2025 Minor League/Prospects Discussion Thread

[bartron_44]

I dont want to see them go “all in” or anything and empty the thin farm system for rentals, but if they can use the system to acquire more quality talent locked up for multiple seasons… I wouldnt have an issue with it. Or using a couple prospects to help the bullpen survive the playoff push would be ok as well.

Or, they could just add by subtraction and just deal Gimenez and Santander for a bag of baseballs to open the roster/lineup spots for the people actually producing…. Assuming Schneider doesn’t have the stones to move them both to the bench roles they’ve earned until needed again.

[dagger]

I dont want to see them go “all in” or anything and empty the thin farm system for rentals, but if they can use the system to acquire more quality talent locked up for multiple seasons… I wouldnt have an issue with it. Or using a couple prospects to help the bullpen survive the playoff push would be ok as well.

Or, they could just add by subtraction and just deal Gimenez and Santander for a bag of baseballs to open the roster/lineup spots for the people actually producing…. Assuming Schneider doesn’t have the stones to move them both to the bench roles they’ve earned until needed again.

If Manoah shows well in his rehab, I don't think they will aggressively pursue a starter, and they have minor league position players that haven't a pathway to the majors but might be enough to get another mid-leverage rental reliever. The best pitching talent building up in the system is only worth trading for a player in his prime with control. But a first baseman like Rainer Nunez or the multi-positional Jackson Hornung might intrigue another team and provide some weight to a package. Hornung tore up High A, and is of to a glowing start in AA.


https://www.milb.com/player/jackson-hornung-814408?stats=career-r-fielding-minors&year=2025

I'm of the view that the Jays need to hang on to their best starters in the system to ensure one of them can take Bassitt's place, then have one or two ready for 2027 at the latest to take Gausman's place and potentially nose out others. This is a big bounce back season in the system for starting pitcher candidates: Trey Yesavage, Kendrys Rojas, Khal Stephen, Johnny King... all will pass through the top 10 Jays prospect list at different stages of their careers. Gage Stanifer, Brandon Barriera, Ricky Tiedemann, Landen Maroudis, have more question marks, the latter three because of where their injury rehab leaves them.

Jauron Watts-Brown is a bit more of a long shot, but he seems to be settling in nicely in AA and might get to Buffalo for a late season look.

And of course, the Jays have the 8th pick in the first round of the coming draft, and fifth pick in rounds thereafter, so adding another high pitching prospect or two seems likely.

[dagger]

Now that he has completed his rehab at Dunedin, Kendrys Rojas has been assigned to New Hampshire.

[-MetA4-]

The Jays' top IFA signee from the most recent class (Cristopher Polanco) has been absolutely terrible, however, their second biggest ticket signee 3B/SS Juan Sanchez is now hitting .315/.425/.506 with 4 HR's. He is listed at 6'3 180lbs.

On Cristopher Polanco: the Jays keep chasing this "he's not very big or twitchy and has average physical tools, but he's a very advanced hitter for his age" prototype with their top IFA signees, and the results have been horrible. I think they need to consider pivoting to an approach that prioritizes pure physical tools/traits and bank on developing those hitters. The guys they have signed with "advanced feel for hitting" have seemingly all shown up with zero ability to hit. Given that these kids are being committed to at age 14 or 15 to sign at 16, I'm getting the impression that how advanced they look at the plate at 14/15 doesn't seem to translate over very well by the time they turn 17 and actually start playing pro ball.

[bartron_44]

Speaking of IFAs, I hope Pardinho is near the top of the list to get the call in the second half. He has been great this year in AAA, was great last year in AA. He keeps the ball in the park and strikes people out. Pretty good combination for a reliever..

He’s been grinding in their system for a long time. I’d like to see him get a shot.

[Parataxis]

Secondly, maybe because it kinda feels like they are doing it with smoke and mirrors, but I’d really prefer to build our prospect pool rather than gut it to take a flyer. It’s been so bad for so long, it’s starting to creep back up and if we dip into it for what I feel would be a very unlikely deep run, we’re back to the bottom again, especially after Bo leaves. (Anyone heard anything different about him?)

We’re not ideally constructed for a miracle run than we were last couple seasons, our rotation has been meh, and our bullpen is filled with hot and cold guys, we’re more winning on the backs of hitters, many imo veterans playing above their true levels and I think it would be a tragic mistake to kill our already thin farm system on the hopes that they will still be on helium come the dog days/playoffs.

