Toronto Blue Jays Arizona Fall League Preview

[Brian Labude]

With the 2025 Minor League Baseball season wrapped up, fans can now turn their attention to the Arizona Fall League (AFL), where teams send players to get a little extra work in before the winter break. Some players who have appeared in the AFL in past years have broken out and ridden their success all the way to monster major league debuts for their big league clubs or into increased prospect notoriety. 

The Toronto Blue Jays recently announced the players they would be sending to Arizona, and it's a pitching-heavy group that gets to continue to play organized baseball. There are two hitters and five pitchers representing Toronto. The two hitters are Josh Kasevich and Edward Duran, while the pitchers are Angel Bastardo, Alex Amalfi, Kai Peterson, Yondrei Rojas, and Chay Yeager. 

The Blue Jays players are playing for the Glendale Desert Dogs, joining others from the Atlanta Braves, St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Chicago White Sox. 

Let's take a closer look at each of the players Toronto sent out to Arizona. We'll talk about what they did this year and what they might be looking to work on down in the desert.

Josh Kasevich: 42 G, 160 PA, .228/.331/.243, 0 HR, 2 2B, 0 SB, 3 CS
Kasevich is the prototypical prospect you see get sent to the AFL. He missed more than half of the 2025 season, and in the games he did play, he was far from what was expected.

In 2024, Kasevich slashed .296/.348/.385, adding 28 doubles, six home runs, and 13 stolen bases. He will almost assuredly be focusing on getting his timing back at the plate and regaining some of his power stroke from prior years. He doesn't have a lot of power in his bat, but he has shown a solid ability to hit doubles and will need to find that swing again to make it to the big league club. 

Edward Duran: 100 G, 431 PA, .275/.362/.405, 8 HR, 15 2B, 7 SB, 4 CS
Duran is not one of the prototypical prospects that make up most of the lineups in the AFL. He played the full season in 2025, 100 games between Single-A Dunedin and High-A Vancouver. At 21 years old, he is a prospect Toronto is sending down to the desert to test him against better competition. Hopefully, this will allow him to see what he will need to work on over the offseason.

While Duran was at Single-A Dunedin, he put up great numbers (.296/.378/.439) but was on the older end of the age spectrum for the level. When he was bumped up to High-A Vancouver, his numbers dropped across the board (.230/.329/.336). I think he will find he must work on his bat control and getting the barrel to the ball more. 

Angel Bastardo: DNP
Bastardo missed all of the 2025 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He came to the Blue Jays after he was selected in the 2024 Rule 5 draft. Toronto will need him to be on the major league active roster in 2026 for the required amount of time, or else they will have to offer him back to the Boston Red Sox. This will undoubtedly force him to the bullpen, but it should be a role in which he can excel, and in a big way.

Before his injury, Bastardo's fastball was electric, popping the mitt in the mid-90s and reaching 97 mph. If he comes back healthy and can return to form, it's not inconceivable that his fastball could be in the upper 90s out of the bullpen. He also has a devastating changeup that plays well off of the fastball. His goal in the AFL will be to shake off the rust from missing the season, get innings on his arm, and try to get back to his pre-surgery form.

Alex Amalfi: 34 G, 11 GS, 87.2 IP, 4.41 ERA, 1.335 WHIP, 26.6% K%, 12.5% BB%
Amalfi started the season coming out of the bullpen at Double-A New Hampshire, but then, either out of necessity or because the team saw something, he moved into the starting rotation. He made six starts from August 1 onward, pitching 36 innings with a 3.50 ERA, a 22.2% strikeout rate, and a 10.4% walk rate. Toronto might have selected him for an AFL assignment to continue to stretch him out and get more innings on his arm against some more top-level hitters. The organization needs to find out if his move to the starting rotation should be a permanent one. The answer to that question could have long-term implications for him and the team. 

Kai Peterson: 38 G, 0 GS, 50.1 IP, 3.04 ERA, 1.351 WHIP, 27.6% K%, 13.1% BB%
Peterson pitched most of the season at High-A Vancouver, and while he was age-appropriate for the level, he was ready for a promotion to Double-A New Hampshire. He finally got his promotion in late August, but only pitched in nine games there. His inclusion on the AFL roster will be to continue his progression, while giving him more exposure to tougher hitters. 

Yondrei Rojas: 30 G, 0 GS, 37.2 IP, 1.43 ERA, 0.876 WHIP, 32.4% K%, 7.6% BB%
Rojas was in a similar position to Peterson. He dominated High-A Vancouver before getting a late-season call-up to Double-A New Hampshire. During the 2025 season, he emerged as one of the top relief pitcher prospects in the Blue Jays organization and has put himself on a path towards the major leagues. He needs to continue to face tougher competition and get the exposure needed to make adjustments against top-level opponents. He will get that exposure in the AFL, and with a good showing there, he could become a weapon for the Blue Jays down the stretch in 2026. 

Chay Yeager: 42 G, 1 GS, 55.2 IP, 2.75 ERA, 1.006 WHIP, 29.1% K%, 9.1% BB%
Yeager is an older pitcher who dominated in the bullpen for High-A Vancouver but struggled mightily in his brief stint with Double-A New Hampshire (4.50 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP). The Blue Jays will be sending him to the AFL to test him against tougher competition to see if he can sink or swim.

Yeager will turn 24 during the 2026 season and needs to start translating his success in the lower minors to the upper levels and eventually the majors. He will be Rule 5 draft eligible after the 2026 season, so the Blue Jays need to be more aggressive with him, and the AFL is the perfect place to test him. 

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[Jimcanuck]

Nothing about Kasevich defense?  It is elite and will get him to MLB at some point