Brock Beauchamp

Victor Arias was signed by the Toronto Blue Jays out of Venezuela in 2019. It has been a long and winding path for him through the minor leagues, as he pushes toward the majors. It started with an above-average showing as a 17-year-old in the Dominican Summer League (DSL) in 2021. He had a 118 wRC+ to go with a slash line of .248/.388/.339, two home runs, and an elite walk rate of 17.9%. Sticking out as a negative would be his groundball rate of 52.1%, and that hasn't improved much over the years. In 2022, Arias repeated the DSL for a short 19-game stint. He got the ball in the air more, and his numbers jumped up, with him seeing his batting average rise to .315 and his on-base rate to .448. The next year saw a shortened season for him; he only played in 41 games at Rookie ball and three each at Single A and Double A. Despite being young, he still had a 109 wRC+ over those 47 games and a walk rate of 17.6%. 2024 would see Arias get a mostly full season, this time at Single A for 76 games. He really stepped up his game with a 146 wRC+ and earned a short 11-game stretch at High A to end the year. There, he stood out over the small sample, hitting .324/.425/.353 with a 150 wRC+. In 2025, he played the most games in one season of his minor league career, 102 between High-A Vancouver and Double-A New Hampshire. Combined, he would slash .272/.353/.403, with a 114 wRC+, launching seven home runs and seven triples and swiping 18 bags. What To Like Arias doesn't have a big frame, listed at 5-foot-9 and 150 pounds, but he puts everything he has into his swings. At one point in 2025, he was sporting a very good average exit velocity and 90th percentile exit velocity, 93 mph and 110.1 mph, respectively, according to Baseball America. His swing speeds are exceptional, and he transfers his weight well with his leg kick. This helped him to hit seven home runs, seven triples (98th percentile), and 19 doubles (80th percentile) last season. The young outfielder pairs his great exit velocities with above-average speed on the bases. He swiped 18 bags in 2025, which was good enough for the 80th percentile in the minor leagues. It appears he is well on his way to having an above-average profile with the bat, especially when it comes to extra-base hits, along with above-average potential on the bases. What To Work On The thing Arias needs to work on most is also the reason his elite raw power hasn't translated into more in-game power: his launch angles. He routinely has been a hitter who pounds the ball into the ground. He is also rather consistent with his groundball rates, hovering around 50-54% for his minor league career. Aside from his short sample in his second year at the DSL level, he has hit groundballs at a feverish pace (52%, 52%, 53%, 51%, 54%). If nothing changes, it will definitely be expected for those numbers to continue to climb as he moves up levels and faces tougher pitching. If he can drop that number down to the upper 30s or lower 40s, he would see a dramatic jump in his home run total. Pull-side power is how Arias will make a name for himself, if he can keep the ball in the air more than he has in the past, but he also needs to use the middle of the field more. He only hit 24.6% of his batted balls up the middle this past year. When he is facing tougher lefty-on-lefty matchups, he will need to hit the ball back up the middle or to the opposite field more. In 2025, he hit just .242/.301/.305 versus left-handed pitchers and didn't hit any home runs. As he continues to move up levels, he will need to improve those numbers against lefties, or he may ultimately fall into a utility role or drop back into a fourth outfielder type of potential outcome. What's Next? Arias will likely begin 2026 at Double-A New Hampshire and look to keep hitting his way up levels. If he can improve his groundball rates and keep the ball in the air more, he will see his raw power and elite swing speed translate to more home run power. This should see him unlock his true dual-threat potential as a hitter. The Blue Jays lack power/speed outfielders in the upper minors, so if Arias can keep improving and fix some of his launch angle issues, he may make it up to Triple-A Buffalo by the end of the season and push for some major league at-bats come 2027, when the Blue Jays' outfield should be less crowded.

Sam Shaw was selected by the Blue Jays in the ninth round of the MLB draft in 2023. That year, as an 18-year-old, he would get into nine games in the FCL. He would only hit .207, but had an OBP of .425. This foreshadowed the type of hitter he would be: one who excels with high on-base rates and low strikeout rates, and whose hit tool is developing. In 2024, he repeated the FCL and managed to have a .361 OBP, despite only hitting .220. His plate discipline was superb, as he struck out just 10% of the time and walked at a 16.7% rate. He wasn't displaying much power though, only hitting two home runs on the season. In 2025, it appears the hit tool is coming around, even though he has moved on up to Single-A Dunedin. There, he has hit .266/.412/.441 with seven home runs, eight doubles, and a triple. He has similar strikeout and walk rates, at 18.6% and 19.5%, respectively. He has a 147 wRC+ on the season and is pushing towards a promotion to High-A Vancouver. Shaw isn't the biggest player, standing just 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds, but he uses very good swing decisions paired with above-average launch angles to hit the ball in the air. He has the profile to be a Sean Keys, Alan Roden, and Spencer Horwitz type of hitter down the line. As mentioned, expect him to move up to High-A Vancouver in the near future, where he will look to continue to develop power, add better exit velocities to his game and work his way up the minor league ladder.