Brian Labude

Blue Jays Affiliate Overview (April 16-April 17) Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Series vs Rochester Red Wings (Washington Nationals): 2-2 Season Record: 9-10 Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats Series vs. Chesapeake Baysox (Baltimore Orioles): 4-0 Season Record: 8-4 High-A Vancouver Canadians Series vs. Spokane (Colorado Rockies): 2-2 Season Record: 4-9 Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays Series vs. Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies): 2-2 Season Record: 7-6 Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Season Record: 9-10 Series Opponent: Rochester Red Wings (Washington Nationals) April 16: Postponed April 17, Game 1: On Friday, Charles McAdoo had himself one of the best all-around performances for a Buffalo player in 2026. During game one of the doubleheader with Rochester, he went wild, crushing a three-run home run in the top of the seventh innings to break it open for Buffalo. Before he brought home the win with the big blasts, he had two other hits, singles in the second inning and the sixth inning. He also added a stolen base after his single in the second. Rafael Lantigua gave the Bisons the early lead in the second inning, hitting a three-run home run himself. Out on the mound for Buffalo was one of their steady stars so far this season, Chad Dallas. He went three innings, giving up only one run, on three hits, while striking out six. Yariel Rodriguez came into the game in the seventh and put a stamp on the Buffalo win by striking out two and earning the save. The Bisons won 6-2 and brought their season record back to .500 at 9-9. April 17, Game 2: In game two of the doubleheader, it was yet again Charles McAdoo who was the standout player for Buffalo. In the top of the first inning, McAdoo followed a walk and a single with another big three-run home run. In the bottom half of the inning, Rochester answered with a crooked number of their own. They would score five runs off of Bisons starter Grant Rogers, highlighted by back-to-back home runs from Andrés Chaparro and Yohandy Morales. Unfortunately for Buffalo, their bats disappeared entirely, only getting one more hit in the seven-inning game. Rogers, Brendon Little, and Brendan Cellucci kept Rochester from adding any more runs after the first inning. Without any runs themselves, though, they fell 5-3 and dropped back below .500 to a 9-10 record. Double-A New Hampshire Season Record: 8-4 Series vs. Chesapeake Baysox (Baltimore Orioles) April 16: Thursday, Gage Stanifer was on the mound for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, and he again pitched much better than his opening game at Double A this year. He went four innings, gave up just one hit, walked 3, struck out six, and was charged with two runs. Both runs scored after he left the game and reached via walks in the fifth inning during a thunderstorm they played through. With the New Hampshire offense, it wasn't much of a problem though. The Fisher Cats put up six runs in the fourth inning and the eighth inning. They had 15 hits (seven extra base hits), and the big one was a Jace Bohrofen home run in the eighth inning. Jackson Hornung, Alex Stone, and Jay Harry all had three hits apiece for New Hampshire, as they won big again, 12-6. April 17: The Friday night game against the Baysox had a similar feel to it as the Thursday one, but this time, things came out a bit differently. Richard Gallardo got the start for New Hampshire, went four innings and only surrendered two hits and two walks, but the Baysox scored five runs in the second inning. Aaron Parker started the scoring in the first inning for New Hampshire with an RBI single. In the bottom of the second down four runs, the Fisher Cats added three to cut the lead to one. Eddie Micheletti Jr. had an RBI single, a run scored on a passed ball, and Parker drove in a run with his second RBI single. Jackson Hornung continued his hot hitting with an RBI single in the sixth, and Aron Estrada gave the lead back to the Baysox in the seventh with an RBI double. In the eighth, a groundout to the pitcher would score the tying run for the Fisher Cats, ultimately sending the game to extra innings. In the bottom of the tenth, an intentional walk of Sean Keys and a bunt single loaded the bases. A wild pitch by Daniel Lloyd let Nick Goodwin scramble home for the winning run and walk-off win for New Hampshire, 7-6. High-A Vancouver Season Record: 4-9 Series vs. Spokane (Colorado Rockies) April 16: On a day with a lot of strong pitching performances in the system, Daniel Guerra stepped up and provided one of his own. The 22-year-old righty struck out 11 hitters in five innings, without giving up a single hit and only walking two. Maddox Latta had his second homer in as many games to give the Canadians the early lead, and a throwing error in the fourth allowed Vancouver to grab two more runs. Trace Baker replaced Guerra in the sixth and struggled, giving up the lead immediately, allowing five runs, with four of them being earned, and was only able to get two outs. Eminen Flores kept it close by keeping it scoreless until the ninth inning, where Carter