I’d prefer to let them play it out and/or trade FOR prospects if the wheels fall off.

I'm hoping that, when we buy, we can find some teams who want to dip into our AAAA players for some MLB ready, cheap and controllable bats. Loperfido, Stewart, Wagner, etc...

[dagger]

Secondly, maybe because it kinda feels like they are doing it with smoke and mirrors, but I’d really prefer to build our prospect pool rather than gut it to take a flyer. It’s been so bad for so long, it’s starting to creep back up and if we dip into it for what I feel would be a very unlikely deep run, we’re back to the bottom again, especially after Bo leaves. (Anyone heard anything different about him?)

We’re not ideally constructed for a miracle run than we were last couple seasons, our rotation has been meh, and our bullpen is filled with hot and cold guys, we’re more winning on the backs of hitters, many imo veterans playing above their true levels and I think it would be a tragic mistake to kill our already thin farm system on the hopes that they will still be on helium come the dog days/playoffs.

I’d prefer to let them play it out and/or trade FOR prospects if the wheels fall off.

I'm hoping that, when we buy, we can find some teams who want to dip into our AAAA players for some MLB ready, cheap and controllable bats. Loperfido, Stewart, Wagner, etc...

Purely speculative media have been honing in on possible trades like the Berrios acquisition with control. Jeff Passan floated the idea of acquiring Keller from Pittsburgh, possibly along with Bednar for the bullpen. That would mean trading a couple of top prospects - possibly Nimmala, in a package that not only works for this season but also sets up replacements for Bassitt and Green. Alan Roden might be another tempting piece for including in a control deal, as the Jays have Varsho and Barger, and Nathan Lukes is certainly doing well and is cheap to keep. Roden is just chewing up AAA pitching.

A couple of other pundits are saying Nimmala or Yesavage would only move for a real difference maker and Keller, though very good, is not in that category

[JaysRule15]

Nimmala has been struggling heavily in the minors recently from what I see. I guess pitchers adjusted to him and now he needs to make adjustments back.

[dagger]

The pitching talent in the system continues to intrigue - and is probably drawing a lot of scouting as possible inclusions in deadline trades. Th best of them won't be traded for rentals. Along with Yesavage, Stephen, Maroudis and King, the progress made by Kendry Rojas now that he is back from his rehab, is certainly interesting. Last night, he threw five scoreless, two-hit, no walk innings with 10K.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 45

Signed out of Cuba for $215,000 in 2020, Rojas found immediate success in the Florida Complex League and has slowly become one of the organization's better development stories, steadily creeping up lists. Pitching 84 innings for Single-A Dunedin in ‘23, Rojas posted a 3.75 ERA with 82 strikeouts and 32 walks. He followed that up with a 2.59 ERA in ‘24, topping out at High-A, that included 69 strikeouts in 62 2/3 innings.

A left shoulder issue landed Rojas on the IL early in ‘24, so we’re still waiting to see what the 22-year-old looks like when he’s fully stretched out, given that his career high in innings is 84. All other signs are encouraging, though, with his fastball now reaching the mid-90s after hovering closer to 90 a couple of years ago. He also sports a slider and changeup, both in the mid-80s, with the former being his predominant secondary pitch. If Rojas can take another step or two forward with his stuff, that’s when this gets really exciting. His challenge for now will be developing and maintaining a starter’s routine and carrying that top-end stuff past 100 innings.

Rojas’ growth has been incremental over the years, but it’s all adding up now to one of the top pitchers in the system. From here, he needs to develop his routines and master everything that goes into pitching between his start days. Double-A will be an interesting challenge for Rojas, but if he can handle that level and perhaps even get a taste of Triple-A by the end of 2025, he’ll set himself up for a shot to be part of the next wave of pitching in Toronto.

[-MetA4-]

The pitching talent in the system continues to intrigue - and is probably drawing a lot of scouting as possible inclusions in deadline trades. Th best of them won't be traded for rentals. Along with Yesavage, Stephen, Maroudis and King, the progress made by Kendry Rojas now that he is back from his rehab, is certainly interesting. Last night, he threw five scoreless, two-hit, no walk innings with 10K.

Long-time Jays blogger Marc Hulet wont shut up about Kendry Rojas. He has outright stated that he would trade Yesavage before trading Rojas.

He might legitimately be our #1 pitching prospect, regardless of what the rankings say. A LHP with a mid-high 90's fastball and three pitches that miss bats, as well as good control.

