home grown players. He played his high school ball in Alberta and is someone with big raw power from the left side, as well as an ability to hit velocity. A move to 1B could be in his future; he has the arm to stick at third base, but his fielding is less than desirable right now. 

His future is in his bat, which is currently power over hit. Scouts have been mixed on his hit tool, as the swing and miss issues are present, but it is undetermined as to how prevalent they will be.

Eric Snow, 172nd Overall Pick, SS, 21, Auburn

Eric Snow played three seasons in college, two at South Florida and his junior year at the University of Auburn. In his junior season he played 57 games, had a slash line of .307/.403/.493, hit eight home runs, and 14 doubles. His plate discipline was really good with a 9.9% walk rate and a 10.3% strikeout rate. He made a lot of contact and showed a little pop in his bat. 

At 5-foot-8 and only 188 pounds he does not have much more to build out on his frame and will be more contact over power in his career. He played a utility infielder role for Auburn in 2025 and that may in fact be his future outlook at the big league level. Baseball America has him with fringe arm strength, which may limit him to second base, but expect him to play all over early in his professional career. 

Dylan Watts, 202nd Overall Pick, P, 20, Auburn

Dylan Watts is coming to the Toronto Blue Jays organization from Auburn as well. He played in two seasons there and pitched almost exclusively out of the bullpen, 32 games with five starts. His college production is downright ugly, over a seven ERA in both years and strikeout rates south of 23%. It wasn't all negative for him, as he walked very few batters, around 4% and 8% for both seasons. 

Watts is a relief pitcher through and through; expect him to work on improving his pitches at the lower levels for a while. He is a project and almost assuredly a pick to save money to spend on other picks if he were to sign. 

Danny Thompson Jr., 232nd Overall Pick, P, 22, UNC Greensboro

Danny Thompson Jr. is another true relief pitcher. He played five years in college, three at North Carolina Wesleyan and two at UNC Greensboro. He did average almost three innings an appearance in 2025, so he could conceivably be stretched out as a starter, but the bullpen is undoubtedly in his future. He has a knack for strikeouts, ending this season with a 33% strikeout rate. He did walk batters more than you'd like, sitting at a 9% walk rate. He can be a little wild at times, as seen with his six hit by pitches and four wild pitches.

This is another cost-saving pick to help with signing other draft selections. He will be another project and needs to work hard in the lower minors to improve upon his skillset. 

Karson Ligon, 262nd Overall Pick, P, 22, Mississipi State

Karson Ligon is another college draft pick, having played two seasons at the University of Miami and then two at Mississippi State. He was a starter for three of the four years in college ball and in 2025 started all 15 games he appeared in. Reports have come out that he has touched 100 mph with his fastball, but sits in the upper 90s. He features a changeup that is borderline plus and with refinement will be a huge weapon for him opposite the big fastball. His arsenal led to a 27.9% strikeout rate in the SEC this season and a respectable 11.1% walk rate. 

Ligon is an older prospect and could move quickly through the minor leagues if he can hit the ground running and not be wild with his command. Regardless of his initial placement, the upper minors is where he will need to be to amply test himself and hopefully succeed well enough to help the big league club within a couple of seasons. 

Austin Smith, 292nd Overall Pick, OF, 22, San Diego

Austin Smith continued the Toronto Blue Jays theme of drafting heavily from the college ranks. In 2025, he slashed .353/.412/.528 at the University of San Diego. Despite his high contact skills, he only hit six home runs, but had 18 doubles. He is mostly a gap-to-gap doubles hitter, unless the Blue Jays can get him to tap into more of his raw power. 

Expect Smith to be a longer developmental project unless his contact abilities shine through in the lower minor leagues at the start of his career.

Jared Spencer, 322nd Overall Pick, P, 22, Texas

Our Jamie Cameron's draft analysis has Jared Spencer looking like a great pick for the Toronto Blue Jays. A left handed pitcher out of the University of Texas, he can get the fastball up to the upper 90s, and has a nice looking changeup. Cameron had this to say about Spencer prior to the draft:

“Spencer is an Indiana State transfer who is a 2025 senior. Although he’ll be 22 on draft day, he caught plenty of attention this season with some tweaks to his arsenal and his stuff taking a step forward for the Longhorns.

It’s a good frame for a starter although there’s a lot of effort in the delivery for me. His fastball will sit in the mid-90s, although he’s run it up to 97-98 mph in shorter stints or when he’s revved up. There’s a firm, upper 80s bullet slider that plenty of teams will value, in addition to a changeup he added this spring. He finished his 2025 season with 52.1 IP, a 3.89 FIP, a 29.3 K%, and a 10.2 BB%.

Spencer was dealt a major blow, missing the culmination of the 2025 season after shoulder surgery in late April.”