Cunningham continued to dominate with a clutch two-run homer to send it to extras. In the tenth inning, Tucker Toman was the batter with the sacks packed and hit his first homer of the season for a grand slam. Jonathan Todd gave up a two-run homer in the bottom of the tenth, but Vancouver was able to escape with the win. April 17: The Canadians took it to extra innings again this game, but instead of offensive performances driving the way, the pitching was incredible. Danny Thompson Jr. continues his scoreless campaign to start the season, with four innings of one-hit baseball, striking out eight batters. Aaron Munson has been streaky to start the season, but he was good this outing, striking out six more batters himself across three innings. Kelena Sauer made it the third pitcher in a row to go scoreless to end regulation, and he also struck out three hitters himself. The Canadians' offense sputtered, though, as they only mustered up five hits and three walks, leaving ten men on base. The Canadians couldn’t capitalize on the ghost runner in the top of the tenth, and Juanmi Vasquez gave up a walk-off base hit with two outs to lose the game for the Canadians. Single-A Dunedin Season Record: 7-6 Series vs. Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies) April 16: José Berríos finally returned to the mound after getting put on the injured list in spring training due to a fractured elbow. The velo was up to where it was pre-injury, as he was sitting 95 mph on his fastballs. Berrios looked like he was working on stuff on his return, as he gave up five runs. The D-Jays were powered by shortstop Eric Snow, who knocked in the first two runs for Dunedin with a double, and Dariel Ramon scored Snow on an RBI single. The duo did it again in the fourth inning, as Snow’s aggressive baserunning led to a throwing error after he stole third, and Ramon hit his first career homer to take the lead back. Nolan Perry’s return from Tommy John hit its peak, as he struck out 12 batters in just five innings, only allowing a single hit. Unfortunately, Hawkeye was down during his outing, so we missed out on his pitch data, but the big righty was commanding his breaking balls and generated a ton of whiffs. Juan Sanchez made his debut and got his first pro hit. Austin Smith ended up blowing the lead in the ninth, leading to another extra-inning game for the D-Jays, and with the bases loaded, they once again walked it off, this time on a hit-by-pitch. April 17: The game started off horribly, as Karson Ligon was taken out of the game after feeling something on a warm-up pitch. Franly Urena was forced to start and pitched admirably in spite of the circumstances, striking out five batters, but giving up two runs. Peyton Williams had his first homer of the season in the second, and Aldo Gaxiola followed that up with an RBI double, and was then knocked in by Dariel Ramon’s first double of the season. Reece Wissinger pitched three and a third scoreless innings to keep the lead for the Jays, but the Threshers got to Diego Dominguez, and the offense couldn’t fight back, leading to a 5-3 loss. View full article

Jays Centre is counting down the top 20 prospects in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Check out prior entries in the series here: No. 20 to 16 No. 15 to 11 No. 10 No. 9 No. 8 No. 7 No. 6 No. 5 We are entering the home stretch of our countdown of Jays Centre's top 20 prospects. We have already breezed through numbers 20-16, 15-11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, and now we have reached inside the top five to No. 4. Starting off this coveted tier of prospects is someone who sat at the top in prior iterations of this list, but now has fallen just a little: Arjun Nimmala, a prospect who oozes talent and is ready to climb back up to the top of this list with a hot start to 2026. Let's take a look at what he has done, what he does well, where he needs to improve, and what lies next for this budding star. No. 4: SS Arjun Nimmala (High-A Vancouver) PA H 2B 3B HR OPS wRC+ K% BB% 543 106 29 3 13 .694 92 21.4% 10.1% Out of Strawberry Crest High School in Dover, Florida, Nimmala was selected 20th overall in the first round of the 2023 MLB draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. He signed for just $3 million, which was slightly under slot value, but it was more than enough for him to jump into professional baseball and forego playing in college. He managed to get into a few Rookie ball games that same year, collecting five hits across nine games, including a double, triple, and a stolen base. What was extremely impressive during the small sample was his 14 walks, good enough for a walk rate of 35%. It was a sign of his potential talent and gave Blue Jays fans plenty of optimism heading into his first full season the following year. In 2024, the Blue Jays sent Nimmala straight to Single-A Dunedin, where he promptly looked like a stud. In his first three games, he hit a home run, knocked in three, and racked up four hits. For the season, he played in 83 games at the level, slashed .232/.313/.476, and hit 16 home runs. His power was on full display, as he added 17 doubles and six triples to his home run