Simon Li

Blue Jays Affiliate Overview (April 14-April 15) Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Series vs. Rochester Red Wings (Washington Nationals): 1-1 Season Record: 8-9 Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats Series vs. Chesapeake Baysox (Baltimore Orioles): 2-0 Season Record: 6-4 High-A Vancouver Canadians Series vs. Spokane Indians (Colorado Rockies): 1-1 Season Record: 3-8 Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays Series vs. Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies): 1-1 Season Record: 6-5 Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Season Record: 8-9 Series Opponent: Rochester Red Wings (Washington Nationals) April 14: The Buffalo Bisons finally got to play a game in warmer weather on Tuesday, and it showed on the field. Yohendrick Pinango, Riley Tirotta, and RJ Schreck each connected for home runs. Tirotta's was the loudest and farthest of the three, coming off the bat with an exit velocity of 108.7 mph and going 413 feet over the center field wall for a solo home run. Pinango's home run extended his hit streak to six games and gave him hits in 11 of his last 12 games. He has been locked in to start the season and could be pushing for a call-up midseason if the need arises for the big league team. All of Buffalo's runs in the game came on those three blasts, which was good because as a team, they struck out 14 times. Rafael Lantigua had three of the strikeouts himself, on his way to a 1-for-5 game, which raised his batting average to .143 for the year. On the mound for the Bisons was Austin Voth, who set the tone early, going four solid innings, giving up only one run, walking zero, and striking out three. Jorge Alcala replaced Devereaux Harrison in the top of the sixth with a runner on first base. He ran into trouble and ultimately gave up a two-run double to Trey Lipscomb. Hayden Juenger came into the game in the eighth and did enough to get the two-inning save. The Bisons' 5-3 win brought their record back to .500, where they have hovered for most of the season. April 15: Wednesday was a big day for Bisons fans, as it was a Trey Yesavage day. He was on the mound for Buffalo, making his first rehab start, working his way back to the major league team. It was a rough start for him, to say the least. In the first two innings, he gave up a combined three runs: two on home runs from Dylan Crews and Andres Chaparro and the third scoring on a double play ball. He worked the third and fourth innings relatively clean, only giving up a walk and a single. His day wrapped up after getting a groundout and giving up a single in the fifth inning. For the game, he pitched 4.1 innings, surrendering seven hits and allowing three runs to score, but he did strike out five. At the plate, RJ Schreck hit his second home run in as many games, this one with an exit velocity of 97.9 mph, going 380 feet to right center. The big shot came in the top of the third inning and scored Yohendrick Pinango, tying the game up at three. Unfortunately for the Bisons, Jesse Hahn coughed up three runs in the sixth inning, and the bats couldn't answer. Buffalo fell 6-3 and yet again couldn't crack the .500 mark, as they fell a game below it with an 8-9 record for the year. Double-A New Hampshire Season Record: 6-4 Series vs. Chesapeake Baysox (Baltimore Orioles) April 14: Postponed April 15, Game 1: New Hampshire had their bats going in the first game of the doubleheader on Wednesday. Jorge Burgos got things going in the second inning with an RBI single to right field and then again in the bottom of the third inning with a bases-loaded walk. Nick Goodwin and Aaron Parker would add RBI singles to put New Hampshire up comfortably by six runs. In the fourth, Jace Bohrofen crushed a two-run home run to right field, his first of the game. Up 8-1, the Fisher Cats put together another massive inning on the season in the bottom of the sixth. Twelve runs would score, with the two big hits being a second Bohrofen homer and Sean Keys capping off the scoring barrage with a three-run blast. Seven New Hampshire hitters had multi-hit games, and Keys led the way with two doubles and the home run. Bohrofen had the two homers, and Eddie Micheletti Jr. pushed across three hits as well. The Fisher Cats won an easy one, 20-1. Game 2: The second game of the doubleheader started out much more slowly than the first one, but ended with a bang on offense as well for the Fisher Cats. New Hampshire took the lead in the first inning on a Sean Keys RBI single, bringing home Eddie Micheletti Jr. An RBI fielder's choice would put them up by two runs in the second inning, before Aron Estrada tied the game with an RBI groundout in the third and a sacrifice fly in the fifth. An RBI groundout, a bases-loaded walk, and a bases-loaded HBP put the Baysox up by three runs. In the bottom of the fifth, Keys would change that, as his big day and season continued, this time with another three-run home run to right field to tie the game. In the sixth, New Hampshire put together another big inning on offense, with a run on an error, an RBI single, and 2 RBI doubles to put them back up five runs. The Fisher Cats would hold on after a late comeback in the seventh by the Baysox, and win 10-8. High-A Vancouver Season Record: 3-8 Series vs. Spokane Indians (Colorado Rockies) April 14: There was pitching dominance from starters, with Austin Cates and Brody Brecht going head-to-head. Cates gave up an early solo homer to Kelvin Hidalgo in the bottom of the second. After that, Cates was almost unstoppable, striking out seven straight batters before he allowed a runner to score on a wild pitch, ending his day there but still tying his career high of 10 strikeouts. Brecht also looked good for Spokane, and other than a Carter Cunningham run-scoring triple, didn’t allow a run to score in three innings, while he struck out six. After Cates was taken out, Juanmi Vasquez gave up a three-run homer to Alan Espinal, to put the Canadians down four, and despite a homer from Kendry Chirinos and an RBI single from Tucker Toman, they couldn’t come back from that deficit. April 15: The Canadians' offense woke up, as they tagged five runs on Spokane’s starter Yujanyer Herrera. Carter Cunningham hit a double and was moved to third, and then scored on a pickoff play at first. Then, in the third inning with the bases loaded, Kendry Chirinos had his second homer in as many days with a grand slam to break the game open. Landen Maroudis pitched well heading into the fourth inning, but was taken out after a single and a walk for Gilberto Batista, who then allowed both inherited runners to score. Batista struggled the inning after as well, allowing four earned runs to give up the lead. The Canadians' offense could not be denied, as Alexis Hernandez took the lead right back with a two-RBI triple before scoring himself on a wild pitch. Carson Pierce stopped the bleeding for the Canadians with two more scoreless innings after replacing Batista, and the Canadians broke double digits as the Northwest League Player of the Week, Carter Cunningham, went deep for the fourth time this season for the second grand slam of the day. Maddox Latta hit a homer to cap off a 14-point explosion for the Canadians, who are hopefully turning it around. Single-A Dunedin Season Record: 6-5 Series vs. Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies): 1-1 April 14: In the first game of the series against Clearwater, the Jays trotted out Brayden Heidel, who struggled, giving up three runs while walking two batters and giving up two hits. The relief corps also did poorly after replacing him, with Reece Wissinger allowing two more runs after. Aldo Gaxiola got a run back with his second homer of the year, but the Jays continued to give up runs as Carson Myers let in another two runs. Blaine Bullard’s power has been better than advertised, as he hit his third homer of the year 104.9 mph and 423 feet, but once again the Jays kept on letting up runs as Franly Urena gave up two homers. The Jays' offense could not stop homering, as this time their No. 2 prospect JoJo Parker got his first homer of the season, and the rehabbing Adrian Pinto hit the Jays’ fourth homer of the day to bring it within two in the bottom of the night, but they could not pull out the win. April 15: The Jays pulled out a gutsy win in extras, as Troy Guthrie had his first shaky start. The Jays went down three runs by the third inning, and the Threshers' pitching held the Jays scoreless until the bottom of the sixth, with the red-hot Jaxson West knocking in the first run for the Jays on an RBI single. The Threshers immediately got that run back in the seventh on a double against Dylan Watts, as the Jays still were down three runs heading into the bottom of the eighth. After a Peyton Williams walk and a Yorman Licourt single, Eric Snow had a clutch double with one out to cut the lead to one. Mason Davenport allowed three runners in a shaky inning but ended up striking the side in the top of the ninth, allowing the Jays to tie it up on a sac fly after they loaded the bases for Williams. No other runs would score, so they would go to extras, and after a scoreless inning from Diego Dominguez, the bases were juiced for JoJo with two outs. He went up to the plate and had a nine-pitch at-bat in which he fouled off three pitches with two strikes before walking it off on an RBI walk to win the game and even up the series. Transactions 04/15/26 Toronto Blue Jays sent RHP Trey Yesavage on a rehab assignment to Buffalo Bisons. 04/15/26 C Charlie Saum assigned to New Hampshire Fisher Cats from Dunedin Blue Jays. 04/15/26 New Hampshire Fisher Cats placed C Geovanny Planchart on the 7-day injured list retroactive to April 14, 2026. 04/14/26 Buffalo Bisons transferred RHP Pat Gallagher to the Development List. 04/14/26 Toronto Blue Jays optioned 2B Tyler Fitzgerald to Buffalo Bisons. 04/14/26 C Giaconino Lasaracina assigned to DSL Blue Jays Red. 04/14/26 Vancouver Canadians sent 2B Adrian Pinto on a rehab assignment to Dunedin Blue Jays. 04/14/26 RHP Trace Baker assigned to Vancouver Canadians from Dunedin Blue Jays. 04/14/26 Vancouver Canadians activated RHP Trace Baker. 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 No. 4 No. 3: LHP Ricky Tiedemann It has been a long time since we have seen Ricky Tiedemann pitch in a game. The once top prospect for the Toronto Blue Jays has had setback after setback with an arm injury, as he last pitched on June 10, 2024. Although the talent is undeniable, the question regarding his health remains ever the issue. Tiedemann was added to the 40-man roster prior to the Rule 5 draft in order to protect him from getting selected by other teams, but that has now started the clock for him, and the Jays need to see real production out of him before he runs out of option years, The easiest way for Tiedemann to do that is to show that he’s healthy and that his stuff remains as nasty as it was pre-elbow surgery. Unfortunately for Tiedemann, every time that it has felt like he would have a chance to show his skills, he has instead faced a setback. He was unable to pitch in the Arizona Fall League, and despite a full offseason of rest, he had another setback before spring training, forcing him to miss that as well. Before the injury, Tiedemann showed two plus pitches. His fastball sat in the mid-90s and touched 98 mph, with solid ride and a lot of run. He also threw a sweeper with nasty break as his main secondary pitch, but recent reports say that he’s now throwing a different type of slider that will have more velo and have less break in order to reduce injury risk. His changeup was his best pitch out of JuCo, but it took a step back compared to his other pitches as he progressed. Tiedemann is still a physical specimen, standing 6-foot-4 and weighing over 250 lbs, and his whippy arm action creates a ton of deception out of his lower slot. He showed decent command in 2022 and 2023, but as injury concerns popped up, so did walk issues. A lack of reps will most likely cause him to struggle even more with command when he comes back, as he’ll need to regain a feel for his delivery. Tiedemann started the 2026 season on the 7-day injured list, and given his injury history, the Jays are rightfully starting him slowly. He’ll be used mostly in a bulk relief role; his potential as a strong mid-rotation pitcher is tantalizing, but the lack of a clean bill of health and all the time he's missed mean his injury risk is high. If the Jays want to prioritize winning now, they might use him as a reliever in the final stretch instead of focusing primarily on his development. If Tiedemann can stay healthy, however, he may finally showcase the potential that he flashed when he last pitched nearly two years ago. View full article

Blue Jays Affiliate Overview (April 7-April 8) Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Series vs. Syracuse Mets (New York Mets): 2-0 Season Record: 5-6 Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats Series vs. Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox): 2-0 Season Record: 3-1 High-A Vancouver Canadians Series vs. Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Giants): 0-2 Season Record: 0-5 Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays Series vs. St. Lucie Mets (New York Mets): 0-0 Season Record: 1-2 Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Season Record: 5-6 Series Opponent: Syracuse Mets (New York Mets) April 7: Postponed April 8, Game 1: In game one of the doubleheader, pitching reigned supreme, as temperatures remained frigid and not hitter-friendly. The Buffalo Bisons had Grant Rogers on the bump to start, and he worked around a few walks and a few singles to blank the Mets for four innings. In the first, he induced a groundball for a double play and then worked the edges of the zone to get Vidal Brujan to strikeout looking with two men on. In the second, he again managed to get a double play ball after allowing a walk; this time, it was on a slider down and out of the zone. He ended the third inning by striking out Ryan Clifford on a face-high fastball (89.6 mph). Despite his shorter outing, he worked on the edges of the strike zone to most of the batters and allowed the cold temperatures to aid him with weak contact. The Bisons did little with their bats as well, only collecting three hits in the game and scoring two runs. The first came on an RBI groundout from Riley Tirotta in the second, and the other scored in the third when Carlos Mendoza scored on a fielding error by the Mets’ third baseman. Buffalo was shut down for the final four innings, only getting one baserunner on a walk. After a recent demotion from the major league team, Brendon Little came into the game in relief of Rogers and had a relatively clean inning. Jackson Cluff popped up, Little walked CJ Stubbs, and then got Yonny Hernández to roll over on a sinker down and out of the zone for a double play. Chase Lee came in for Little and worked the final two innings with relative ease, only allowing two hits and striking out two. The Bisons took game one of the doubleheader 2-0. April 8, Game 2: Game two of the doubleheader was an all-around excellent game for the Bisons. They didn't get many hits, only two, but they were timely and all of the damage needed for the pitching staff to secure the win for Buffalo. Rafael Lantigua and Yohendrick Pinango both hit two-run home runs, their second of the season, to power the offense. Lantigua's home run came in the first on a changeup right down the middle. Pinango took a sweeper inside over the fence for his home run; the ball came off the bat at 97.3 mph, had a launch angle of 24 degrees, and only went 349 feet. The four runs were just enough, as the Buffalo pitchers got 15 of the 21 outs in the game via strikeouts. Yariel Rodríguez racked up six of those strikeouts, while Brendan Cellucci had five. Celluci has been really good in his two appearances this season, having pitched 3.2 innings and getting nine of those 11 outs from strikeouts. He might be someone who could come up and help the big league club if he continues to dominate like this. Buffalo grabbed the sweep of the doubleheader with a 4-3 win in game two. Double-A New Hampshire Season Record: 3-1 Series vs. Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox) April 7: The New Hampshire Fisher Cats kicked off their series against the Portland Sea Dogs in a winning fashion, but it wasn't a pretty sight for the batters getting hits. New Hampshire and Portland combined for 12 runs on just a single hit by the end of the top of the second inning. Two hit-by-pitches, a couple of walks, and a sacrifice fly put Portland up by two in the first inning. In the top of the second, the Fisher Cats got eight walks, two hit-by-pitches, a sacrifice fly, and a single. That put 10 runs on the board in the half inning, with just one hit. In the bottom of the second inning, Portland walked three more times, followed by another sacrifice fly and an RBI double. Portland would tack on three more runs, but New Hampshire pulled this one out despite the lack of hits, winning 12-7. Sean Keys continued his hot start at Double-A, going 1-for-2, with two walks, a HBP, two RBI, and two runs scored. April 8: In the Wednesday game of the series, New Hampshire smashed their way to a big win again. This time, they actually used a multitude of hits on their way to 11 runs. Geovanny Planchart drove in two runs in the second inning with an RBI single. Eddie Micheletti Jr. and Jorge Burgos followed with RBI singles as well to make it 5-0. In the third, Je'Von Ward and Planchart added RBI singles to put the Fisher Cats up seven. Jace Bohrofen had the big hit of the game, launching a home run to right field in the fifth inning, giving New Hampshire a seven-run lead again. The Fisher Cats put up three more runs later in the game and ran away with this one, 11-3. High-A Vancouver Season Record: 0-5 Series vs. Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Giants) April 7: Johnny King made his debut for the Canadians, but it was a mixed bag. There were definitely some first-start jitters for the young pitcher, as although he struck out three batters in just an inning, he was wild, giving up two walks and a hit, which led to him throwing 32 pitches in just the first inning. Because of the elevated pitch count, Holden Wilkerson relieved King in the second inning. Wilkerson pitched well, with seven strikeouts in 3.1 innings, but gave up a homer in the fifth to put the Canadians down 3-0. The Canadians brought it within one after a clutch hit from Carter Cunningham, but Eminen Flores gave up a run off a sac fly. Cunningham brought it within one again with his first homer of the season, but the Canadians couldn’t score anything else. Dub Gleed also made his debut after coming from the Marlins org and had himself two hits and a walk. April 8: Austin Cates had an uncharacteristic start for Vancouver, as he went four innings but walked four batters and allowed six hits, which resulted in three earned runs, including a solo homer to former Dodgers top prospect Diego Cartaya. Aaron Munson came on in relief and gave up only one hit and a walk in three innings of work, while striking out five batters, to keep the score close. The Canadians' offense struggled to get going, however, as they weren’t able to get a run until the bottom of the eighth inning, when a throwing error put runners on the corners and let Alexis Hernandez drive in their first run of the game to bring it within two runs. Juanmi Vasquez was able to erase a runner on a fielder’s choice into a pickoff at first, but he was unable to get out of the inning unscathed, as he struggled with his command and allowed three hits in a row to let the Emeralds score another two runs. In the ninth inning, the Canadians showed some patience, with Maddox Latta walking then advancing on a balk, before Manuel Beltre drove him in with a single. However, they could not capitalize, as after Brennan Orf walked, Kendry Chirinos, Matt Scannell, and Hernandez all struck out as the potential tying runs at the plate. Single-A Dunedin Season Record: 1-2 Series vs. St. Lucie Mets (New York Mets) April 7 - Suspended Game Jays Centre’s 18th-ranked prospect Brandon Barriera had his first start since going down with an elbow injury last season. Despite glowing reviews in the back fields, the poor conditions were hard on Barriera, as he only sat in the low 90s instead of the mid-90s as reported. His command also lagged, which happens with a lack of reps. He also didn’t generate any whiffs, but it was still nice to see him back in action after barely pitching since getting drafted. Dunedin got on the board first with Enmanuel Bonilla’s first hit in A-ball, but after Barriera gave up two runs in the bottom of the second, the game was suspended. It's set to finish on April 9. April 8 - Postponed Transactions 04/07/26 OF Matt Scannell assigned to Vancouver Canadians from Dunedin Blue Jays. 04/07/26 RHP Austin Marozas assigned to New Hampshire Fisher Cats from Vancouver Canadians. 04/07/26 SS Dub Gleed assigned to Vancouver Canadians. 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: Gage Stanifer (Dunedin, Vancouver, New Hampshire) ERA FIP xFIP IP G GS K% BB% K-BB% HR/9 SwStr% Whiff% WHIP BABIP LOB% LD% GB% FB% IFFB% HR/FB 2.86 2.70 3.11 110 16 27 35.5% 12.8% 22.7% 0.33 15.8% 36.9% 1.17 .296 74.6% 22.7% 44.9% 32.4% 16.4% 5.5% Another breakout prospect for the Jays in 2025, Gage Stanifer went from an unknown 19th-rounder to a borderline top-100 prospect. Prior to the 2025 season, Stanifer struggled in the Florida Complex League and Single A, pitching to an ERA over 6.00 across his first two professional seasons. Despite decent stuff, he walked a lot of batters. In 2025, Stanifer set a career high in innings pitched, with 110, and went from Single-A Dunedin up to Double-A New Hampshire, mainly piggybacking off of Trey Yesavage. He’s expected to start the 2026 season back at Double A. One of the big things that stood out for Stanifer from his previous seasons, compared to 2025, was that he was able to make significant gains in velocity after a very productive offseason. Stanifer went from sitting 92 mph on his four-seam fastball to 95 mph. The shape of his fastball was also still very solid, with 17.8 inches of vertical break and 12.6 inches of run, and because it was such an effective offering for him, and because he could consistently throw it for strikes, Stanifer threw it over two-thirds of the time in Dunedin. His main secondary, thrown more against righties than lefties, is a slider that gets more depth than normal, which gives it a sort of “deathball” shape (-5.1 inches of vertical break). It was extremely effective as a whiff generator, but Stanifer could sometimes lose the zone with it, too often leading to middling chase rates. His third pitch is a split-changeup that’s still a work in progress. The shape is intriguing, with 15 inches of vertical separation from his fastball and nearly 14 inches of fade, but he’s still developing a feel for it. He only throws it to lefties, making him nearly a two-pitch pitcher against each handedness of hitter. Stanifer’s arsenal and stuff propelled him to the top of the minor league leaderboards, as out of all qualified minor league pitchers, he led the pack with an absurd 35.5% K-rate, above the Cardinals’ Braden Davis and the Yankees’ Carlos Lagrange. The stuff did tick down in spring training a bit — Stanifer’s velo was not where it was in the 2025 season — leading to some poor results, but he assuaged the velo drop off with an electric Spring Breakout performance against the Phillies, striking out four batters in three scoreless innings while only giving up a single walk. The Phillies’ announcers sang his praises throughout, and his velo ticked back up; he sat 95.6 mph and touched 97.4 mph with his four-seamer. Stanifer does have some concerns going forward, however. Although he has reined in the walks, he still walks over 10% of the batters he faces, which is fringy for a starting pitcher. Scouts also have concerns about the repeatability of the delivery. Those concerns could take his outlook from a solid fourth starter to more of a back-end bullpen piece. Stanifer may also want to add a pitch or more to his arsenal to better fit the role of a starter. Although his three-pitch mix has shown effectiveness already, he may need more weapons going forward. A bridge pitch like a cutter could provide that for him. Stanifer will start the season in Double-A New Hampshire and will be challenged against upper-level hitters again. The Jays currently have a crowded rotation, but there’s the slightest chance that Stanifer could make his MLB debut this season as a reliever if he progresses well and the Jays need some extra firepower in the ‘pen. 