Grading the last 5 Toronto Blue Jays first-round picks 

2020 – SS Austin Martin 

At the time, Austin Martin was considered the best pure hitter of his draft class back in 2020. So when he miraculously fell to the Blue Jays in the fifth spot in the draft, many believed that Toronto hit the jackpot with the pick. For someone who hit over .370 with a 1.000+ OPS in each of his final two years in college, no one was doubting that he couldn’t fulfill his promise in becoming a future elite hitter.

However, his tenure with the Jays’ organization would be short-lived as he became part of the trade package sent to the Minnesota Twins that brought in scintillating starter José Berríos at the 2021 trade deadline. Since then, Martin has worked his way up the Twins’ minor league system and has successfully made his MLB debut with the team this season. In 47 games, he has hit .266 with a .702 OPS, 27 runs scored, 9 doubles, 1 home run, 9 RBI and 6 stolen bases. Martin hasn’t turned out to be the prolific hitter he was expected to be as of yet. Neither has he developed his power with just 16 career home runs to date. Nevertheless, he has shown flashes of his potential and remains a work in progress.

Based on just Martin’s overall performance so far, the grade for the pick would have been a lot lower that one would expect. But keep in mind he was a key trade chip that was utilized to bring Berríos to town. Added to the fact that Berríos had done his part in stabilizing the front end of the Jays’ rotation in three of the past four seasons, the grade pans out to a solid B from the Jays’ perspective.

Grade: B