total. In all, he had 39 extra-base hits on the year and was starting to get a ton of national attention in the prospect world. He did, however, show some worrying signs through all of the good; he had a strikeout rate of 31.3% and walked at only an 8.3% clip. His contact rate was also a little low at 69.9%. Then came his 2025 season. Last year was one in which Nimmala saw improvements in some aspects of his game, but regression in others. He played the entire year at High-A Vancouver, where he had 543 plate appearances across 120 games. Health was a bright spot for him, and so was his strikeout rate, which dropped from 31.3% the prior season to 21.4%. Despite the big change in his swing and miss profile, his slash line dipped to .224/.313/.381, and he only had 13 home runs on the season. Nimmala did make up for some of the lack of power with 29 doubles and three triples, but they just don't affect the game as much as the flashy home runs do. He did pick up his impact on the basepaths last year, swiping 17 bags in 20 attempts. His newfound speed adds an extra layer to the multitude of ways he can help his team win games. What To Like Nimmala has loads of power in his bat, and he's shown a tremendous ability to get to it, whether it is in the form of home runs, doubles, or triples. He impacts the game and can do it at an elite level. Last season, his home run total took a step back while at High-A Vancouver, but the 13 home runs he did have were good enough for the 87th percentile in all of the minor leagues. He made up for the drop in home runs by hitting a crazy amount of doubles, 29 (97th percentile). With Vancouver's ballpark being a notoriously pitcher-friendly environment, expect to see some of his home run power return when he moves up a level. However, his home ballpark may not be able to account for all of his dramatic drop in home runs per flyball last year. It could be just a matter of adjusting his swing path to tap back into the juice in his bat, but it is something worth monitoring as he moves through the minor leagues. What To Improve On Despite his budding power, Nimmala has had some issues with his bat-to-ball skills. His contact rate at Single-A Dunedin was 69.9%, and at High-A Vancouver it was 73.6%. He has made some improvements over the years in that arena, but his batting averages are really subpar at best. He's never hit over .232 in a minor league season and needs to make large strides towards improvement in that area in 2026. If he can become a much better contact hitter, his ceiling will drastically jump up into stardom status. Unfortunately, through two seasons so far, he has not shown any signs of becoming better at making more contact, let alone more quality contact. His next stage in development will really hinge on whether or not he can make the improvements needed to become a .250 or .275 hitter, or if his destiny is a profile similar to Lenyn Sosa. What's Next Nimmala is not quite ready for the Double-A level and is back at High-A Vancouver to start the 2026 season. He knows the areas he needs to improve in and what he needs to continue to do well. If he can become a better contact hitter and keep his power going, he has an elite ceiling he can reach. If not, he will be looking more like a platoon bat with power than a star. This season is extremely important to his outlook as a prospect and should give the Blue Jays organization and fans more insight as to what his future trajectory will be. View full article

Blue Jays Affiliate Overview (April 9-April 10) Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Series vs Syracuse Mets (New York Mets): 3-1 Season Record: 6-7 Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats Series vs. Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox): 2-2 Season Record: 3-3 High-A Vancouver Canadians Series vs. Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Giants): 1-3 Season Record: 1-6 Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays Series vs. St. Lucie Mets (New York Mets): 2-1 Season Record: 3-3 Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Season Record: 6-7 Series Opponent: Syracuse Mets (New York Mets) April 9: Thursday's Buffalo Bisons game was one that is the definition of embarrassing. Five errors by Buffalo led to three unearned runs and ultimately a loss that should have been a win. Three batters after an RBI double by Ryan Clifford in the fourth inning, a throwing error by Josh Kasevich allowed the third run of the game to score. The very next batter, Hayden Senger, hit a ball to Ryan McCarty at second base, who misplayed it, leading to another run crossing the plate. The errors weren't just one-sided, as Syracuse helped Buffalo mount a comeback in the sixth. Down 4-0, RJ Schreck started the rally with an RBI single, scoring Yohendrick Pinango. Then a single to right field by McCarty scored Eloy Jiménez, and Cristian Pache threw the ball away, allowing Schreck to score on the play as well. The very next batter, Josh Rivera, hit a ball to the Mets’ shortstop Jackson Cluff, who also had trouble with the throw, committing yet another error that let McCarty score to tie the game up at four. In the seventh, Buffalo was