The middle 10 of our top 30 prospects is a real mix of players, from the newly drafted to several players in AAA.

20. Sean Keys | 3B

Photo from csplusbaseball.ca

Year	Age	Team	AB	2B	3B	HR	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG
2025	22	VAN	424	22	1	19	86	117	8	1	.217	.365	.408

Sean Keys looks to unlock more of his power potential in 2026.

A two-sport athlete who played hoops at Harborfields High School in Greenlawn, New York, Keys went to Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. He broke out in his 2023 sophomore campaign by garnering a First Team All-Patriot League selection after hitting .339 with a league-leading .679 slugging percentage and 1.123 OPS. He bolstered his resumé with two stints in summer college ball. With the Westhampton Aviators of the Hamptons Collegiate Baseball League, Keys was named league MVP after hitting .367 with 11 home runs with 34 runs batted in. He then joined the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod League and batted .385 with an OPS of 1.191 with three doubles, four dingers and 17 ribbies.

Keys was even better with the Bison in 2024, leading the Patriot League in the slash line categories (.405/.535/.798) and winning Patriot League Player of the Year. His walk total of 35 was nine more than his strike total as he enjoyed his second straight 13-homer season.

Graduating as a Mechanical Engineer, the 2023-2024 Academic All-Patriot League Team selection was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fourth round of the 2024 MLB Draft and picked up a signing bonus of $569,700.

The 6-foot-2, 232-pound Keys reported to Dunedin and turned in a robust .293/.378/.451 batting line with a home run and 20 RBI in 22 games, finishing the year with a nine-game on-base streak.

Named the best pure hitter in Toronto’s 2024 draft class by Baseball America, Keys started his first full season of pro ball in Vancouver.

Batting average-wise, Keys struggled, but he led the Northwest League with 86 walks and the power began to emerge with 12 home runs and 22 extra-base hits over 62 games in the second half of the season. He homered in three straight games in September to set the single-season home run mark for the Canadians.

Speaking with C’s Plus Baseball early in the 2025 campaign, Keys said he tries to keep things simple at the dish.

“The biggest thing for me is having one idea in my mind when I'm on the on-deck circle and bringing that into the box. It’s hard, easier said than done, but usually depending on the pitcher, it's looking for a fastball. I want to be on time. I want to hit the fastball. Another thing I always do is look at my bat. I have a dot on my bat that kind of focuses my eyes. That's something I just started doing and I think it helps me relax but also focus in the box.”

FanGraphs says Keys pulls the ball more than half of the time with a line drive rate just shy of 20 percent. Batted ball luck was not on his side as he had a .250 BABIP but he finished with a solid ISO nine points shy of .200. He could project as an average power hitter with a fring-average to average hit tool.

With the leather, Keys was on infield corner duty with 71 of his 99 starts spent at third base where he is described to have limited range and is considered to be fringe-average. He may see more time at first in the future. His arm is graded to be at least average if not a tick above.

On the bases, Keys has below-average speed but has 10 steals in 12 career opportunities.

Keys will look to unlock more of his power at Double-A New Hampshire to start 2026. He will turn 23 years old on May 26.

19. Lazaro Estrada | RHP

Photo from bisons.com

Year	Age	Team	G	GS	IP	H/9	HR/9	BB/9	K/9	ERA
2025	26	BUF	26	20	97.1	10.1	1.6	3.0	9.2	6.38
2025	26	TOR	2	0	7.1	12.3	2.5	1.2	12.3	8.59

Lazaro Estrada made his MLB debut in 2025 at age 26. The 5'10" righthander had a very good debut on July 5th against the LA Angels. He threw four innings with two hits allowed, no walks and four K's. He went back to Buffalo the next day but was recalled three weeks later. On July 29th, he pitched against Baltimore and it didn't go as well as the first time. He was charged with six runs in 3.1 innings, throwing 72 pitches. He did strike out six. Coming into the game in relief of Easton Lucas, Estrada didn't allowed a run through 2.1 innings, but in the sixth inning, he hit a couple of batters before Tyler O'Neill hit a three-run home run. Another home run and other hits left him with six runs allowed. He was on the bus back to Buffalo the next day. He ended with 10 K's in 7.1 innings against one walk. Looks good! But the home runs and hits left him with a 8.59 ERA.

