Blue Jays fans will love hearing who Ryan Cooney is getting compared to

If you're looking to get a fan base excited about a prospect, the best way to do that is to compare that prospect to a player the fans already know and love. That's exactly what Marc Tramuta did after the Toronto Blue Jays selected Ryan Cooney with their second pick of the draft (third-round, No. 103 overall). Tramuta told Blue Jays' reporters that the Oregan Ducks infielder reminds him of current Blue Jays' second baseman, Ernie Clement.

Tramuta said, "Kind of compared it to an Ernie Clement clone where it's a higher-contact bat at second base ... a really polished hitter and contact bat."

Considering that Clement went from a DFA'd utility infielder to starting this year's All-Star game for the American League, Blue Jays fans should be absolutely thrilled upon hearing those words. Clement solidified himself as a fan favourite last year by putting together the best regular season of his career for the AL East champion Blue Jays. Then he went on a tear in the postseason and stole the hearts of Jays nation by collecting more hits in a single postseason than anyone in the history of MLB.

The similarities aren't that hard to see either. Cooney's offense is built around a contact-first type approach with a good eye for the strike zone. The 21-year-old stands at six-foot and 195-pounds and only struck out 35 times while slashing .331/.420/.524. He led the Ducks with 82 hits, including 22 doubles and 31 extra-base hits with 13 stolen bases.

He's also versatile, like Clement. While Cooney played the majority of this season at second base, he's moved around during his career with the Ducks, playing at short and third. He was ranked as the 137th best prospect according to MLB Pipleine and 175th by Baseball America.

Cooney could end up being Clement's successor

Timing is everything in baseball and it's interesting that Cooney could end up being Clement's successor at the big league level. At 30-years-old Clement clearly still has several years where he could be a very useful every day player, but he isn't on a long-term contract. In fact he isn't eligible for free agency for another three years.

By 2029, Clement will be 33-years-old and looking to test free agency for the first time. Depending on the gains made by current prospects Arjun Nimmala and JoJo Parker, Clement may already be getting squeezed out. Add Cooney to the mix and it's easy to see a situation where there might not be enough room on the roster for all four of them.

Of course that would require a lot of things to go right for Cooney (and Parker and Nimmala), but that's why the Blue Jays are picking these players, in the hopes that they can move their way through the system and eventually become big league contributors. For now, it will be interesting to watch just how much Cooney's plate approach can translate into his first few years in pro-baseball.

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