Blue Jays announce an additional internal spring training non-roster invite

When pitchers and catchers reported on Thursday, there was someone who could be considered a surprising arrival in Dunedin. As confirmed on social media, the Blue Jays invited internal non-roster pitcher T.J. Brock to spring training.

This is the second pleasant surprise involving Brock in recent months, following on from FanGraphs ranking him sixth among the Blue Jays' top 31 prospects and then landing in the 29 spot on Jays Journal's 2024 prospects update.

Last season, the 24-year-old was tremendous in 15 High-A appearances, as he produced a 1.77 ERA and 0.836 WHIP in 20.1 combined innings. This earned him a much-deserved promotion to Double-A.

However once in New Hamshire, the reality is Brock struggled to replicate his success in Vancouver. He pitched 32.1 innings over 32 appearances, in the process recording a 6.68 ERA and 1.608 WHIP.

Despite this setback, FanGraphs still project the 2022 sixth round draft pick will be ready for the Majors by next year. This clearly alludes to how much upside the youngster possesses.

One thing Brock had plenty of success with in Double-A was strikeouts, with his 56 averaging out to 15.6 per nine innings. Interestingly though, rather than his fastball, it is a slider capable of reaching 90 mph which is considered his most dangerous weapon.

Another example of positive progress is the durability displayed by the Cincinnati, Ohio native during 2023 after previous injury issues. His 52.2 combined innings in the minors were easily his most since throwing 31.0 innings back in 2019, while he was at Ohio State.

Brock still has plenty of work to do in his quest to get to the Majors, but the non-roster invite to Dunedin is an important step in his development. The Blue Jays appreciate how invaluable the experience will be in going up against Major League-level bats, which will only help him down the road.

In terms of Brock's future prospects, he finished 32 of the 47 combined games he pitched in the minors last year. It will be interesting to see if the organisation keeps him in this role moving forward, or if they have other plans for him at some point.

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