In Buffalo, he had what could be called an average season. He appeared in 26 games and made 20 starts. He struck out a batter per inning, walked an OK number. Like many pitchers, he had ups and downs in the season. April was terrible, May great, June good, July and August bad, then September good again.

Baseball Savant has an analysis of Estrada's two appearances in the major leagues. He threw his FB 49% of the time. His slider was his second most used pitch, with some curves and splits thrown in. His FB averaged 93.7 mph, which is at the 39th percentile compared to the 95 mph major league average. As a smaller guy, his extension is at the 24th percentile. Estrada gave up ten hits in the major leagues, eight of those came off his fastball. So 50% of his pitches and 80% of his hits. His major league experience is short, so we shouldn't read too much into it. But a player with a slower fastball and less extension needs to have excellent command of the pitch or just use it less.

Estrada profiles as a long reliever. He is still on the Jays 40-man roster and could get another look as a major league reliever in 2026. With the Jays signing multiple pitchers, Estrada looks set for Buffalo to start 2026. He could start or relieve based on need.

18. Charles McAdoo | 3B

Photo from @charles_mcadoo

Year	Age	Team	AB	2B	3B	HR	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG
2025	23	NH	445	24	1	16	45	137	34	6	.247	.318	.413

Charles McAdoo spent the year in New Hampshire at age 23. Playing mostly third base, he improved through the year and finished with 24 doubles and 16 home runs. McAdoo had a bad start to the season, hitting .200 in April and .186 in May. He bumped his average up to .293 in June and hit better until September when he tailed off. In a first half vs second half comparison, McAdoo hit .227 in the first vs .265 in the second half with 11 of his 16 home runs coming in the second half. His OPS improved from .658 to .796.

McAdoo also showed some speed, not something you usually find in a third baseman. He stole 34 bases and was caught six times.

At this time, most of McAdoo's numbers are what could be called fringy. He hits well but not outstandingly. He has some power, but again, not major league-level power. His strikeout rate is 27%, a little too high. But he played last season as a 23-year-old. He perhaps needs to add a little more power and a little more contact, and he could get into being a major league possibility, most likely as a backup or second-level team starter.

McAdoo came over to the Jays from Pittsburgh in the Isiah Kiner-Falefa trade in 2024. He didn't do much in New Hampshire in 2024, but again, he had just been traded, a shock for many players.

2025 will be his second full season with the Jays. He could start 2025 back in New Hampshire or move up to Buffalo. At that level, a lot depends on who the Jays bring in to back up the major league team. In any event, McAdoo would expect to be in Buffalo by midseason.

17. Edward Duran | C

Photo from csplusbaseball.ca

Year	Age	Team	AB	2B	3B	HR	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG
2025	21	DUN	253	11	5	5	26	62	6	4	.296	.378	.439
2025	21	VAN	122	4	0	3	16	26	1	0	.230	.329	.336
2025	21	ARI	32	2	3	0	5	7	1	0	.156	.270	.406

The Toronto Blue Jays dealt 2018 infielder and first-round pick Jordan Groshans for relievers Anthony Bass and Zach Pop at the trade deadline in 2022. Also part of that trade was a player to be named later for Toronto, and that turned out to be catcher Edward Duran.

The Caracas, Venezuela native was signed as an international free agent by Miami in 2021, and received a signing bonus of $450,000. Duran turned in batting averages of .340 and .224 with the Dominican Summer League Marlins in 2021 and 2022, but he had a walk rate hovering in the 11 percent range during his two years with the Fish.

Duran’s 2023 debut in the Jays system was also his debut in the US. He began the year at the Florida Complex League before getting a promotion to Dunedin. In a combined 41 games at both levels, Duran slashed .315/.422/.417 and belted his first two home runs as a pro, one at each stop.

Duran spent the 2024 campaign in Dunedin and had an on-base percentage of .346 with 41 runs batted in over 78 games. He racked up 15 doubles and three triples and showed very good proficiency on the basepaths with 15 stolen bases in 18 attempts.

