Keith Law says Blue Jays landed two Top-50 talents despite draft disadvantage

Entering the 2026 MLB Draft, the Toronto Blue Jays weren't exactly working from a position of strength. Without a second-round pick, the second-smallest bonus pool in the draft and no selection until No. 39 overall, Toronto appeared destined to play catch-up while many of baseball's top organizations loaded up on elite talent.

Instead, MLB draft analyst Keith Law believes the Blue Jays did about as well as they possibly could. Speaking with Blake Murphy on Sportsnet 590 The Fan, Law praised Toronto's approach, saying the club maximized its limited draft capital by selecting two players he ranked among his top 50 prospects.

Law said. "I don't think they could have done any better given who was available."

Law was impressed with Toronto's first-round selection, Arizona State left-hander Cole Carlon. While Carlon's fastball-slider combination already gives him two pitches capable of missing bats at the professional level, Law believes there is even more untapped potential once he begins relying more heavily on his changeup.

"To get a guy in Cole Carlon who I think is a mid-rotation starter... he has the weapons, throws strikes and is really aggressive," Law explained. "To get a guy who has a high probability to be at least a mid-rotation starter and is a left-handed college pitcher was a tremendous pickup. Those guys are usually gone by the time the 39th pick comes around."

If Carlon represented tremendous value at the top of Toronto's draft, Law believes the Blue Jays may have pulled off an even bigger steal later on. By aggressively managing their bonus pool, Toronto was able to select high school catcher Will Brick in the fourth round despite Law viewing him as a borderline first-round talent.

"They then decided to pool the rest of their resources together and go get Will Brick, who was one of the best position-player prospects in this draft class and the best high school catching prospect in this draft class," Law said. "To get a guy who was ranked as a first-round prospect and a borderline first-round talent, that's tremendous for the Blue Jays."

Blue Jays got creative on Day 2 and after the draft

Law adds that the Blue Jays then had to spend most of Day 2 of draft day having to pick below slot value guys in the hopes that they can get Carlon and Brick to sign. At one point they picked seven straight college level pitchers, and while none of them were highly touted going into the draft, the quantity of arms can sometimes make up for the quality, especially as the Blue Jays are seemingly beginning to develop a good track record of churning out exciting pitching prospects.

But the Blue Jays didn't let their creativity stop there. They signed five undrafted free agent pitchers over the following two days. You have to give credit where credit is due. The Blue Jays' scouting staff certainly worked over time this year. While time will tell if that work has paid off, certainly getting the approval from an insider like Law has to be a good sign.

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