Marc Hulet has also been bullish on Lazaro Estrada for a few years now as well (calling him a clear MLB pitcher if he stays healthy).

[polo007]

These Blue Jays prospects are finding success in 2025 - MLB.com

SS Arjun Nimmala (No. 1)

Nimmala captures this organization’s eagerness to challenge prospects they believe in, even if they accept that some level of failure can be part of that outcome. No, they’re not exactly the A’s, rushing college picks to the big leagues before they can unpack their bags in the Minor Leagues, but this player development group has shown a willingness to bet on the right prospects.

A year ago, Nimmala was challenged with Single-A as an 18-year-old and stumbled. Some time on the Development List was perfectly used by the organization, though, and now he’s working through some new adjustments as a 19-year-old in High-A.

RHP Trey Yesavage (No. 2)

With college pitching, Yesavage represents the Blue Jays’ desire to get a top young arm MLB-ready as quickly and efficiently as possible. There are no shortcuts, of course, but isn’t the whole point of this thing to help the Blue Jays?

Yesavage’s development is a crucial blueprint to keep in mind if the Blue Jays go for an NCAA pitcher at the No. 8 pick. They shut him down in his Draft year (2024) after a heavy workload, but he’s quickly climbed three levels in ‘25 and, at the very least, forced the Blue Jays to have a conversation about him as an MLB option.

If the Blue Jays land another polished college arm, look at it through the lens of: “How can this pitcher crack the Opening Day roster in 2027?”

RHP Khal Stephen (club's No. 9)

Beyond Yesavage, who is becoming a bit of an outlier, Stephen is the blueprint for what the Blue Jays like in a college pitcher. Keep his “type” in mind at the No. 8 spot but also when No. 81 comes around.

“With our last Draft class from last year, each one of those guys has at least one 'now' pitch. A lot of them have big fastballs,” director of player development Joe Sclafani said in camp.

The Blue Jays want their pitching prospects to pound the zone now. Everyone says that, but they want to live by it. Stephen is starting to feel like the posterboy for this.

LHP Johnny King (club's No. 11)

King is about to skyrocket up lists, so the days of him being the Blue Jays’ little secret are just about over.

How he was acquired matters, though, especially as the Blue Jays navigate a Draft without their second-round pick (lost to signing Anthony Santander). King, one of the top high-school lefties, was a third-round pick who was signed away from an NCAA commitment for an above-slot bonus of $1,247,500.

If the Blue Jays have another shot to land a high-upside prep arm like King or Carson Messina (2024 Rd. 12), it will be attractive to them. From Ricky Tiedemann (Junior College) to Landen Maroudis and King, they’ve gotten some exciting early jumps from these high-upside picks.

[polo007]

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[bartron_44]

Pretty good time to have a bunch of pitching talent in AA/AAA. They are going to have lots of internal options to replace Bassitt and Scherzer next year, and probably even more the year after when its time to replace Gausman.

[-MetA4-]

Pretty good time to have a bunch of pitching talent in AA/AAA. They are going to have lots of internal options to replace Bassitt and Scherzer next year, and probably even more the year after when its time to replace Gausman.

Don't get too attached. They're going to need to trade from this group if they want to make any notable trade deadline acquisitions.

[dagger]

Pretty good time to have a bunch of pitching talent in AA/AAA. They are going to have lots of internal options to replace Bassitt and Scherzer next year, and probably even more the year after when its time to replace Gausman.

Don't get too attached. They're going to need to trade from this group if they want to make any notable trade deadline acquisitions.

Yes, it will be interesting to tell, by whom they are willing to trade, how they rank the best of them

[wamco]

Go for it


Yesavage for mason miller
Nimmala and Roden for Keller and Bednar

[wamco]

Go for it


Yesavage for mason miller
Nimmala and Roden for Keller and Bednar

[JaysRule15]

Wrong thread for this, but I really don't know if this team is good enough to be trading away our top prospects for a bullpen arm.

[dagger]

Wrong thread for this, but I really don't know if this team is good enough to be trading away our top prospects for a bullpen arm.

I agree that it would be folly to chase a rental with top prospects. It shouldn't take that much. But according to the national media types, there are a lot more buyers than sellers for good pitching, rentals or controllable. This could disappoint Jays fans who are eager for a big swing. Even being a little imprudent might not get the Jays enough meaningful deadline action, except for a rental bullpen arm.