MLB Draft 2015: Blue Jays pick round-up and profiles

After having two protected picks in the first round and a sizable draft pool of $9.46 million to spend at the 2014 MLB Draft, the Toronto Blue Jays found themselves in quite a different position on Monday night when the 2015 edition got underway. Toronto was relegated to the compensation round, not having a pick until #29 and entered the 2015 MLB Draft with a limited budget of $5.411 million.

The Blue Jays forfeited their first round pick, originally slotted at 17th overall, when they signed Russell Martin away from the Pittsburgh Pirates, who extended Martin a qualifying offer. Normally, that would have left the Blue Jays out of the first round altogether, but the team recouped a compensation pick of their own by extending a qualifying offer to Melky Cabrera, who signed with the Chicago White Sox. Chicago also surrendered their 2nd round pick (David Robertson), but due to the Yankees having a better record than the Blue Jays in 2014, Toronto received the 29th pick while the Yankees picked directly behind them with the 30th selection.

Needless to say, the Blue Jays needed to be smart, creative, and perhaps a little bit lucky during the 2015 MLB Draft. Toronto would hope that premium talent could slide to them and that they could perhaps take some chances on some later picks by moving money around.

So how has the 2015 worked out for the Toronto Blue Jays?

Next: Pick #29: Jon Harris, Missouri State

Jon Harris. Mandatory Credit: D1Baseball via Twitter.

Name: Jon Harris

School: Missouri State (Junior)

Position: RHP

The Blue Jays have themselves a bit of history with right-hander Jon Harris in the MLB Draft. Toronto originally drafted Harris in the 33rd round of the 2012 out of Hazelwood Central High School (Florissant, MO), but it was a reach at the time and the pitcher opted to honor his college commitment rather than sign for the Blue Jays. Originally rated as high as #10 by MLB.com, and the third highest rated pitcher in the draft, the Blue Jays were excited to see him fall to the team at #29.

2014-15 Stats

Cape Cod League: 4-2 (8 starts), 4.36 ERA, 29 K, 15 BB, 33 IP

Missouri State: 8-2 (15 starts), 2.45 ERA, 116 K, 36 BB, 103 IP

The Good

At 6-feet 4-inches and 190 lbs., Harris has that tall, projectable frame that the Blue Jays love in a pitching prospect. He generates easy velocity on his fastball, which sits in the low to mid-90’s and looks faster out of his hand due to the downward plane that Harris pitches from. He gets good movement on the pitch, creating good arm-side action and generating lots of natural sink on the ball as well. He compliments that well with evolving off-speed offerings that include a curve ball, slider, and change-up, all of which have been seen as potential plus pitches in the future, and his slider was rated as the fifth best in the Cape Cod League in 2014 by Perfect Game USA.

The Bad

It’s not hard to fall in love with a top-10 talent that fell to #29, but it is there we need to take the pick with a grain of salt. The Blue Jays obviously want to sign Harris and get him into the fold on the second try, but the team also has a limited bonus pool and given the fact that the right-hander fell out of the top-10, he may ask for a higher than slot bonus ($1,944,800) due to his previous projections. That said, it is rare for a college junior to get drafted and then refuse to sign and go back to school. To that point, Harris is saying all the right things and sounds like he’s ready to sign and get his professional career underway.

“I had the utmost confidence in [my agent] to do his job and I felt like I did my job this spring with the season that I had at Missouri State. Toronto’s going to be a great fit for me, it’s going to be a new home for me and I’m going to do what I can to wear the Toronto blue proudly.” – (h/t Gregor Chisholm, MLB.com)

All and all, this is a solid pick for the Blue Jays, especially for a compensation selection.

Next: Pick #56: Brady Singer

Mandatory Credit: Youtube

Name: Justin Maese

School: Ysleta High School (Texas)

Position: RHP

Well, give the Blue Jays some credit, they apparently have a plan for the 2015 MLB Draft and they are sticking to it. Justin Maese becomes the third straight pick used on a right-handed pitcher, and remarkably, all three are built right around the same size. Like Singer before him, Toronto seemingly reached a bit higher here to tab Maese with the 91st pick of the draft. MLB.com had him ranked at #131 coming into the event.

2014-15 Stats

Yselta High School: Unavailable

The Good

The 6-foot, 3-inch, 185 lbs. right-hander pitched and played both shortstop and the outfield in high school, but make no doubt about it, the Blue Jays are drafting him for his arm. Maese can reach back and fire gas, hitting 96 MPH at times while also mixing in a solid slider and an occasional change-up. His pop with the fastball is what had him flying up draft charts though, and may feel that he can harness it a bit more and consistently run it up in the mid-90’s with continued work.

The Bad

Unfortunately, the heat that made him such a hot commodity isn’t consistent yet. While he can dial up to 96 on occasion, he typically sits in the high-80’s and low-90’s, according to the El Paso Times. Additionally, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com notes that Maese tends to get over-reliant on his slider due to his spotty command with his fastball. The limited repertoire and command issues may peg him as a bullpen candidate long term, but given his age, the team would let him develop before making those decisions too early.

The lack of polish may lead in two directions for the Blue Jays. The team could opt to low-ball him on a signing bonus or Maese could opt to honor his commitment to Texas Tech and enter the draft with a better feel for pitching.

Next: Pick #122: Carl Wise

Via Twitter

Name: Carl Wise

School: College of Charleston

Position: 3B

What do you know, the Blue Jays finally break their string of pitchers and jump on a collegiate position player with their next selection, tapping College of Charleston third baseman Carl Wise with the 122nd pick of the draft (4th round). For all of the work the team has done to build its depth in the pitching department, position prospects still escape the Blue Jays ability to develop, so they are hoping that the power and athleticism that Wise showed in college could help him become a larger piece in the future.

2014-15 Stats

College of Charleston: .313/.380/.557, 18 doubles, 12 home runs, 70 RBI

The Good

At 6-foot, 2-inches, 220 lbs, Wise is built for power and he exhibited that in school, routinely racking up doubles and home runs in his three years at Charleston. he exhibits excellent control of the strike-zone, with a 1.22 K/BB ratio in school. He also went deep six times and drove in 22 during a 35-game stint in the Cape Cod League last summer.

The Bad

With a big frame, Wise doesn’t exhibit the range that will be required of a third baseman in Major League Baseball. As such, MLB.com has him pegged to move to first base long-term. Unfortunately, the Blue Jays have seen a lot of that with other recent picks at the hot corner. Still, if his power continues to develop, there is a possibility that it holds up at either corner.

STAY TUNED AS WE MONITOR DAY 2 OF THE MLB DRAFT

Next: 10 worst Blue Jays draft picks ever

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