Spencer should be on a similar path as Austin Smith, he can be a fast mover if he hits the ground running, or have to grind it out if he doesn't. 

Blaine Bullard, 322nd Overall Pick, OF, 18, Klein Cain High School

The Toronto Blue Jays dipped back into the high school ranks with Blaine Bullard. He has good speed and a great frame to work on filling it out and adding power. Jamie Cameron wrote:

“Bullard is a prep outfielder out of Houston, currently committed to Texas A&M. He'll be on the older side of the prep class on draft day and is a prospect with a fairly wide range of rankings entering the end of the draft cycle.

The switch hitting outfielder is a great athlete with good projection at 6'2, 190. There's plenty of quickness and twitch in his frame and swing. Offensively, it's a gap-to-gap approach with strong bat-to-ball skills and an ability to use the entire field to his advantage. There's some strong supplementary tools, too. Bullard has plus speed, making him a threat on the base paths in addition to helping him cover plenty of ground in the outfield. While he might be a tough sign given his commitment, there's 4 tools here that profile as average or better.”

If Toronto can pry Bullard away from Texas it will be a huge boost to the farm system, as his upside is pretty rosy at such a young age. 

Trace Baker, 382nd Overall Pick, P, 21, UNC Wilmington

Trace Baker played two seasons at UNC Wilmington, where he was predominantly a relief pitcher. 39 of his 41 appearances came out of the bullpen. In 2025, he rocked a 2.24 ERA, a 25% strikeout rate, and a 7% walk rate. Last year, his arsenal consisted of three pitches, a fastball in the mid 90s, a slider in the low 80s, and a mid 80s changeup. 

Expect Baker to stick as a relief pitcher unless the Blue Jays have some crazy idea of converting him to a starter. 

Noah Palmese, 412th Overall Pick, P, 21, Webber International University

Noah Palmese is an off-the-radar pick, but reported pitch metrics on him look very promising. As of last year, he had a low-to-mid 90s fastball with 20 inches of iVB, a sinker in the low 90s, along with a slider and a splitter in the 80s. He might be a longer term project, but don't be shocked if the Blue Jays unlock some serious skills in his arm. 

Jake Casey, 442nd Overall Pick, OF, 22, Kent State

Jake Casey is yet another four year college player and despite him playing against lower competition, he has some good looking tools. He showed above average pop in the bat, hitting 17 home runs in 2025. He slashed a robust .356/.500/.736 and had an OPS of 1.236. He even stole 20 bases during his last season in college, making him a potential all-around threat and complete player.

Casey will have to show that his talents play up against tougher competition, so expect him to start off in the lowest level of the minor leagues and then he will dictate his future with how well or not as well he does against more formidable opponents. 

Jaxson West, 472nd Overall Pick, C, 21, Florida State

Jaxson West played three seasons at Florida State and didn't really show any high-end tools. If he does sign, expect him to not be much more than organizational catching depth. The Blue Jays will really have to work to improve his power (2 home runs in 2025), speed (3 stolen bases in 2025), and bat skills (.236/.370/.311 in 2025). 

Jordan Rich, 502nd Overall Pick, OF, 18, American Heritage HS (FL)

Jordan Rich was a dual threat in high school, launching seven home runs and swiping 38 bags his senior year. That type of power and speed combination has been largely lacking from a Toronto Blue Jays system, and more importantly from their outfield prospects. 

Will Cresswell, 532nd Overall Pick, C, 21, Washington State

Will Cresswell is a four year college player out of Washington State University. There he was hampered by bad batting averages and low on-base rates until this season, when he really got locked in. He hit .329/.404/.523, with five home runs. It is another pick in this draft that kind of draws some double takes, but if the improvements stick, he could make for a very solid minor league catcher who will work to move up one level at a time in the minor leagues. 

Luke Kovach, 562nd Overall Pick, P, 22, Cal Poly (CA)

With their next to last selection in the draft, the Toronto Blue Jays went with Luke Kovach, a pitcher who played at Cal Poly. He is a skinny lefty on the mound who doesn't have a big fastball. He struck out 17 hitters in 8.1 innings in 2025 though, so there is some strikeout potential, especially if the fastball can improve. 

Ty Peeples, 592nd Overall Pick, OF, 18, Franklin County HS (GA)

To cap off the draft, the Toronto Blue Jays ended up selecting their fifth player out of high school. Ty Peeples has a good projectable frame and some noteworthy in-game power already. Perfect Game has him listed with a 94th percentile exit velocity for the 2025 class. He has some serious pop in his bat and a good approach for his age. He would be a great signing, but a commitment to play for the University of Georgia may make it difficult to get him to pro ball.

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What do you think of the Blue Jays' Day Two haul? Let us know in the comments!

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