Toronto Blue Jays: Top 5 unsigned draft picks since 2010

Luke Weaver

Drafted by Blue Jays: 2011 19th-round selection (589th overall)

Second Draft (as Junior): 2014 1st-round selection (27th overall) by the Cardinals

In a year that the Blue Jays were unable to sign their first-round pick, Tyler Beede, they were also unable to sign two high school arms that would one day become steady in a major league rotation. Luke Weaver is the first of those two as he was drafted in the 19th-round out of DeLand High School in Florida, and made it easy to see why it would take a lot to sign him away from the powerhouse school just an hour from his home, Florida State University (FSU).

In his first season at FSU he had the chance to pitch in the CWS, and he saw a big jump in his sophomore season with a 2.29 ERA, and also ranked 11th nationally in strikeouts, with 119. He earned a spot on the US Collegiate National Team and pitched well for them putting himself on the national radar heading into his draft year.

Another strong season as a Junior and the Cardinals took Weaver 27th-overall in 2014, and by 2016 he was considered the Cards number two prospect by MLB Pipeline. He made his debut with St. Louis in 2016, and had a respectable campaign in 2017 at the age of 23 despite only throwing 60.1 innings. He had an ERA of 3.88 and 72 strikeouts to 17 walks.

2018 wasn’t so friendly to Weaver as he posted a 4.95 ERA and saw his walk rates spike and  strikeout rates drop. He was eventually moved to the bullpen and not long after, was one of the main pieces in a trade to the Diamondbacks this past December for slugging first baseman, Paul Goldschmidt.

His track record in the majors may not be as strong as some other names on this list, but Arizona will allow him every opportunity to rebound as he looks to be a long-term piece of their plan, not hitting free agency until at least 2024.