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: OF Yohendrick Pinango (New Hampshire, Buffalo) PA H 2B 3B HR OPS wRC+ wOBA K% BB% SwStr% Whiff% PULL% CENT% OPPO% LD% GB% FB% IFFB% SB CS SB% 90th EV 533 117 29 2 15 .790 122 .362 20.1% 13.1% 7.5% 20.2% 42.3% 23.1% 34.6% 23.0% 24.7% 34.3% 28.0% 6 0 100% 108.8 Yohendrick Pinango had a breakout season with the Jays in 2025, just after getting acquired from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Nate Pearson at the 2024 trade deadline. Pinango was always and still is a data darling, but he finally parlayed that into real-life results this past season. He was Rule 5 eligible this offseason, and the Jays left him unprotected, to the dismay of many prospect watchers and analysts, but he was not selected, and the Jays subsequently re-signed him to a minor league contract. The outfielder was merely an afterthought in the roller coaster trade deadline for the Jays in 2024, as they made a flurry of trades, and he struggled to perform in his first stint in the Jays organization. Pinango got out of the gates hot in 2025, however, torching Double-A New Hampshire in his second go-around there. In 47 games and 192 plate appearances, Pinango scorched for a 169 wRC+, slashing .298/.406/.522. He was promoted to Triple-A Buffalo and fell back down to earth, hitting just under the league average; however, that doesn’t tell the whole story. Despite Pinango’s performance dropping off after reaching Triple A, the underlying metrics still supported stronger results from him going forward. Pinango paired strong contact metrics (87.4% zone-contact rate, 20.2% whiff rate) with consistent hard contact due to his fast bat speed (91.9 mph average exit velocity, 108.8 mph 90th percentile exit velocity). He is also disciplined, although a bit passive, with a 39.2% swing rate and just a 25.6% chase rate. The issue with his offensive profile is his launch angles. When Pinango is making the most impact on the ball, his launch angles are suboptimal, resulting in lower liners or grounders instead of balls lifted in the air. He’s able to spray the ball with his current launch angles, being adept at hitting the ball the other way. Still, there is a ton of power for Pinango to unlock if he can start lifting the ball consistently. If he can tap into that, he could have 20-plus home run power. Defensively and on the basepaths, Pinango is quite limited. He did steal 100% of the bags that he attempted in 2025, but he runs poorly, which carries over to his defense. His already limited defensive profile due to his build and height forces him to play corner outfield, and with his below-average speed, he’s below average there as well. That limits his floor and ceiling, as his bat is the only carrying tool for Pinango. The Jays are still quite loaded in the outfield, with Daulton Varsho, George Springer, Jesús Sánchez, Myles Straw, Nathan Lukes, RJ Schreck, and Jonatan Clase all potentially being ahead of Pinango on the depth chart. When Anthony Santander gets healthy, he’ll also be in the mix. Pinango's path forward to the major leagues will need to come off of an excellent second stint in Triple A, where he will hope to show that his underlying batted ball data can turn into real production. View full article

It's an exciting time around baseball for prospect watchers and fans looking towards the future, as MLB's Spring Breakout is coming soon, with top prospects from every team suiting up and putting on a showcase. The Blue Jays' prospects will face the Phillies' prospects on Saturday, March 21 at 1:05 p.m. E.T., on the road in Clearwater at BayCare Ballpark. Here is the Blue Jays' 2026 Spring Breakout roster: Pitchers RHP Austin Cates LHP Javen Coleman RHP Daniel Guerra LHP Adam Macko RHP Landen Maroudis RHP Carson Messina RHP Nolan Perry RHP Grant Rogers RHP Gage Stanifer Catchers Edward Duran Aaron Parker Brandon Valenzuela Infielders 3B Cutter Coffey SS Josh Kasevich 3B/1B Sean Keys 3B/1B Charles McAdoo SS Arjun Nimmala SS JoJo Parker 3B Tim Piasentin SS Josh Rivera 3B Juan Sanchez Outfielders Jace Bohrofen Blaine Bullard Jake Casey Eddie Micheletti Jr. Yohendrick Pinango RJ Schreck And here are some key things to pay attention to during the game: Debuts for Some High-Profile 2025 Draftees JoJo Parker was the Jays’ first-round pick, as they used the eighth overall pick on him, but he has yet to make his professional debut. In spring training, he was in the minor league camp, which hid him from the general public. This will be the first time that Jays fans will get to see him live on a broadcast. Parker is still only 19, and despite the advanced hit tool, this will be his first look at professional pitching in a game setting. High schoolers Tim Piasentin, out of Alberta, and Blaine Bullard are also making their debuts in this Spring Breakout game. They’re definitely more raw than Parker is, but the Jays shelled out big bonuses for both of them of $747,500 and $1,697,500, respectively. Juan Sanchez wasn’t drafted in 2025, but was signed out of international amateur free agency and had a breakout 2025 in the Dominican Summer League. This will be his first time in action with Statcast data publicly available, and hopefully, fans will get to see his plus power and advanced physicality. Return of the Injured Players Nolan Perry was a 12th-round pick in the 2022 draft for the Blue Jays, and in his age-20 season with the Dunedin Blue Jays, he pitched to a 2.93 ERA in 14 starts with a 27.5% K-rate, although he walked batters 18.8% of the time. Despite his lack of command, he was positioned for a breakout before heading to the injured list due to Tommy John surgery, making him miss all of the 2025 season. This will be his first time pitching in a game since he had the surgery, and it will be nice to see him back in action. Carson Messina is the brother of Rockies prospect Cole Messina, and unlike his brother, he pitches instead of catching. Signed out of high school for a $550,000 bonus, he was shelved for the 2025 season with elbow inflammation, but is back and throwing again. If he gets into this game, we’ll get to see him in pro action for the first time since his one appearance in the Complex League in 2025. He reportedly hit triple digits in that appearance, and hopefully, he’s healthy enough to do so again. Landen Maroudis had a lost 2025 season after returning from Tommy John surgery, showing reduced stuff, velocity and command. Reportedly, he’s back sitting where he was in the first Spring Breakout game: the mid 90s. If Maroudis has returned to his pre-Tommy John form, he’ll return as a breakout candidate for the Blue Jays. The 2027 Spring Breakout event will be modified to be a tournament-style bracket, but in 2026, it will just be a singular exhibition game. This will mean that some players won't be able to get in the game, due to the limited number of innings and teams wanting to protect the health of their prospects. Still, this is a great day for all prospect watchers across every organization and should provide great insight into the future of the Blue Jays. View full article

There are some guys that I would have ranked over these three that have a ton of promise as well. The depth is definitely lacking a bit, mostly due to us selling every deadline, but there are still 10+ prospects that could have been considered for the last 3 slots.