The 2025 season for Duran also started back in Dunedin, where he put together a 22-game hitting streak for all 22 games played in May, in which he slashed .345/.422/.563 with 11 extra-base hits.

After registering an OPS of .817 over 66 games, the 5-foot-11, 210-pound Duran was promoted to Vancouver just after mid-July. The righthanded hitter had four hits over his first three games with the C’s but scuffled for most of August as his batting average was two points shy of .200. However, Duran finished the season strong with a 10-game hitting streak that included home runs in back-to-back games. He got more seasoning in the Arizona Fall League and had five extra-base hits and seven RBI in nine games.

Heading into last season, Duran made 27 starts at first base as a pro. He did not add to total at all as he remained behind the pentagon in 2025. Offseason work with Dunedin position coach Rodrigo Vigil paid off behind the pentagon as Duran threw out 33 base stealers with the D-Jays.

Through translator/Home Plate 33 podcast host Domingo Guarenas, Duran talked to C’s Plus Baseball about the work he put in behind the dish.

“The key thing that we’ve actually worked on really, really hard is actually the blocking aspect of it. It has actually evolved quite a bit. Even though one of the strengths that I have had is my arm and actually being able to get a lot of runners out trying to steal, one of the things I actually really have to work on is the accuracy of the throws. The accuracy is sometimes not there. And also adjusting to the new pitchers and the new set of signs and that sort of stuff.”

MLB Pipeline and Baseball America both noted that Duran employed a one-knee-down setup behind the plate this season to improve his receiving. He’s also cut down significantly on his passed balls. Duran can throw darts to second base, blending arm strength with quick reactions, but he needs to get the ball on the bag more for his caught-stealing rate to match his tools. Both publications project Duran as being an above-average backstop with an above-average arm, with a fringe-average hit tool and below-average power.

Duran will probably be back in Vancouver to start 2026. His 22nd birthday is on May 29.

16. Adam Macko | LHP

Photo from bisons.com

Year	Age	Team	G	GS	IP	H/9	HR/9	BB/9	K/9	ERA
2025	24	FCL	5	4	17.1	7.3	0.0	1.6	13.5	3.63
2025	24	BUF	18	10	64.0	8.6	0.8	5.1	9.4	5.06

Adam Macko has been a little bit injury-prone in his Blue Jay career so far. He has never thrown 100 innings in a season. None of the injuries were major, but they did cost him development time. In 2025, it was a torn meniscus in his knee that kept him off the field until May. He went on rehab to the FCL for a month before joining Buffalo on June 7th.

Macko made 10 starts for Buffalo before transitioning to a relief role. It doesn't look as though innings management led to the relief role, it could be that the Jays wanted to see how he looked out of the bullpen. The answer was, he looked better. But in many ways, it wasn't a major change. In his 10 starts, Macko threw 38 innings, only once did he throw more than four innings. In his nine relief appearances, he threw 26 innings. So 3.8 innings per start and just under three innings per relief appearance.

Even though the innings per appearance was comparable, the results were very different. As a starter in Buffalo, Macko allowed 25 runs in 10 starts for an ERA of 5.92. As a reliever, his ERA was 3.81. His BB:K numbers changed even more. As a starter, Macko had 30 walks vs 38 strikeouts. Those 30 walks in 38 innings were bad. In his last two starts he had walked 11 in eight innings. That might have precipitated the move to the pen. But as a reliever, Macko walked just six in 26 innings and struck out 32. Was there a physical change or was it mental?

Baseball America's scouting report on Macko suggests he has four average pitches and he projects as a back-end starter. But if he pitches in relief, his fastball should tick up a notch or two and he could eliminate his weakest pitch. Could that be the answer?

Most know Macko's back story at this point. He was born in Slovakia, moved to Ireland for a few years before his family settled in Alberta. Originally drafted by Seattle, Macko came to the Blue Jays in late 2022 as part of the Teoscar Hernandez trade.

Macko throws a 91-93 mph fastball, a slider, curve and change.

How Macko starts 2026 is one of the interesting questions for the spring. Will he start or relieve? Can he continue to show the improved performance he showed at the end of the season in whatever role the Jays put him in? Macko will be in Buffalo and will look to push his way to the big leagues.

