With the chance to give their farm system a shot in the arm this week in Texas, the Toronto Blue Jays are set to make 21 picks at the 2024 MLB Draft.
Of course, not every pick will make it to the big leagues, let alone sign with the Blue Jays this summer, but each selection is a shot at adding a future impact piece to the MLB team.
So, as the Blue Jays make their way through the three-day, 20-round draft, keep it tuned to Sportsnet for one sentence on each of Toronto’s picks, starting with first-round pick Trey Yesavage.
20. Trey Yesavage
Round: 1
Position: RHP | Age: 20
School: East Carolina University
The Blue Jays made out very well with their first-round pick, grabbing a pitcher in Yesavage who featured one of the deepest arsenals in the draft and was more often than not projected to go closer to the top 10 than in the 20s.
59. Khal Stephen
Round: 2
Position: RHP | Age: 20
School: Mississippi State University
Like Yesavage, Stephen has a four-pitch mix that he commands well, walking just 5.5 per cent of the hitters he faced with evaluators giving him a high floor as a potential No. 4 or 5 starter at the major-league level.
95. Johnny King
Round: 3
Position: LHP | Age: 17
School: Naples HS (Fla.)
As one of the youngest draft-eligible players, the six-foot-three high-school southpaw throws a fastball that has been clocked at up to 94 m.p.h., a curveball and slider with high spin rates, making him a very projectable future arm.
125. Sean Keys
Round: 4
Position: 3B | Age: 21
Swings: Left | Throws: Right
School: Bucknell University
Keys is coming off a junior year at Bucknell that saw him post a 1.333 OPS with 13 home runs with a compact, uppercut left-handed swing and an advanced approach, which helped him walk more than he struck out.
136. Nick Mitchell
Round: 4 (compensation)
Position: OF | Age: 20
Swings: Left | Throws: Right
School: Indiana University
A five-foot-10, 180-pound outfielder, Mitchell has solid contact skills and, like Keys, shows a good feel for the strike zone, reaching base in over 45 per cent of his plate appearances in his lone season at Indiana.
158. Jackson Wentworth
Round: 5
Position: RHP | Age: 21
School: Kansas State University
Wentworth underwent Tommy John surgery ahead of his first college season and has steadily improved since returning to the mound, climbing to the fifth round after posting a 4.18 ERA at Kansas State while throwing five pitches, with his slider operating as his standout offering.
187. Aaron Parker
Round: 6
Position: C | Age: 21
Swings: Switch | Throws: Right
School: UC Santa Barbara
A five-foot-nine catcher, Parker raked during his junior year at UC Santa Barbara, earning First Team All-Big West honours and finishing the year with a .379/.460/.632 (1.091 OPS) slash line with 12 home runs and 12 doubles while throwing out 46.2 per cent of potential base stealers.
217. Austin Cates
Round: 7
Position: RHP | Age: 21
School: University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Cates began his collegiate career in junior college before transferring to UNLV for his junior season, where he filled up the strike zone with a fastball, changeup and slider mix to work a 4.08 ERA with 107 strikeouts and just 15 walks over 90.1 innings.
247. Eddie Micheletti Jr.
Round: 8
Position: OF | Age: 22
Swings: Left | Throws: Right
School: Virginia Tech University
Described as a “bat-first type of player” by MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo, Micheletti Jr. posted a 1.063 OPS as a senior at Virginia Tech with 12 home runs and — stop me if you’ve heard this before about a Blue Jays draft pick — commanded the strike zone well, walking more than he struck out in 2024.
277. Colby Holcombe
Round: 9
Position: RHP | Age: 21
School: Mississippi State University
In Holcombe, another pitcher out of Mississippi State, the Blue Jays are betting on stuff from the six-foot-six righty, who, despite posting a 10.38 ERA out of the bullpen, stuck out 11.6 hitters per nine and will need to work on throwing strikes consistently at the next level.
307. Carter Cunningham
Round: 10
Position: OF/1B | Age: 24
Swings: Left | Throws: Right
School: East Carolina University
After selecting the AAC Pitcher of the Year out of ECU in Yesavage, the Blue Jays returned to the Pirates to select the AAC Player of the Year in Cunningham. The six-foot-four first baseman/outfielder led the conference in average and on-base percentage while hitting 17 total home runs, bringing a little bit of slug to Toronto’s draft class.
337. Troy Guthrie
Round: 11
Position: RHP | Age: 18
School: Parish Community HS (Fla.)
A six-foot-three high-schooler from Florida, Guthrie throws a fastball in the high-80s to low-90s and mixes in a slider and changeup, all of which helped him post a 1.07 ERA in his senior year, according to Prep Baseball Report.
367. Carson Messina
Round: 12
Position: RHP | Age: 18
School: Summerville HS (S.C.)
Ranked as the No. 222 prospect in the draft by MLB Pipeline, Messina works a fastball in the 92 to 95 m.p.h. range, mixing in a curveball and changeup, but will have to work on his command at the next level.
397. Brock Tibbitts
Round: 13
Position: C | Age: 21
Bats: Right | Throws: Right
School: Indiana University
Tibbitts suffered an injury in April, cutting into a 149-consecutive games-played streak this spring, but that didn’t stop him from posting an .875 OPS in the 46 games he did play for Indiana while slowly improving his skills behind the plate.
427. J.R. Freethy
Round: 14
Position: 2B/OF | Age: 21
Bats: Both | Throws: Right
School: University of Nevada
A switch-hitting utility player, Freethy finished 2024 with a .303/.414/.580 slash line, hitting 18 doubles, three triples and 10 home runs while walking more than he struck out.
457. Jonathan Todd
Round: 15
Position: RHP | Age: 22
School: Western Carolina University
A six-foot-six righty, Todd mostly worked out of the bullpen in 2024, racking up a 4.00 ERA and seven saves, earning himself first-team All-Southern Conference with 49 strikeouts over 36.0 innings.
487. Colby Martin
Round: 16
Position: RHP | Age: 23
School: Southeastern University
Another bet on stuff, Martin struck out 31 hitters over 16.1 innings at Southeastern while limiting opponents to a .155 batting average in the five-foot-11 righty’s first season as a full-time pitcher.
517. Gavin Smith
Round: 17
Position: SS | Age: 18
Bats: Right | Throws: Right
School: Valley Christian HS (Ariz.)
While there isn’t much public information available about Smith, he is a six-foot-two, 185-pound high school shortstop from Arizona who is committed to Pepperdine University.
547. Holden Wilkerson
Round: 18
Position: RHP | Age: 21
School: Virginia Military Institue
Wilkerson made four starts in 2024 before suffering a season-ending injury, working 18.1 innings with 29 strikeouts and just four walks, however, he did allow 16 earned runs in those outings for the Virginia Military Institute.
577. D’Marion Terrell
Round: 19
Position: 1B/OF | Age: 21
Bats: Left | Throws: Left
School: Thompson HS (Ala.)
Ranked as the 153rd draft prospect by MLB Pipeline and 92nd by Baseball America, it seems unlikely the Blue Jays will be able to sign Terrell away from a commitment to Auburn since he fell this far, but the six-foot-three lefty has tremendous bat speed and has drawn comparisons to Cliff Floyd.
607. Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek
Round: 20
Position: SS | Age: 21
Bats: Right | Throws: Right
School: UC San Diego
Son of longtime big-leaguer Mark Grudzielanek, Bryce spent 2024 playing at the University of Southern California, putting together a .284/.369/.405 slash line with one home run in 20 games.