The Toronto Blue Jays have had some of the strongest catching tandems in the sport over the past decade, as they have the third-highest fWAR amongst catchers since the 2015 MLB season. They’ve now locked up their star catcher Alejandro Kirk for the foreseeable future, and with some recent trades and development amongst prospects, the Jays should be set for at least the next few years. Toronto Blue Jays Catchers at a Glance Starter: Alejandro Kirk Backup: Tyler Heineman Depth: CJ Stubbs, Robert Brooks, Brandon Valenzuela, Geovanny Planchart Prospects: Valenzuela, Edward Duran, Juan Caricote, Franklin Rojas, Aaron Parker Blue Jays C fWAR rank in 2025: 2nd out of 30 Blue Jays C FGDC Projection for 2026: 2nd out of 30 The Good Alejandro Kirk is at minimum a top-five catcher in the sport, but has an argument to be the second best. The stocky catcher once again showed elite glovework in 2025, trailing only Patrick Bailey in Framing Run Value, and got snubbed from winning his first Gold Glove. Kirk also put it together once again on the offensive end, slashing .282/.348/.421 for a 116 wRC+, which was good for fifth overall among qualified primary catchers. Kirk’s underlying metrics point to even more offensive excellence, as the catcher paired a 91st-percentile hard-hit rate with a diminutive whiff rate, and the projections think that he will either repeat or exceed his last season’s performance. Adding on to the brilliance of Alejandro Kirk, the magician and super-sub Tyler Heineman was incredible in 2025 as well, putting up 2.1 fWAR off the bench. His offensive performance was buoyed by an unsustainable BABIP of .347, but Heiney’s defensive profile makes him a valuable second-string catcher even without carrying a 120 wRC+. Heineman also had a +8 Fielding Run Value, which helped the Blue Jays lead the league in defensive value from the catcher position last season. He is unlikely to come near his offensive production from the 2025 season, but will be a stable presence whenever Kirk needs to sit. The Jays made some high-profile moves around the trade deadline last year to shore up their bullpen, but a trade that seemed to sneak under the radar was their acquisition of Brandon Valenzuela from the Padres in exchange for Will Wagner. Heralded for his defensive chops, Valenzuela showed a plus arm last season, with 33 runners caught stealing in the minors. The Jays might have also found something offensively, as in a tiny sample size in spring training (as of March 13), Valenzuela has started off scorching, making consistent and loud contact. Graphic via @TJStats Lastly, the Jays are lacking a little at the catcher position in the minors, but they just gave out their biggest international amateur free agency signing bonus of the period to a Venezuelan catcher named Juan Caricote. Edward Duran showed flashes in A-ball in 2025 and should be pushing to join the 40-man roster after a good 2026 season, while Franklin Rojas has been one of the better hitters in the Dominican Summer League for the Blue Jays. The Bad With Kirk signed through the 2030 season, the Jays have no pressing need for another starting-caliber catching prospect in their system. Still, there is a glaring talent gap between Kirk and the prospects in the organization. The top catching prospects for the Jays all profile more as backup catchers or third-stringers, and although the Jays have shown a penchant for developing starting catchers (Gabriel Moreno, Danny Jansen and Kirk in recent years), they could be in a tough spot if Kirk is hurt for an extended amount of time. The Jays also lack depth options with MLB experience like they had last season, with Ali Sánchez and Christian Bethancourt having left the org. Instead, Valenzuela will most likely be the main third-string catcher, and he has yet to play an MLB game. If he isn’t available, the next catcher is CJ Stubbs, who has a singular game with the Nationals under his belt. After that, Robert Brooks and recent minor league signing Geovanny Planchart could see game time if worse comes to worst. These are all nitpicky, however, as things will have to go really wrong for these issues to rear their ugly heads, and the Jays value the catcher position heavily, which leads me to believe that these issues can be resolved. The Bottom Line Alejandro Kirk has reclaimed his spot as one of the best catchers in the game, and the Jays’ success at catcher will reflect mostly on his performance. With Bo Bichette leaving the organization, Kirk becomes the Jays’ second most important position player for the foreseeable future, and at his peak, he is one of the best in the game. The depth charts do look a little light without him, and Heineman will not repeat the performance of his previous season, but Toronto still has a solid contingent of defensively capable catchers whenever Kirk needs a rest. Hopefully, the Jays will develop some of their younger catching prospects to be ready when Kirk is a free agent after 2030, but for now, they’re in a great spot. View full article

The tools do not necessarily match the results so people are mixed on how high his ceiling can be. He's probably most suited to be a 4th outfielder type/platoon bat. There's a disconnect between the scouts/analysts essentially. I personally had him closer to the top 10, but I can see the argument for him being lower than that.

The Toronto Blue Jays had a great year on the farm in 2025, and although there were some key subtractions as they added at the deadline to compete for the division, the minor league system is in a stronger place than it was this same time last year. Here are the prospects ranked 16th to 20th in the Jays organization, as voted on by JaysCentre writers. 20. RHP Landen Maroudis (FCL, Dunedin Blue Jays) ERA FIP xFIP IP G GS K% BB% K-BB% HR/9 SwStr% Whiff% WHIP BABIP LOB% LD% GB% FB% IFFB% HR/FB 6.55 6.11 6.88 45.1 18 17 15.7% 20.8% -5.1% 0.2 10.1% 24.9% 1.79 .282 63.3% 14.6% 46.3% 39.% 12.5% 2.1% Landen Maroudis was a name to watch at the beginning of the 2024 season. He had a promising showing in an appearance in the MLB Spring Breakout game and pitched in just three games in Single-A Dunedin before heading to the injured list with an elbow injury. After more than a year of rehab and recovery, Maroudis was back pitching, but things had changed significantly. His velocity on his fastball, once sitting at 94 mph, only sat at 90 mph. The pitch dropped from 13 inches of vertical break down to 11, but did gain four inches of run. His control disappeared, as he walked more batters than he struck out and had a strike rate of just 51.8%. Maroudis will only be 21 years old in the 2026 season, and despite the setback to his health, pitch quality, velocity, and command, there’s practically nowhere for him to go but up. With a full offseason not spent rehabbing, there’s reason to believe that he’ll rediscover the velocity that he had prior to the elbow surgery, and that he’ll find some semblance of command as well. His pitches looked mediocre due to the lack of velocity, but when he was able to find the zone, Single-A hitters didn’t make great contact, and his curveball had a whiff rate of over 40%. Maroudis’ future looks much shakier than ever before, but the athleticism and potential from when the Jays gave him a $1.5 million signing bonus in 2023 can still prevail if he returns to form. Maroudis will get another chance to pitch in Dunedin this season, and reportedly, his velocity is back up to the 93-95 mph range. 