Brandon Barriera and Jake Bloss headline Blue Jays prospects heading to Arizona Fall League

With the minor league baseball season coming to an end, it means another winter ahead preparing for the next year. But for some select prospects, their playing time is not totally done yet as they will participate in the Arizona Fall League for further growth and development in the coming months.

The Toronto Blue Jays announced their list of prospects that will be heading to the Arizona Fall League on Monday. Among them included a few names that would be familiar to Blue Jays fans: outfielders Jake Cook and Jake Casey, catcher Aaron Parker, and pitchers Fernando Perez, Brandon Barriera, Jake Bloss, Yondrei Rojas and Gilberto Batista.

In terms of the notable Blue Jays prospects, both Barriera and Bloss would stand out from the group. Both players have been hindered in their development with injury woes in recent years. So to finally see them back in action in 2026 is great news for Toronto. Due to the limited innings that they have thrown this year, giving them both more playing time in the Arizona Fall League to get them back up to speed makes sense.

Brandon Barriera and Jake Bloss may have a chance to get into Toronto's rotation in 2027 - but need to have a productive offseason

In the case for Barriera, he has finally looked more like himself this year after recovering from Tommy John surgery and other injuries the past few years. The 22-year-old left-hander has posted a respectable 4.89 ERA, giving up just two home runs with 40 strikeouts in 38.2 total innings pitched over 15 appearances, including 13 starts in the Blue Jays’ minor league system in 2026.

That included an impressive string of four starts in August with Single-A Dunedin where he held his opponents scoreless with 16 strikeouts in over 13.2 innings of work. More importantly, Barriera has seen his fastball velocity touch the high 90s once again, showing that he is officially back on track.

As for Bloss, he represents the lone remaining asset for the Blue Jays from the Yusei Kikuchi trade fleece with the Houston Astros during the 2024 trade deadline. Had he been healthy, he likely would have factored in the Jays’ starting rotation right about now. However, an ulnar collateral ligament injury in his right elbow that required surgery in 2025, along with a shoulder injury in 2026 has limited Bloss to just 17 starts during the past two seasons since joining the organization.

This season, the 25-year-old right-hander has compiled a 6.18 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, with 37 strikeouts in 39.1 innings pitched over 11 starts in the minors with Toronto prior to his current shoulder issue.

In addition, Cook may have grabbed some attention in the Blue Jays’ organization this season with his blazing speed. This year, he has accumulated 22 stolen bases in 27 attempts split between his time in the Rookie League and Single-A Dunedin. With 77 games under his belt for his first professional baseball campaign in 2026, Cook could really use some further development in the AFL to polish up his game.

Nevertheless, it will be exciting to see how these Blue Jays prospects fare this fall, as the momentum that they build from the experience could help propel them to an even more successful upcoming season in 2027.

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