Ranking the top 10 most important young players to the Blue Jays’ future

No. 6 - INF Addison Barger

One of the Jays more surprising prospects has been the development and play of Addison Barger. Barger was selected by the Jays in the sixth round back in the 2018 MLB Draft. Ranked sixth on the Jays’ Top Prospects list, he has certainly made a name for himself by rapidly ascending through four levels in the organization in just the past two years. In 2022 in particular, he demonstrated he had the well-rounded ability to provide both power production and speed, along with maintaining a strong average by hitting .308 with 80 runs scored, 33 doubles, two triples, 26 home runs, 91 RBI, and nine stolen bases.

More impressively, Barger had a strong 2023 Spring Training with the Jays and nearly made the big league team, but eventually lost out to Nathan Lukes. Nevertheless, things may be working in his favour as both Santiago Espinal and Cavan Biggio have been struggling mightily for the Jays this season, along with Matt Chapman and potentially Whit Merrifield (pending his mutual option) entering free agency at the end of the season. All four players are currently playing in positions that Barger plays, so the opportunity may come earlier than expected for Barger to make an impact at the major league level sooner than later.