19. OF Yeuni Munoz (FCL, Dunedin Blue Jays) PA H 2B 3B HR OPS wRC+ wOBA K% BB% SwStr% Whiff% PULL% CENT% OPPO% LD% GB% FB% IFFB% SB CS SB% 90th EV 127 28 8 0 6 .809 125 .380 29.9% 9.4% 16.6% 33.6% 56.9% 25.0% 18.1% 18.6% 50.0% 31.4% 27.3% 2 1 66.67% 107.1 Yeuni Munoz was signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2021, and although he hit decently in the Dominican Summer League as a 17-year-old, he hasn’t been able to put together a season worth remembering since, as he has struggled with inconsistency and injuries. However, as a 21-year-old in his second trip to Single-A, he really found his footing out of the gate, hitting .323/.408/.645 for a 186 wRC+ in April, with extremely strong batted ball data to back up the performance. He was consistently at the top of the exit velocity leaderboards after every game. Unfortunately for Munoz, he hurt his knee, which sidelined him until August. He struggled to make contact as effectively upon his return, resulting in a quieter end to his season. Yet, Munoz showed improved contact metrics; his 67.8% contact rate was still poor, but a 10% increase from his 2024 season. His power was on display as well, with a max exit velocity of 112.2 mph, a 107.1 mph 90th percentile exit velocity, and a 92.4 mph average exit velocity. Munoz was seemingly on the pathway to being a breakout prospect for the Jays, but the expectations have dampened due to his inability to stay healthy. He will project to have plus power given his strong exit velocities as a 21-year-old, but he’s already only a corner outfielder at this stage of his career, and he isn’t much of a runner with his hulking frame, meaning that the majority of his value will have to come from his bat. His strikeout issues are still a large concern, as he ran nearly a 30% K rate even with improved contact metrics. If Munoz can make just enough contact, he has a path to being a platoon hitter with power; he’ll just need to stay healthy enough to get enough reps to prove it. 18. LHP Brandon Barriera (FCL) ERA FIP xFIP IP G GS K% BB% K-BB% HR/9 SwStr% Whiff% WHIP BABIP LOB% LD% GB% FB% IFFB% HR/FB 14.29 6.21 6.64 5.2 5 5 21.4% 28.6% -7.10% 0.0 15.9% N/A 1.94 0.231 25.0% 10.0% 60.0% 30.0% 33.3% 0.0% Brandon Barriera has been snake-bitten ever since he was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays back in 2022 as their first-round pick. He dealt with multiple arm injuries in his first professional season and had issues with his conditioning. He then had elbow surgery in 2024 after making just one start, leading to another injury-plagued season. Despite the injuries, reports came out on Barriera looking really good on the backfields, showing much improved stuff. He returned to pitching in the Florida Complex League, where he only pitched five and a third of an inning, with extremely wild command, walking nearly 30% of the batters that he faced. Adding on to his injury woes, he then fractured his elbow, putting him on the injured list for the rest of the season. Despite the poor results, and another season cut short by injury, Barriera’s fastball reached 99 mph, and his cutter and slider both looked great despite the wildness. Barriera has a ton of reliever risk, given his prolonged injury history and inability to throw strikes, and his future outlook will highly depend on if he can stay on the field or not. The Jays will take it slow with him to ensure that he can stay healthy. If he can figure out a consistent release point that allows him to throw strikes, he’ll jump up this list. 17. 1B/3B Sean Keys (Vancouver Canadians) PA H 2B 3B HR OPS wRC+ wOBA K% BB% SwStr% Whiff% PULL% CENT% OPPO% LD% GB% FB% IFFB% SB CS SB% 90th EV 529 92 22 1 19 .773 119 .360 22.1% 16.3% 8.4% 27.4% 53.4% 22.0% 24.6% 19.7% 38.8% 41.4% 25.8% 8 1 88.9% 102.7 Sean Keys was selected in the fourth round of the 2024 draft by the Blue Jays out of Bucknell. In his first stint in Single-A Dunedin, he showed an advanced approach, with a 134 wRC+ in 98 plate appearances. The Jays then sent him up to Vancouver the following year, where Keys performed solidly but didn’t have numbers that jumped off the page, hitting .217/.365/.408 for a 119 wRC+ in 529 plate appearances. Vancouver is one of the toughest parks in which to hit in the minor leagues, however, and Keys showed underlying metrics that signified he had a much better season than his results showed, with strong barrel rates and plate discipline. Keys is strong bodied, standing 6-foot-2 and weighing 232 pounds, and when he made contact, he had strong exit velocities that translated to above-average raw power, as he was adept at turning on pitches at optimal launch angles, leading to a Vancouver Canadians record 19 homers in a single season. Defensively, Keys is most suited to first base. Although he has the arm for third, the range can be a little stretched thin at the position. He’s still new at first, and it shows a bit, but he’s a smart player and has taken to it pretty well. His glove is secondary to his bat, which is where he will derive most, if not all of his value. He’ll most likely get a chance to see more advanced pitching soon, as he’s on track to start the season off with Double-A New Hampshire. 16. OF RJ Schreck (New Hampshire FisherCats, Buffalo Bisons) PA H 2B 3B HR OPS wRC+ wOBA K% BB% SwStr% Whiff% PULL% CENT% OPPO% LD% GB% FB% IFFB% SB CS SB% 90th EV 427 85 14 2 18 .854 143 .393 21.3% 16.4% 8.2% 22.1% 55.4% 21.1% 23.5% 21.9% 35.6% 42.5% 31.4% 9 1 90.0% 103.3 RJ Schreck was acquired from the Seattle Mariners at the 2024 trade deadline for the old vet Justin Turner after breaking out with their High-A team. He continued that momentum with the Jays organization, with a strong finish to the year at Double-A for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, slashing .255/.377/.521 in 114 plate appearances. He was even better in 2025, continuing his success with a .266/.396/.518 slash line before getting promoted to Triple-A Buffalo. Schreck did deal with an injury after his promotion to Buffalo but still performed well after coming back. He capped off his season in Triple-A with a 129 wRC+. Schreck’s offensive production is backed by solid swing decisions that may be a little passive, with a 22.3% chase rate as well as an innate ability to barrel the ball in the air to the pull side. His raw exit velocities do not jump off the page, and although he’s stronger than he was just a few years ago, his average exit velocities were below average in Triple-A. His max and 90th percentile exit velocities were fringe-average as well, although he did set a new career high max velocity at 111.9 mph in Double-A. Although the data looks very good for Schreck, there are some concerns with his swing being a little too long and stiff to match up to higher velocities. The Jays have found success with similar style hitters to Schreck — older prospects carried by a strong approach more than significant tools like Davis Schneider and Spencer Horwitz —which gives him a solid floor as a platoon bat/fourth outfielder, but the ceiling may also be limited in the same vein. Defensively, Schreck is more suited to the corners, especially as an average runner, but the Jays like to throw him out in center field anyway. There’s a bit of a crowded outfield situation, even with the injury to Anthony Santander, as the Jays just acquired Jesús Sánchez, but there’s definitely a path forward for Schreck as a fourth outfielder. Schreck will be a part of Team Israel in the 2026 WBC, which will give him a chance to face MLB-level talent. View full article

