MLB.com mock draft projects Blue Jays to take a pitcher with their first pick

The 2025 MLB Draft is officially underway in less than a week.

Let's backtrack to 1998, which is when the Toronto Blue Jays last had the 8th overall pick. They chose to select infielder Felipe Lopez out of Lake Brantley High School in Florida. Although he did appear in the 2005 All-Star Game (as a Cincinnati Red) and won a Silver Slugger, he never lived up to the expectations of an 8th overall pick. This holds especially true, as the Blue Jays shipped him off to the Reds just two years into his tenure.

Coming up on 27 years later, the Blue Jays are looking to redeem themselves with another shot at the 8th overall pick.

MLB.com mock draft projects Blue Jays to take a pitcher with their first pick

A few days ago, MLB.com released its most recent mock draft. Here, you'll find Jamie Arnold, the left-hander from Florida State University, sliding to eighth and being selected by the Toronto Blue Jays. In many mock drafts, Arnold is picked before the eighth pick, but if he drops down like MLB.com thinks, Blue Jays fans should be thrilled.

In 84.2 innings pitched this year, Arnold has gone 10-2 with a 2.98 ERA, 119 SO, and a 1.06 WHIP. The Tampa native throws from a funky, low slot, so he's able to miss a ton of bats with his mainly two-pitch mix. Arnold has a great feel for his fastball, which averages mid-90s mph, although he's able to notch it up to 97. His fastball, which has a ton of life, induced a 23.3% whiff rate over his Florida State tenure, a result of the whippy release.

He complements his fastball with an elite sweeping slider that averages 82-85 mph. In 2024, his slider was third in the league in whiff rate, with an incredible percentage of 41 percent. While he does throw a changeup as his third pitch, he doesn't use it all that much.

In what was an apparent "down year" for Arnold in 2024, he finished third in strikeouts, only behind first-round picks Chase Burns and Hagen Smith. His 33.9 strikeout rate and 50% ground ball rate turned heads, as he skyrocketed his way through mock drafts. Clearly, Arnold is a strikeout machine, which has led to his comparisons to Chris Sale, who also carved for the Florida State Seminoles. Some pretty high (and well-deserved) praise for the young prospect.

In the same "down year" where he finished with a 2.98 ERA in 105.2 innings pitched, he pitched one of the most dominant performances you'll ever see. He struck out 17 batters with 0 walks in 7 innings, and did it all in just 98 pitches. 2024 also saw Arnold as a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award while helping the Seminoles reach the national semifinals of the College World Series.

The Blue Jays are crafting a deep pitching pipeline, highlighted by Trey Yesavage, Juaron Watts-Brown, Gage Stanifer, and Khal Steven. The addition of Jamie Arnold, if he drops to the number eight spot, would bolster it even more.