Blue Jays: What the mock drafts are predicting for today’s MLB Draft

The Toronto Blue Jays will be selecting 19th in this year’s MLB Draft happening later today, with scouting director Shane Farrell and general manager Ross Atkins looking to add to an already potent farm system.

While the organization may not get as lucky as they did last year with Austin Martin falling to them at #5, the Blue Jays will have to work with limited bonus money ($5,775,900, third lowest in the league) and no second-round pick after the George Springer singing this past off-season. This may seem like a tough stance for the Blue Jays to be but there will still be a lot of quality players available when the Jays take the podium later tonight. The slot value at #19 is valued at $3,359,900 dollars.

That being said, media sources and sports journalists have done numerous mock drafts and in-depth analyses for this year’s MLB Draft, with Jays Journal contributors also getting in on the fun. Let’s take a look at what the sources are predicting as the Blue Jays head into this year’s MLB Draft.

The Toronto Blue Jays will select #19th overall in this year’s MLB Draft, with multiple sources predicting the organization picking between OF Jay Allen, LHP Anthony Solometo, and C Harry Ford.

Jay Allen – Outfielder

John Carroll Catholic High School

Source – ESPN insider Kiley McDaniel, Eric Longenhagen and Kevin Goldstein with Fangraphs, and Mike Axisa with CBS Sports

In this mock draft scenario, the Blue Jays appear to be heading towards a high school center fielder in Jay Allen, the #33 ranked prospect in the draft this year by MLB.com.

Allen is an athletic player that has power in the batter’s box and an arm that bodes well for a player patrolling the outfield. Currently playing center field, the 6’3″ righty-batter is a three-sport athlete at John Carroll Catholic High School (football and basketball). He currently has a commitment to the University of Florida to play baseball, so if the Blue Jays do draft Allen, they will have to convince him to forego his college commitment.

Scouts believe that he could make the transition to a corner outfield position over time but adding an outfielder to the Blue Jays system is not a bad thing, especially if he can hit for power. High school players always have the added risk when it comes to college commitments and development issues but if the bat can perform and the money is there, Allen would be a great addition.

The fact that three insiders/journalists have Allen going to the Blue Jays is kind of shocking, especially since the MLB Draft can go sideways pretty quickly when it comes to predictions and mock drafts. Apparently, the Jays have been interested in the high schooler since last year, which could mean a lot or could mean nothing in the grand scheme of things.

The last time Ross Atkins used the first pick in the draft on a high school player was Jordan Groshans back in 2018 and the last time the Blue Jays drafted a high school outfielder at the top spot was D.J. Davis back in 2012 under Alex Anthopoulos, who never reached the major league stage.