Silvano Hechavarria was an overshadowed part of the Blue Jays' excellent 2025 season on the pitching end, as the Cuban righty put together a great campaign in his first year stateside. The 6-foot-4 righty was a man among boys, as he pitched to a 2.28 ERA/3.55 FIP with a 17.1% K-BB% in 86 2/3 innings pitched. Hechavarria utilized a strong three-pitch mix in 2025, with his four-seam fastball sitting 92-95 and touching 97 with average carry and strong arm-side run. His main secondary was his cut slider that sat in the upper 80s with strong whiff rates; hitters failed to make solid contact on the pitch. His third offering, deployed more to lefties, was a changeup with around nine inches of vertical separation from his fastball, sitting in the mid-80s. The stuff did not jump off the page despite the solid velocity, but it was able to play up given Hechavarria’s advanced command for his age. Graphic via @TJstats Here are Silvano’s three main pitches by location in 2025 in Single-A Dunedin. He was able to land his changeup in a really nice spot for lefties to miss, his sliders were consistently on the edge of the zone, and he was able to consistently land his four-seam fastball for strikes at the top of the zone. The results were there, with Hechavarria having only a 5.9% walk rate in Dunedin, as lower-level hitters were unable to do much with his pitches at those locations. Locations for Hechavarria's changeup, four-seam fastball, and slider/cutter, respectively. Hechavarria still has some developing to do, as although he was able to dominate lower-minors hitters, the arsenal may not be as effective against more advanced hitters, who will be less likely to chase pitches even with good location. Hechavarria’s command will still allow his pitches to play up, but without a true standout pitch, he may not have the highest upside, barring some advancement to the velocity or shape of his current arsenal. For now, the odds are more likely that he’ll be a solid fifth starter in the majors. The Jays are good at building strength, and despite Hechavarria already being 6-foot-4 and over 200 lbs, he still could add strength to his frame. Hechavarria is only turning 23 in March, and with his advanced command for his age and average stuff, there is some projection to dream on as he advances to the upper minors, where he could start the 2026 season. Hechavarria has been named a potential Blue Jays breakout prospect by Geoff Pontes from Baseball America, and in FanGraphs’ latest "Picks to Click" article, an anonymous scout named Hechavarria as a candidate to become a top-100 overall prospect in 2027. If he can prove that he can continue to get hitters out when he reaches the upper minors, he may very well fulfill that lofty evaluation. View full article

Leo Jiménez has been a prospect in the Blue Jays system for a while now. Acquired as a teenager out of Panama in international amateur free agency, Jiménez has been in the organization for over six years. Despite missing time due to injury and the COVID year, Jiménez steadily climbed his way up the org, with strong on-base skills while playing a solid shortstop. That culminated in a “breakout” 2024, when Bo Bichette missed time due to injuries. Jiménez appeared in 63 games and took 210 PA; he was a league-average hitter (101 wRC+) and played solid defense at second base and shortstop. 2025 was a setback, however, for Jiménez, as although he was granted an additional option year due to his previous injury history, he struggled once again to stay healthy, only playing a combined 44 games across the major and minor leagues. In a short cup of coffee with the Jays, Jiménez slashed .069/.129/.172 for a -19 wRC+. It wasn’t all negatives, however, as when Jiménez was healthy and playing in Triple-A Buffalo, he showcased why the Jays have kept him around over all these years, with strong bat-to-ball skills with an 88.6% zone contact rate, as well as strong average exit velocities and hard hit numbers. He is mostly a line drive and groundball hitter, and instead of pulling the ball in the air, he sprays it to all fields instead, limiting his power production. Jiménez also showed solid plate discipline, leading to a high walk rate of 15.5%, but was passive, only swinging 39.3% of the time. He has a reputation as a ball magnet as well, as he’s had multiple seasons of 20+ hit by pitches, which adds to his on-base percentage. Jiménez's Triple-A season seems more representative of his abilities as a hitter, and despite his poor results in MLB in 2025, he still showed a knack for squaring up the ball. The biggest question for Jiménez is if he can break camp with Toronto, as he’s out of options now. The Jays' starting infield is already set, with Andrés Giménez at shortstop, Ernie Clement manning second base, and a platoon of Kazuma Okamoto and Addison Barger at third, leaving little room for Jiménez. However, with Clement thrust into a starting role, due to Bichette's departure and Giménez becoming the full-time shortstop, there is room for a backup middle infielder, and Jiménez is primed to take over. Toronto's recent trade for Jesús Sánchez, however, means another roster spot is locked in, as Sánchez is also out of options and will need to be on the MLB roster. Right now, FanGraphs' RosterResource has these position players projected to be on the MLB roster: C: Alejandro Kirk, Tyler Heineman INF: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Kazuma Okamoto, Ernie Clement, Andrés Giménez, Addison Barger OF: Nathan Lukes, Davis Schneider, George Springer, Daulton Varsho, Myles Straw, Jesús Sánchez Unfortunately for Jiménez, that is 13 hitters. Although the Jays could choose to roster only 12 pitchers and add an extra hitter, with the strenuous MLB season, teams usually roster the maximum number of pitchers. The outfield situation for the Jays is a little crowded, however. Even if Springer primarily plays DH while Anthony Santander is out for five to six months, there are five primary outfielders for three spots, in addition to Barger, who will move back and forth between third base and right field. The Jays could afford to option an outfielder so that they could bolster their infield depth. Lukes and Schneider both have at least one option remaining, as does Barger. Optioning one of them or trading one away could allow Clement to shift over to shortstop against tough lefties, while the righty-batting Jiménez steps in for the lefty-batting Giménez in the lineup. If Leo Jiménez cannot make the Opening Day roster, the Jays will be forced to make a similar decision to the one they made a few years ago with Otto Lopez, another right-handed hitting infielder who was granted an extra option year. Lopez has turned out to be a solid second division regular with the Marlins after being traded to the Giants and then DFA’d by San Francisco before Miami picked him up. Lopez has now had two straight seasons with over 2.0 fWAR for the Marlins, and Jiménez has the capability to be a similar player. There’s a spot on the Blue Jays roster for a right-handed hitting utility player; Jiménez just needs to take it. View full article

Trey Yesavage took the world by storm in 2025 with his high release point that led to a high rising fastball and a devastating splitter to pair alongside it. His third pitch is a harder gyro slider that sits in between the velo of his fastball and splitter, which forces hitters to guess when a pitch will be lower in the zone. The quirk of Yesavage’s arsenal is that none of his pitches break to the glove side, largely due to his release point and delivery, which make him such a nightmare for hitters to face. That does raise a concern, however, as if hitters know which direction his pitches are always going to move, will they figure him out faster than a pitcher with a more traditional four-pitch mix with pitches that break in both directions? And even if Yesavage remains effective with his current style of pitching, will he be able to stave off the three times through the order effect with just three pitches, or will he be able to get outs when one of his pitches isn’t 'on' on a certain day? Will he be able to maintain effectiveness over 30-ish starts, when division rivals are likely to see him multiple times? Graphic via @TJStats Meet the ‘new’ pitch, which is really an old pitch. Yesavage threw a low-80s 12-6 curveball in college, but since his three main pitches were so polished, it was a clear fourth pitch for him. Shape-wise, the curveball had little depth, with -7 inches of induced vertical break, and once again broke to the arm side. Baseball America gave the pitch a 45 FV grade, and with his limited usage of it in college, Yesavage wasn’t able to get a good enough feel for it to throw it in professional baseball. However, this didn’t mean that he completely left the curveball to rot. In August 2024, Mitch Bannon (now the Blue Jays beat reporter for The Athletic) reported that Yesavage was tinkering with a cutter and a curveball that he wanted to add prior to the 2025 season. This offseason, Yesavage has done more of the same, talking about adding a new pitch. Specifically, he mentioned bringing the curveball back to his arsenal