back to playing like the Bad News Bears, as Hayden Juenger threw the ball away on a pick off attempt, moving Pace from second to third. He would then score when Cluff hit a sacrifice fly that would have ended the inning. The run was ultimately the game winner, with the Bisons falling 5-4. Jiménez remains one of the more consistent players for Buffalo. With a walk in the game, he has now been on base in seven of the nine games he has played in. On the mound, the only real standout performance was by Devereaux Harrison. He went two innings in what amounted to a bullpen game, didn't allow a hit or walk, and struck out two. April 10: Buffalo rode a power surge from the bottom of the batting order to their sixth win of the season. Riley Tirotta got a hold of an 84 mph cutter down in the zone and launched his first home run of the season. The big play of the game came off the bat of Josh Rivera in the bottom of the third inning. Following a single from RJ Schreck and walks by Josh Kasevich and Triotta, Rivera unloaded on a 79 mph hanging slider down the middle, sending it over the centerfield fence for a grand slam. For Rivera, the home run came just six days after his first of the season. Unfortunately for the Bisons, he had gone 0-9 in the games in between his home runs. The seven-run lead Buffalo had at the end of the third inning was more than enough for the team, as Chad Dallas was again masterful on the mound. He pitched four innings, giving up two hits and two walks, but no runs at all. He would strike out two, while again limiting hard contact by focusing on more of his offspeed pitches. Brendon Little pitched in relief of Dallas, and he walked a batter before getting a strikeout and then inducing a groundball for a double play. The game went into over a 30-minute rain delay before it was called, and the Bisons won 7-1, as it was an official game at that point. Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats Season Record: 3-3 Series vs. Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox) April 9: New Hampshire was up against a tough challenge in a big lefty from the Boston Red Sox organization, Eduardo Rivera. Rivera went four innings pitched and only surrendered three hits and one run, as he struck out seven batters. New Hampshire surrendered runs in the first on an RBI single and a home run in the fourth inning by the Sea Dogs’ Drew Ehrhard. In the sixth inning, Cutter Coffey put the Fisher Cats within one run with an RBI triple after Nick Goodwin drove in a run in the fifth. New Hampshire tied it with a Jackson Hornung RBI single to center field, but the pitching couldn't silence the Sea Dogs. Ahbram Liendo smacked a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth as New Hampshire lost this one 4-3. Pitching note: Javen Coleman pitched two clean innings and struck out five batters for New Hampshire. He could be on the fast track to the Blue Jays bullpen if he keeps putting up zeros. April 10: New Hampshire jumped out to an early lead in this one, with two runs in the top of the first inning. Sean Keys smacked an RBI double and then would score later in the inning on a sacrifice fly from Geovanny Planchart. Gage Stanifer was on the mound for the Fisher Cats and was looking exceptional for two innings. He struck out 3 batters and got 6 outs pretty cleanly. In the third inning, things got bumpy. Nate Baez hit a three-run homer to left field, and in the fourth, another run scored on a double, single, and double. Once Stanifer was pulled, another run came in. His final line was 3.2 innings pitched, nine hits, five earned runs, zero walks, and six strikeouts. That said, he really pitched much better than his line showed. He collected 19 whiffs on just 66 pitches. He had 47 strikes to 19 balls. He was really focused on peppering the strike zone tonight, and the pitches were looking very good. For results, though, he may have been in the zone too much. After the fourth inning, hits were hard to come by for both teams, as New Hampshire lost this one, 5-2. High-A Vancouver Canadians Season Record: 1-6 Series vs. Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Giants) April 9: After a five-game losing streak to start the season, Vancouver really needed a win to stop the skid. Landen Maroudis took the mound again and, despite not looking as sharp as he did in his first start, was able to pitch around two walks and four hits by striking out three batters and only allowing a single run. Gilberto Batista also looked much better in relief, with four strikeouts on the night, and pitching nearly four innings. Carson Pierce earned the save in relief, and although he was wild also struck out three batters. The pitching was not the big story, however, as Vancouver’s offense exploded, with outfielder Carter Cunningham and infielder Dub Gleed leading the way with four RBIs apiece. The Emeralds had struggles keeping the ball in the zone, leading to a ton of baserunners for the Canadians, as they walked 12 times, leading to 14 runs scored and, finally, a well-needed win. April 10: The Canadians tried to carry the momentum of their last win over to this game, as Daniel Guerra took the mound. Guerra struck out six batters, but shaky command resulted in four walks, five hits, and four runs given up. Danny Thompson Jr. came in relief and shoved. He too struck out six batters, with the one run he gave up being on an error on a pickoff attempt. The Canadians clawed their way back from the early deficit, as Carter Cunningham continued to produce, with a homer to cut the lead to two in the bottom of the fifth, and in the bottom of the ninth tied the game to send it to extras with an RBI single. The Canadians lost their second game in extras, though, as Kelena Sauer gave up a hit to allow the ghost runner to score, and they couldn’t score their own ghost runner. Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays Season Record: 3-3 Series vs. St. Lucie Mets (New York Mets) April 9, Game 1: Game 1 was a continuation from the suspended game on April 7, and Trey Yesavage had his second outing. Bad luck with batted balls spoiled his first inning, as he allowed four singles and a walk in his first inning, which resulted in four earned runs. His pitches did look sharp despite that, and he struck out six batters in only two and two-thirds innings. Two 2025 draftees also showed some pop as Blaine Bullard hit his first professional homer, and JoJo Parker had his first double and RBI in the same inning. 24-year old Brayden Heidel, signed out of indie ball, had his first affiliated outing and struck out four batters without allowing a run in three innings, touching 99 mph with his fastball to keep the Mets from adding to the lead, but the Jays couldn’t get any more runs. April 9, Game 2: In the second game of the day, the Jays came out blazing, with Yorman Licourt scoring on a pickoff attempt, and JoJo Parker with his second RBI double to give them an early 3-0 lead. Troy Guthrie continued to pitch well, going four innings, allowing only a single earned run and striking out four. Austin Smith made his pitching debut as a two-way player but struggled with his command, allowing two walks. Peyton Williams had himself a day, going 3-for-4, including an RBI triple to centerfield as his third one. The Mets rallied back against Diego Dominguez, who gave up three hits and two earned runs, but Jack Eshelman shut the door, striking out the side and earning his first save. April 10: The Jays had their highest scoring game of the season, in an effort to get back to .500. Nolan Perry’s return to the mound after UCL surgery has been fruitful, and despite slightly less sharp fastballs, he utilized his breaking balls extremely effectively, getting nine of his 11 whiffs of the night. The Dunedin offense was really effective against starter Frank Camarillo as they didn’t strike out a single time against him and tallied up seven hits. After Camarillo was taken out, the Jays switched their approach and walked eight times, and scored six more runs as a result. Eric Snow had himself a day, with two hits, two RBIs, and two walks, leading the offensive production for the game. View full article

Blue Jays Affiliate Overview (March 27-April 1) Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Series vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (New York Yankees): 1-2 Series vs. Omaha Storm Chasers (Kansas City Royals): 1-1 Season Record: 2-3 Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats Season begins Friday, April 3 High-A Vancouver Canadians Season begins Friday, April 3 Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays Season begins Thursday, April 2 Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Season Record: 2-3 Series Opponents: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (New York Yankees) and Omaha Storm Chasers (Kansas City Royals) Series Standing: 1-2 vs. SWB, 1-1 vs. Omaha March 27: The Buffalo Bisons opened the 2026 season in abysmal fashion, taking a thumping from the Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. Grant Rogers started the game for the Bisons and made it through the first inning with ease before surrendering six runs over the next two innings. The highlight of the scoring barrage came off the bat of New York Yankees star prospect Spencer Jones, a two-run double to left field. Lazaro Estrada (recently promoted to the Blue Jays) and Adam Macko came on in relief and held the RailRiders in check over the next 4.2 innings, only allowing one hit. The Bisons’ bats were non-existent, though, striking out 12 times and looking completely overmatched against Brendan Beck, who tallied nine of those punch-outs himself. The Bisons nearly got on the board in the seventh when they loaded the bases with two singles and a walk, but Josh Rivera grounded into a double play, ending the scoring threat. An Opening Day loss was all but fitting for the Bisons after their terrible year in 2025. March 28: Postponed March 29 Game 1: Chad Dallas returned to the mound after completing his rehab from Tommy John surgery and was magnificent in his three innings. He struck out five, giving up only three hits, zero walks, and one run. Jonatan Clase got the Bisons on the scoreboard for the first time in 2026 with a sacrifice fly in the third. Eloy Jiménez extended his hit streak to two games with his second single of the year. Josh