Blue Jays taking a risk leaving three top prospects unprotected after roster deadline

As the MLB 40-man roster deadline passed this week, the Toronto Blue Jays made one last addition to their roster, by adding top pitching prospect Ricky Tiedemann. However, more surprisingly was the fact that the Blue Jays and GM Ross Atkins chose to keep two spots open on their 40-man roster for potential offseason moves, rather than to protect a couple more promising prospects from the Rule 5 Draft that will be held in December.

As a result, Toronto is taking a risk by leaving some top prospects unprotected after the 40-man deadline. Those prospects include Josh Kasevich, Victor Arias and Yohendrick Pinango, who all happen to be among the top 12 Blue Jays prospects in the system, according to MLB Pipeline.

Blue Jays taking a risk by leaving these top prospects unprotected after 40-man roster deadline

For Kasevich, he may only be the third best infield prospect behind Arjun Nimmala and JoJo Parker in the organization, but he represents the only one among their top 30 that is most ready for potential big league action in the coming year. He reached Triple-A Buffalo in 2025, despite an injury filled season. Kasavich had a solid 2024 minor league campaign in which he batted .296 with 74 runs scored, six home runs and 64 RBIs in 128 games played. But the 24-year-old infielder was limited to 42 games last season.

His numbers might not have been there as a result, but his strong performances in each of his previous seasons as a consistent .300 hitter, could convince a lot of prospective teams that Kasevich has the potential to be a solid major leaguer.

In the case for Victor Arias, the young 22-year-old outfielder displayed his solid combination of hitting and speed with a .272 average, .755 OPS, along with seven home runs, 47 RBIs and 18 stolen bases in 102 games split between High-A Vancouver and Double-A New Hampshire. The potential of developing into a five-tool player is there for Arias, if he manages to hold up against more advanced pitching at the higher minor league levels.

But more worrisome for the Blue Jays would be the fast-rising Pinango, who has ascended from High-A all the way to Triple-A Buffalo in just a span of two years. Last season, the 23-year-old outfielder compiled a solid .258 average, .790 OPS, while registering career highs with 29 doubles, 15 home runs and 70 RBIs in 131 total games played. Therefore, between the three top prospects, Pinango’s solid production and maturity would most likely capture the attention of MLB teams looking for a young, productive outfielder to add to their roster.

Taking a look at Toronto’s current 40-man roster, which has 38 players on the list, it may be surprising to see that they have chosen to protect the likes of Justin Bruihl, Easton Lucas, Lazaro Estrada and others instead of their young prospects that they could end up losing in the upcoming Rule 5 Draft. But perhaps Atkins already has some intriguing plans up his sleeve involving those prospects and their future. Nevertheless, the Blue Jays will need to prepare for in one way or another that they may be losing a solid young player or two or more in the coming weeks.