15. Josh Kasevich | SS

Photo from bisons.com

Year	Age	Team	AB	2B	3B	HR	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG
2025	24	FCL	14	0	0	0	5	1	0	1	.357	.526	.357
2025	24	DUN	24	1	0	0	3	3	3	3	.375	.444	.417
2025	24	BUF	98	1	0	0	13	20	0	2	.173	.272	.184
2025	24	ARI	55	0	0	0	5	1	0	1	.255	.419	.255

2025 was a lost season for Josh Kasevich He only played in 42 games as a couple of injuries kept him on the IL for most of the season. He had a stress fracture in his back coming out of spring training and was on the IL for a while. Then, when he was rehabbing that injury, he reinjured himself in a collision in the field, injuring his wrist and missing another three weeks. With the stops and starts, he never got untracked and didn't put up good numbers even when he played. He ended up hitting .173 for Buffalo in just under 100 at-bats. He did go to the fall league and hit a little better, but did not stand out.

This was Kasevich's fourth pro season and coming into 2025 some thought he would get a shot in the major leagues. And if he hadn't been injured he might have received the callup when Bo Bichette was on the IL.

The unknown heading into 2026 is this. Was 2025 a new normal for Kasevich? Have the injuries, or his back in particular, dealt a blow to his major league projection? Or was 2025 just a season of bad luck all around? Kasevich was not picked in the Rule 5 draft last December, so other teams remain unconvinced. As a reminder, Kasevich hit .325 in less than a half-season in Buffalo in 2024. Can he get back there?

Even before 2025, Kasevich was a fringy prospect. His strengths are his contact skills and his excellent eye at the plate. His weakness is a lack of power. He is capable at shortstop, even if his arm is just about at shortstop level. His best role to break in could be as a utility infielder. The Jays did give him eleven games at third base in Buffalo last season.

14. Yohendrick Piñango | OF

Photo from @ypinango_18

Year	Age	Team	AB	2B	3B	HR	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG
2025	23	NH	161	10	1	8	27	42	5	0	.298	.406	.522
2025	23	BUF	293	19	1	7	43	65	1	0	.235	.335	.379

Yohendrick Piñango came to the Jays at the 2024 trade deadline in the Nate Pearson trade. At the time, he was playing for Tennessee at the AA level for the Chicago Cubs. The Blue Jays kept him at the same level by assigning him to New Hampshire. He hit just .179 in 33 games and had just one home run. The Jays probably liked him when he hit .340 for South Bend in the Midwest League in the first half of 2024. That was his third time being in South Bend so it looked like he had finally figured out the level.

There was a similar story for him at AA. He hit .223 for Tennessee and as we saw, .179 for New Hampshire. But he returned to AA in 2025 and hit .320 in April and went on to hit .298 in 47 games before he was promoted. He showed a decent eye at the plate and had 19 extra-base hits giving him a high .928 OPS.

It should not come as a surprise then that he did not hit as well in AAA. In 84 games, he hit .235. He did walk more than he struck out, 47 vs 43, and he did have 27 extra base hits, so his OPS was OK at .714.

So what could be expected of Piñango in 2026? Will his previous pattern repeat? Has he now figured out AAA and will his hitting take off to a higher level? He has a good eye and he doesn't strike out too much, just 19% in AAA. His BABIP was .357 in New Hampshire last season and it was down to .278 in AAA. Where will it settle?

Piñango is not a great fielder, he could end up as a DH type. He was available in the Rule 5 draft but wasn't selected. To be major league-ready, Pinango needs to reach the next level as a hitter. If he could hit as he did in New Hampshire in the first half of 2025, then he would be in line for a call-up, but he needs to show he has AAA figured out first. Piñango will be back in Buffalo to start 2026.

13. Silvano Hechavarría | RHP

Photo from csplusbaseball.ca

Year	Age	Team	G	GS	IP	H/9	HR/9	BB/9	K/9	ERA
2025	22	FCL	4	3	17.0	7.4	1.1	2.1	5.3	2.12
2025	22	DUN	11	7	47.1	6.8	0.8	2.1	10.1	1.90
2025	22	VAN	4	4	22.1	7.7	0.4	3.2	7.7	3.22

Shortstop Adeiny Hechavarría played 41 games for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2012, two years after signing a four-year, $10 million deal as a free agent from Cuba. Silvano Hechavarría did not get nearly as much as he received $240,000 signing bonus in 2024, but he is hoping to surpass his namesake’s games played total with Toronto and ultimately earn more money.

