3 practical first round fits for the Blue Jays in the 2026 MLB draft

Let's face it, there are very few "sure things" in the MLB draft. Take Trey Yesavage for instance. If every team felt he was going to be ready for The Show less than a year after he was drafted and could be contributing to a team with World Series aspirations then he probably wouldn't have still been available at the No. 20 slot in the 2024 draft.

That allowed the Toronto Blue Jays to snatch him up and take full advantage of the 22-year-olds right arm and get to within two outs of winning a World Series title. It goes to show that sometimes a team's front office, general manager, or scouting staff can have a tendency to over think the situation and miss out on a quality player.

The Blue Jays are hoping that a few teams do that this year as they won't be picking until the 39th pick in this year's draft. That's thanks to their flurry of spending this offseason which handed them a ten-pick penalty. No matter, the Blue Jays will just have to do their research and if one of these three names are still on the board by the time the team is on the clock, it would make absolute sense to grab them.

A lot of reasons for the Blue Jays to get excited if these three names are still on the board

The first player that fits into that category is 21-year-old Logan Reddemann, a right-handed pitcher at UCLA. Reddemann was the number one pitcher on the best collegiate team in the country and many scouts are saying he is "first-round material." MLB.com listed Reddemann as being available to the Blue Jays, but warned he could likely go higher.

The reason for the skepticism is due to the fact he got injured in April and had a slower start to his season. But the 6-foot-2, 185 lbs Reddemann bounced back to show electric stuff. His fastball sits in the mid-90s and can almost reach triple digits. He also gets above average grades his cutter, while his changeup, slider and curveball all gradeout between 55-45 respectively by MLB Pipeline. He went 8-0 in ten starts with a 2.87 ERA and a 2.68 FIP in 59.2 innings pitched with a 35.7% strikeout rate.

If Reddemann is taken (which, if not for the injury scare, he'd likely be going in the top 20) then the Blue Jays could take a good look at Zion Rose out of Louisville. The 21-year-old outfielder is a speedster in both the field and on the bases - one of just six NCAA Division 1 players to have at least 30 extra-base hits and 30 or more stolen bases in 2025.

The 6-foot-1, right-handed hitter also le Louisville to the College World Series that year and played on the U.S. collegiate national team. He's shown an ability to drive balls gap-to-gap and could potentially hit more home runs if he develops a knack for pulling the ball with his current power grading at a 55 (on the 20/80 scale).

The reason why Rose could fall a bit is his defense as he doesn't have a great arm and is a "fringy" defender according to MLB pipeline, but he's incredibly athletic. He was a catcher in high school, but switched to the outfield when he committed to Louisville - so changing positions if it isn't going well isn't new to Rose.

Lastly, there's Landon Thome, son of Hall of Famer Jim Thome, and the Blue Jays LOVE their second generation ball players. The younger Thome is ranked as the 37th best prospect coming into the draft and scouts are incredibly impressed with his skills at the plate. The 18-year-old is regarded as one of the best all-around hitters in the high school crop this year as the left-handed hitter as very advanced pitch recognition and bat-to-ball skills while making a lot of hard contact.

His swing allows him to drive balls and scouts believe that the current 6-foot, 177 lbs infielder should be able to tap into more power as he fills out and improves his bat speed. Although, by filling out, he could also lose some of his foot speed, and unlike his dad, he's actually got some. Thome swiped 49 bags this past season.

He played second base, shortstop and third base for Nazareth Academy in Illinois and scouts say he's a reliable defender with sure hands. Although they also don't like his arm strength from short over the long haul.

Thome is committed to Florida State and the Blue Jays currently have a nice crop of middle infielders in their system right now - but if nobody takes Thome within the first 38 picks, it wouldn't be completely out of the box for the Blue Jays to add another player with a familiar name to their system.

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