A look back at 4 Blue Jays prospects who got away

Could the Jays have done more to keep these gems?

World Series - Chicago Cubs v Cleveland Indians - Game Seven
World Series - Chicago Cubs v Cleveland Indians - Game Seven | Ezra Shaw/GettyImages
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Tanner Houck

Who would have thought that a rival budding stud pitcher was at one point in time a property of the Jays. That is exactly the case for current Red Sox right-handed pitcher Tanner Houck, who was once selected in the 12th round out of Collinsville High School from the 2014 MLB Draft by Toronto. Unfortunately, Houck chose not to sign with the team as he attended the University of Missouri to play college ball. As he advanced his game in his college years, it led to the Red Sox taking him in the first round, 24th overall, in the 2017 MLB Draft.

Houck wasn’t producing eye-popping numbers coming up the Red Sox minor league system. But surprisingly, he has maintained strong numbers at the big league level since his debut with Boston back in 2020. In his five years with the club, he has compiled a 24-29 record with a solid 3.55 ERA, 1.19 WHIP with 417 strikeouts in 430.2 innings pitched over 104 games, including 71 starts. This season, Houck has posted career bests in ERA (3.12), wins (9), innings pitched (178.2) and strikeouts (154), en route to his first ever All-Star appearance.

More importantly, Houck has been one of the best in the business at keeping the ball in the ballpark, giving up only 33 home runs over the 430+ innings he has registered. That comes out to just one home run for about every 13 innings of work. He has also fared quite well against AL East opponents over his career, which is a tall task considering the potent offensive lineups found within the division. As a result, the Jays could have had a quality arm in their current rotation, especially one that had proven success within their daunting division that would have come in handy over the years.

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