The Cueto, Cuba native followed in the footsteps of his older brother Yadier Hechavarría, who pitched in the Cuban National Series (Serie Nacional de Béisbol, or SNB) from 2013-2015 where he notched 13 saves, six wins and a 2.72 earned run average over 129 innings. Silvano would follow in his brother’s footsteps when he joined the Industriales de La Habana of the SNB as a 19-year-old in 2022. He pitched just 1⅔ innings in the 2022-2023 season but he logged more time on the mound in the 2023-2024 campaign. He won his lone decision with a 4.25 ERA, finishing six games and striking out 24 batters over 42⅓ innings. That helped him gain an invitation from the Cuban Baseball Federation to attend a tryout in front of scouts from Asia and the Caribbean. That helped paved the way for Hechavarría to join the Jays organization.

Four days after signing on June 7, Hechavarría was on the bump for the Dominican Summer League Blue Jays. He rounded into form in July with a 0.81 ERA for the month in which he won all three of his decisions. Hechavarría completed the year with a 5-2 record, a 1.84 ERA and a 57/16 strikeout-walk total in 49 innings.

The 2025 season saw Hechavarria make his U.S. debut with the Florida Complex League Blue Jays in May. The 6-foot-4, 227-pound hurler was promoted to Dunedin in June and kept Florida State League hitters in check with a .209 batting average against. Hechavarría gave up just one run in July and ended the month with a scoreless streak of 17⅔ innings. The next stop was Vancouver, and Northwest League hitters did not fare much better against him by hitting just .229. Hechavarría was able to tip his cap to the Nat Bailey Stadium faithful twice when he was relieved on the mound. It was the opposition who was relieved as he gave up a combined two runs over 12 innings.

Through translator/Home Plate 33 podcast host Domingo Guarenas, Hechavarría told C’s Plus Baseball he attributed his success to consistency and routine.

“When I was actually in the Dominican and actually developing going into Dunedin, there was no routine. There was not a set plan across the board. But one of the things they did in the Dunedin camp when I came and what promoted me to Vancouver was that consistency part of it, the routine aspect of it, and the mentality that it's never going to change. You've got to do your work, you have to put your work in, and the routine is what's going to get you to the next level.”

Hechavarría says he throws a fastball, slider and a splitter, with the heater being of the two-seam variety.

“Until (hitters) actually hit me and they tell me I have to change it, I'll be throwing the two-seam fastball. I don't throw a four-seam fastball because obviously there's a little bit more run on the two-seam fastball. But the two-seam fastball is the only fastball that I'm focusing on right now.”

Hechavarria also credited fellow Cuban and Jays farmhand Rafael Sánchez with teaching him the splitter.

Baseball America and MLB Pipeline believe Hechavarria’s slider is his best pitch, with BA giving it a 55 grade while Pipeline says it is a 60 on the 20-80 scouting scale. The mid-90 mile per hour fastball is considered average and the split/change is fringe-average.

According to FanGraphs, Hechavarría managed to strand runners at a near-85 percent clip with Dunedin and ended the year with a composite .267 BABIP and 3.55 FIP, indicating an element of luck.

Vancouver Canadians fans should get to see Hechavarría as his cap-tipping best again to start 2026. He will turn 23 on March 18.

12. Victor Arias | OF

Photo from csplusbaseball.ca

Year	Age	Team	AB	2B	3B	HR	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG
2025	21	van	279	15	5	5	36	64	12	4	.294	.381	.437
2025	21	NH	133	4	2	2	14	38	6	1	.226	.293	.331

It was a Sweet 16 for Victor Arias when he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays on his 16th birthday and he hopes 2026 will be sweeter as he continues his climb up the minor league ladder.

The pride of Maracay, Venezuela did not make his pro debut until 2021, thanks to COVID. It was evident early on that Arias was quite adept at getting on base as he had a .408 OBP in his two years with the Dominican Summer League, bolstered by a .929 OPS in 19 games during his second season at the DSL in 2022.

