Blue Jays: Pitching prospects who could crack the Opening Day roster

Kirby Snead

One of the most effective relievers with the Bisons this year, southpaw Kirby Snead got his chance this season with the Blue Jays. In Buffalo, Snead would finish the campaign with a 1.58 ERA through 36 outings and would continue to pitch well even when he rode the options bus for the Blue Jays this year. The Florida product would craft a 2.35 ERA through seven outings in the big leagues, striking out seven batters through 7.2 innings.

Opponents did get their fair share of hits off of him this year to the tune of a .259 batting average but Snead was able to limit the damage to just two earned runs. He will need to find a way to keep the opposing team off of the base paths but Snead does have a legitimate shot of cracking the Opening Day roster considering he is on the 40-man, so he should be in the mix early next year.

Bryan Baker

One of Buffalo Bisons closers and arguably best relief pitcher this year, right-hander Bryan Baker only appeared in one game for the Blue Jays this season, which kind of surprised me in that I thought they may have called him up before other internal options like Snead or Connor Overton. In AAA, Baker would finish the year with a 1.31 ERA through 39 outings and would accumulate 11 saves, 48 strikeouts, and a 0.847 WHIP in 41.1 innings of work.

Acquired from the Colorado Rockies back in 2018, Baker has progressed well throughout the Blue Jays minor league system and should enter Spring Training next year as a potential bullpen candidate to begin the season, helped by the fact he too is on the 40-man roster.