in a recent interview with Jays reporters. The 22-year-old said that he “would love something that moves glove side.” So, what would this curveball look like for Yesavage? Given the uniqueness of his release point, it’s difficult to imagine how exactly a curve would look shape-wise, but a key to it being an effective pitch for Yesavage will be depth and movement to the glove side. Yesavage’s delivery allows him to be very behind the baseball when he throws his fastball, leading to the fifth highest active spin for four-seamers in 2025. This, however, creates an issue when he’s throwing his breaking balls, as not having cut-ride characteristics makes it difficult for Yesavage to supinate and get the glove side movement that pitchers like Justin Verlander and Nick Pivetta do. Both are high arm angle pitchers with high release points. Verlander and Pivetta were the only two pitchers in 2025 with an average release height of at least 6.8 feet that threw at least 100 curveballs at that release height, but Yesavage would find it difficult to replicate the shape of their breaking balls due to how efficient his four-seamer is. Verlander and Pivetta both have curveballs with at least 7 inches of glove side movement as well as over -12 inches of induced vertical break, which is a different beast compared to Yesavage's college curveball shape. There is a pitcher who has a similar profile to Yesavage, with a curveball that might be more similar to one Yesavage should be able to throw, and that is Bradley Blalock, recently traded from the Rockies to the Marlins. Another north-south pitcher with a high arm angle, Blalock has seen tough results due to pitching in Colorado. Yet, similar to Yesavage, he has > 99% active spin on his four-seamer, making it more difficult to supinate and get significant glove-side break. Blalock’s shapes were depressed by pitching in Coors, but on the road, he was able to get 1.4 inches of glove side movement and -11.3 inches of vertical break in 2025. Similar to Yesavage's in college, Blalock’s curveball sat in the low 80s as well. It’s weird looking at a pitcher with a 9.31 ERA and 7.31 FIP as someone Yesavage should replicate, but given the limitations of Yesavage's delivery, it’s difficult to find a shape that would work for him without changing what he’s best at. Here’s how his movement profile will look with a curveball similar to Blalock’s: Adding a curveball with this shape will help Yesavage perform much better against right-handed hitters. Although his slider and splitter were both effective, he performed much better against lefties than righties in 2025, with a 20.0 K-BB% against lefties compared to just a 7.4 K-BB% against same-handed hitters. A curveball that moves even slightly to the glove side will prevent hitters from knowing that all his pitches move to the arm side, and it should add an extra split-second to their decision-making process. Although Yesavage's funky delivery should help suppress familiarity, adding a fourth solid pitch will also make third time through the order penalties less severe and give him more options in pitch sequencing. The curveball is something that Yesavage has been tinkering with for years, however, and even if he can get its shape to a point where it will enhance his arsenal, he’ll still have to learn how to command it and get a feel for it. If he’s able to do that successfully, he'll have added another weapon to a devastating arsenal. View full article

Josh Kasevich was seemingly the next man up at the end of the 2024 MiLB season. He capped off a strong campaign with a 120 wRC+ in 41 games and 173 plate appearances at Triple A, showing the strong contact skills that he was known for while playing solid defense around the diamond. Although there were a few infielders ahead of him on the depth chart, especially after the trade for Andrés Giménez, Kasevich was seen as an MLB-ready prospect who was just knocking on the doors for a major league spot and a top-10 Jays Centre prospect. That went out the window early in spring training 2025. Although Kasevich appeared in a handful of games, he had a stress reaction in his back that made him miss the majority of the MiLB season. Kasevich was able to return to game action in May before aggravating his wrist and going down for another few months. When he did return to Buffalo, he did not perform well. In 29 games, he slashed just .173/.272/.184 for a 34 wRC+. In the Arizona Fall League, he also struggled in a high-offense environment, producing a .419 OBP but not getting a single extra-base hit. In that time, Ernie Clement established himself as what many hoped Kasevich would turn out to be: an elite defender at second and third base with elite contact skills. Although Bo Bichette has not re-signed with the Jays yet, they still have made some significant additions that may prevent Kasevich from making his MLB debut in 2026, with the addition of Kazuma Okamoto, an infielder who mans the corners but also adds another talented player ahead of Kasevich on the depth charts. Here are depth charts for the Blue Jays in 2026 at Kasevich’s best positions: 2B 3B SS Andrés Giménez Addison Barger Bo Bichette* Ernie Clement Kazuma Okamoto Andrés Giménez Davis Schneider Ernie Clement Ernie Clement Leo Jiménez Josh Kasevich Leo Jiménez (Out of Options) Josh Kasevich Note: Bo Bichette has not signed with a team yet and is included in case he signs with the Blue Jays before spring training. Bichette and Giménez may also swap positions if Bichette re-signs. Bichette has not signed with a team yet, and I have included him in case he does sign with the Jays before spring training starts. Bichette and Giménez may also swap positions if he does re-sign with the Blue Jays. As you can see, not only is Kasevich blocked at multiple key positions, but also, the players above him all share the same-handedness with him. There are a few factors that may allow for some playing time to creep in, however. If Bichette does not return to the Blue Jays, that allows Kasevich to bump up a spot on the depth charts. Leo Jiménez is Kasevich’s main competition for the “third” shortstop role on the team, and despite having an injury-plagued 2025 as well, with a poor showing in a small cup of coffee in the majors, Jiménez has also had a stretch in the majors with average offensive production. However, he is out of options, and as a result, he will need to be DFA’d or traded if he does not make the Opening Day roster. Another wrinkle is Davis Schneider’s playing time after the Jays signed Kazuma Okamoto. The Jays have described Okamoto as a super-utility player, according to Bob Nightengale, and although he mainly played the hot corner in Japan, he also gained outfield experience with the Yomiuri Giants. This addition could greatly reduce Schneider’s playing time, and the Jays may want to turn to a more defensively capable 13th man to play the infield instead of Schneider. Kasevich was described as the best defensive infielder in the Blue Jays' minor league system by Baseball America in 2025. One surprise that happened earlier in the offseason was the Jays' decision not to protect Kasevich before the Rule 5 Draft by adding him to the 40-man roster. Typically, defensively capable players are highly sought after by rebuilding teams in the Rule 5. Yet, Kasevich's offensive struggles and injuries prevented him from getting selected. This means that he will have all his options available when he does come up, which gives him time to rebuild his value as one of the Jays’ top prospects. However, not being added to the 40-man roster will also make it more difficult for him to get called up, unless significant injuries or trades clear space for him. So, he’ll face an uphill battle in a fight for playing time, especially if the Jays sign one of the remaining star position players on the market, Kyle Tucker or Bichette. Still, this year could be the one in which Kasevich breaks the major league roster and produces. As a high-contact, versatile infielder, he’ll fit right into the Blue Jays lineup and core. View full article