The 2023 campaign was a busy one for Arias as he arrived in the US for his first season, the majority of which was spent at the Florida Complex League. He doubled his home run output with four dingers at the FCL. Though Arias hit just .222 in 41 games, his OBP was five points shy of .400 before getting three-game cameos with Dunedin and New Hampshire in September. Arias drew a walk in his second plate appearance with the D-Jays before homering in his next at-bat. He started his New Hampshire tenure with a base hit in his first trip to the dish.

Things came together for Arias in 2024 when he posted an OPS of .840 with 30 extra-base hits, 40 runs batted in and 17 stolen bases in 76 games with Dunedin. That would lead to an eventual berth on the Florida State League Post-Season All-Star team. Arias was bumped up to Vancouver and had a .425 OBP in 11 games with only one extra-base hit. Unfortunately, Arias was sidelined due to injury in mid-August and missed the rest of the regular season and postseason.

Arias was back with Vancouver in 2025 and enjoyed a spectacular April in which he slashed .310/.402/.440 and had a 16-game on-base streak to end the month, which eventually stretched to 18 games. The 5-foot-9, 150-pound lefthanded hitter was the Northwest League Player of the Week in late April, but he lost 211 points from his OPS with a cold month of May. Arias’ bat did heat up again in June as he slugged .510 with an OPS of .872 that was supported by 10 multi-hit games. He was the straw that stirred the drink as he was the leadoff hitter more often than not with the C’s. Vancouver felt his absence when he was promoted to New Hampshire in mid-July. Arias had trouble adapting to Double-A pitching as his walk rate dipped below 10 percent for the first time since his brief 2023 stints with Dunedin and New Hampshire. The BABIP from Vancouver to New Hampshire also dropped from .367 to .292. The year ended on a bad note as Baseball America said a shoulder injury in September caused him to miss the rest of the year.

Vancouver’s 2025 Most Valuable Player is considered to be a fringe-average hitter with average power by Baseball America and MLB Pipeline. His standout tool is his speed, which BA says is plus-plus at 70. That speed was put to good use in center field where he made 75 of his 82 starts, committing just two errors all season. His throwing arm is considered to be below or fringe-average.

New Hampshire should be the starting point for Arias in 2026. His 23rd birthday will be celebrated on August 24.

11. Jake Cook | OF

Photo from @jakecook.2

Year

Age

Team

AB

2B

3B

HR

BB

K

SB

CS

AVG

OBP

SLG

2025

21

N/A

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

N/A

N/A

N/A

Jake Cook was the Blue Jays' second pick in the 2025 draft. The Jays had lost their second-round pick, so Cook was selected in the third round, 81st overall. Cook has a very unusual backstory. He was recruited to Southern Mississippi as a two-way player and he pitched sparingly as a reliever in his second season. Entering 2025, Cook had a total of two college at-bats. But he focused on hitting full-time and eventually became SO Miss's leadoff hitter, getting to 285 plate appearances. For the season, he hit .350/.436/.468 with three home runs. He had 31 walks and 19 strikeouts.

Cook is an extreme contact hitter who rarely swings and misses. He was one of the hardest players to strike out in Division 1 college ball in 2025, thanks in part to an inside-out swing designed to pepper line drives to the opposite field. But he has shown almost no power. He is 6'3" and is listed at 185 pounds, so he is big enough to have some power if he can develop it. He’s a plus defender in center field with a plus arm, and he shows true 80-grade speed, clocking consistent sub-3.9 home-to-first times. Cook had the fastest 30-yard dash times at the MLB draft combine.

Cook did not play after the draft. The Jays said he had played enough as 2025 was his first year playing full-time in the field. However, I wonder if the Jays were trying to work on his swing to see if they could find a bit more power. We will have to wait for 2026 to find out. One of the last players the Jays selected with great contact skills and little power was Josh Kasevich. That selection has not paid dividends so far. How much can the Jays tinker with Cook to keep the contact ability but add some power?

Cook is a high-risk pick with just one year of being a starting position player. He is likely to start in Dunedin to see how his skills translate to the professional game.

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Join us tomorrow for the Top 10.