Kasevich also had himself a nice game, scoring two runs after getting on via a single and a walk. Unfortunately, the back end of the Bisons’ bullpen faltered in extra innings, with Chase Lee and Jorge Alcala surrendering runs in the ninth and 10th innings, leading to Buffalo falling to 0-2 to start the season. March 29 Game 2: Jonatan Clase and his running shoes helped to lead the Bisons to their first win of the year in Game 2 of the doubleheader on Sunday. He had two singles and a walk, while also stealing two bases and scoring two runs. RJ Schreck and Riley Tirotta got in on the fun as well, swiping a bag each themselves on their way to also scoring runs. The Bisons’ big inning came in the fourth, where they scored six runs, which was highlighted by Tirotta's two-RBI single. On the mound, Austin Voth got the start and had some struggles, coughing up solo home runs to Spencer Jones and Yanquiel Fernandez. Devereaux Harrison and Michael Plassmeyer wrapped up the game in relief, finishing the final four innings and only allowing one run. The Bisons finally got in the win column with a 7-3 victory over the RailRiders. March 31: Buffalo kicked off their series with the Omaha Storm Chasers in winning fashion. CJ Van Eyk got the start for Buffalo and put together a strong four innings, only surrendering six hits, one run, one walk, and striking out five batters. Adam Macko tossed 1.1 innings after Van Eyk; he didn't allow a run and struck out two. The batters got things going in the second inning, when Brandon Valenzuela hit a 112 mph RBI single, scoring two runs. Jonatan Clase added a home run the next inning, and Charles McAdoo continued his hot start with an RBI triple. Yohendrick Pinango smacked a 115.4 mph RBI double to cap off the scoring for the Bisons, while Chase Lee finished the game with a two-inning save. April 1: The Bisons were on the losing end of this one, as the bats were silent the entire game. Buffalo only managed three hits, with Charles McAdoo accounting for two of them. Josh Fleming took the loss, as he gave up one run over 3.2 innings. Michael Massey of the Storm Chasers had the big hit of the day, hitting a home run off of Buffalo's Devereaux Harrison. View full article

Jays Centre is counting down the top 20 prospects in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Check out prior entries in the series here: No. 20 to 16 No. 15 to 11 No. 10 No. 9 No. 8 We are well into our coverage of Jays Centre’s top 20 prospects now. We have gone through #20-16, #15-11, #10, #9, #8 and now we reach #7 on our list, Juan Sanchez. He is a prospect that has gained an insane amount of attention, notoriety, and a boost in national rankings this past offseason. Let's get to know him a little more and see what he does well, what he needs to work on, and what the future may hold for this up-and-coming phenom. No. 7: SS/3B Juan Sanchez (DSL Blue Jays Red) PA H 2B 3B HR OPS wRC+ K% BB% 253 73 16 4 8 1.004 156 17.4% 10.3% In January of 2025, Sanchez signed with the Toronto Blue Jays for $1,000,000 as a shortstop out of Cotui, Dominican Republic. He began his professional career that same year, playing in the Dominican Summer League (DSL) on the Blue Jays Red squad. He played in 56 games and quickly separated himself as one of the best players on the field down on the island. For the season, he slashed .341/.439/.564, hit eight home runs, 16 doubles, and four triples, and swiped four bags. His plate discipline was about average for the league, as he had a strikeout rate of 17.4% and a walk rate of 10.3%. Yet, his wRC+ of 156 showed his overall production at the plate was anything but average. His final month was truly remarkable, as he slashed .423/.483/.712 across 14 games. After such a dominant performance in 2025, Sanchez was ready to come stateside and become a household name for Toronto Blue Jays fans. He did just that during the Spring Breakout game against the Philadelphia Phillies’ prospects, in which he laced a bases-clearing double into the left-center field gap. It came off the bat with an exit velocity of 105.6 mph, a sign of things to come for this budding star prospect. What To Like Sanchez has a lot going for him, but one of his biggest tools is his power. He stands 6-foot-3 and is listed at 180 pounds. This gives ample projection for his future power output, and when coupled with his current numbers, you get a prospect with the potential to hit 30-40 home runs. He hit eight home runs in 2025 in the DSL, while adding 16 doubles and even four triples. He looks to have good pull-side power already, with a 44.8% fly ball rate and a 55.8% pull rate. What has driven his prospect status through the roof has been his hit tool. He hit .341 as a 17-year-old in the DSL, and on the backfields during spring training, he continued to have success with the bat. His power and hit tool will drive his value through the roof and provide him a very solid floor in his attempt to reach his astronomical ceiling. What To Work On Being very young still, just 18-years-old, Sanchez has a lot to work on. One of the biggest aspects of his game that could use improvement is his potential swing-and-miss concerns. Despite an absurd .341 batting average in 2025, he was just around league average with his strikeout rate of 17.4%. Coming stateside in 2026, he could see this number creep up, which will ultimately lead to his hit tool dropping down some in response to more whiffs. Being less reliant on a pull-side profile could help to ensure he doesn't have any regression or a step backward with regard to his hit tool. In 2025, he hit 44.2% of his balls in play to center and right field. If he can boost that number up to around 50% while maintaining his power, he could soar onto top 50 prospect lists and even into the top three of our Jays Centre prospect rankings. What's Next Sanchez has made the move stateside from the Dominican Republic and is on the verge of his debut at either Rookie ball in the Florida Complex League or at Single-A Dunedin. It is more likely that he will debut in Rookie ball, but with a hot start, he could be promoted to Single-A Dunedin rather quickly. Don't be shocked to see him end the year on nationally renowned top 50 prospect lists, if he can maintain similar production to his 2025 numbers from the DSL. View full article

You've made it through numbers 20-16 and 15-11, and now we begin our coverage of Jays Centre's top 10 prospects by taking a much deeper look at each of the players that made it into this most coveted top-tier territory. Coming in at number 10, we have Jake Bloss, someone who has traversed the country toward his goal of making it to and sticking at the major league level. No. 10: SP Jake Bloss (Buffalo) IP G GS ERA FIP xFIP K% BB% 23.2 6 6 6.46 4.76 4.85 20.9% 11.3% After a four-year college career, where he played three years at Lafayette and one year at Georgetown, Bloss was drafted in the third round of the 2023 MLB draft by the Houston Astros. After some token innings to end the season at Rookie ball and Single-A Fayetteville, he would start the 2024 season at High-A Asheville. In his first full professional season, he would accomplish a feat virtually unheard of in today's baseball world. He would play in games at four different levels, including the major leagues, and for two different teams after being traded to the Toronto Blue Jays at the trade deadline. In the minor leagues that season, he pitched in 21 games for a total of 93.1 innings, amassed a 3.18 ERA, and a 3.92 FIP. He had a 23.3% strikeout rate, a 9.5% walk rate, and a 1.07 WHIP. His time in the major leagues for Houston was not nearly as rosy. In three starts (11.2 innings), he had a 6.94 ERA and an insane 7.92 FIP. In 2025, Bloss was looking to get back on track at Triple-A Buffalo for the Toronto Blue Jays and even make it back to the major leagues. However, fate intervened when he had Tommy John surgery after just six starts. Those six outings were rough to say the least; he had a 6.46 ERA in 23.2 innings, but a more respectable 4.76 FIP. His season would end with him having a 20.9% strikeout rate and a walk rate that ballooned to 11.3%. He had begun to turn a corner before his injury; in two of his last three starts, he went a total of nine innings, didn't give up an earned run, and struck out 12. What To Like Bloss has a very big pitch arsenal for a pitcher in the minor leagues. He used five pitches in 2025, with his four-seam fastball grading out as one of his best pitches. He sat just under 94 mph with the offering and averaged 18.3 inches of induced vertical break (IVB). His above-average extension of 6.9 feet also helps to boost how the fastball plays against hitters. It works to give him the appearance of a slightly faster pitch, and when coupled with his high IVB, makes his fastball a near plus offering. His other nearly elite pitch was actually his curveball, which he only used 12.4% of the time. What he was doing well with his pitches in 2025 was setting up batters with his fastball high and then getting swings and misses down in the zone from his secondaries. He had 55.6% and 73.3% whiff rates just below the zone on each side of the plate. It can also be seen in his 13.2% swinging strike rate (SwStr%), which was his highest mark since his debut in 2023. What To Work On Bloss has a daunting task ahead of him. Not only does he have to rehab and return healthy from Tommy John surgery, but he also has to get back to what made him so good in 2024. The first thing he will have to do is focus his control/command, which will help him to miss less often high and to the arm side. The vast majority of his pitches in 2025 were missed there, and it undoubtedly led to his 11.3% walk rate (41st percentile). He also needs to stay away from the middle of the zone with his pitches, where he gave up high slugging rates. He needs to work hitters down in the zone and on the edges, as his pitches give him the best success when located there. One of the easier, but most effective things he can improve on is his first pitch strike rate (F-Strike%). In 2025, his F-Strike% sat at 47%; in 2024, it was 51.2% in the minors and 60% during his three starts in the majors. What's Next? Bloss is still working his way back from Tommy John surgery and, as such, won't likely return to games until late in the season, if at all this year. He is still one of the better starting pitching prospects in the Blue Jays organization and will immediately look to regain the 2024 form that saw him shoot all the way up to the major leagues. If he can do so, he will have an upside of a poor man's SP2 but will most likely land as a back-of-the-rotation starting pitcher. He was on the cusp of being a contributor at the major league level, but he will have to get healthy and find the stuff that made him a prized piece at the 2024 trade deadline. It's an uphill battle for him, but he's got all of the talent to get there and maybe even shine while doing so. View full article

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. View full article

CURRENT W-L Records -Buffalo Bisons: 60-84 -New Hampshire Fisher Cats: Season Complete) -Vancouver Canadians: Season Complete -Dunedin Blue Jays: Season Complete -FCL Blue Jays: Season Complete -DSL Blue Jays Blue: Season Complete -DSL Blue Jays Red: Season Complete Transactions 09/19/25 - Buffalo Bisons placed SS Leo Jiménez on the 7-day injured list. 09/19/25 - Buffalo Bisons activated C Phil Clarke. 09/18/25 - Toronto Blue Jays sent LHP Ryan Borucki outright to Buffalo Bisons. Buffalo Bisons Buffalo (2), Scranton Wilkes-Barre (0) - 9/18 Box Score Thursday night was a tough fought pitcher's duel between Buffalo and Scranton Wilkes-Barre. Alek Manoah was pitching for the Bisons and had one of his better starts again. He went 4.2 innings, only allowed a single hit, gave up no runs, and struck out four. Unfortunately, there were still some growing pains, as he would walk five batters in the game. Buffalo took a one run lead in the bottom of the first inning, when RJ Schreck drew a six pitch walk and then scored on a Buddy Kennedy RBI double. In the fifth inning, rehabbing Anthony Santander launched his second home run of the series, a solo shot to left field that left the bat at 111.5 MPH. Both teams would be shut out after that, with Buffalo holding the RailRiders to just two hits in the game and only managing five hits of their own. Buffalo won this game 2-0. Anthony Santander- 1-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 HR Alek Manoah- 4.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 5 BB, 4 K Buffalo (2), Scranton/Wilkes Barre (10) - 9/19 Box Score With only a few games left in the regular season for Buffalo, they looked to wrap up the year and give the fans some good games to watch. However, Friday would not be one of the good ones. Adam Kloffenstein was on the mound for the Bisons, and he got into trouble from the start. Jorbit Vivas and J.C. Escarra singled and then both came around to score on Spencer Jones’ two-RBI double to right field. Jonatan Clase provided some fireworks in the bottom half of the inning, with a lead-off inside the park home run to right field. From there, Kloffenstein settled in and made it the next three innings without surrendering a run. In the top of the fifth, the RailRiders got to Kloffenstein again, this time it was a big inning. Jose Rojas cranked a home run to right, scoring Escarra and then Jones chased him from the game with another double. Lazaro Estrada came in for Kloffenstein and did not fare any better, giving up an RBI single to the first batter he faced and then Bryan De La Cruz muscled up for a two-run home run with an exit velocity of 107.4 mph. Escarra added another run for the RailRiders in the sixth, on his RBI double that came screaming off the bat at 108.3 mph. Josh Kasevich got a ball up in the air for a sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the inning. Unfortunately for Buffalo, Vivas and Escarra each had RBI base knocks in the eighth, as the RailRiders steamrolled Buffalo 10-2. Jonatan Clase: 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HR, 1 SB Hayden Juenger: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K Toronto Blue Jays Minor League Players of the Day Pitcher of the Period: RHP Alek Manoah (Buffalo): 4.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 5 BB, 4 K Hitter of the Period: OF Jonatan Clase (Buffalo): 3-7, 2 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K, 1 HR, 1 2B, 1 SB Prospect Summary (Last 2 Days) Toronto Blue Jays Top 20 Hitters Rank Player Team PA R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB CS 1 JoJo Parker N/A 2 Arjun Nimmala Vancouver 9 Yohendrick Pinango Buffalo 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 0 0 10 Victor Arias New Hampshire 11 RJ Schreck Buffalo 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 13 Juan Sanchez DSL Blue Jays 16 Josh Kasevich Buffalo 7 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 17 Orelvis Martinez Released 19 Charles McAdoo New Hampshire 19 Yeuni Munoz Dunedin 19 Tim Piasentin N/A 19 Blaine Bullard N/A Toronto Blue Jays Top 20 Pitchers Rank Player Team BF G GS IP H HR ER BB K 3 Trey Yesavage MLB 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 Johnny King Dunedin 5 Ricky Tiedemann Buffalo 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Gage Stanifer New Hampshire 7 Jake Bloss Buffalo 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 Landen Maroudis Dunedin 12 Brandon Barriera FCL Jays 14 Fernando Perez New Hampshire View full article