Rockies may have forced Blue Jays into a pivot after Colorado snags Toronto's perceived top pick

The MLB Draft rarely goes as planned and the 2026 version was no different. The pick many experts believed the Toronto Blue Jays were going to go after was snatched out of their grasp just ahead of their first selection.

The Blue Jays didn't get to pick until the 39th pick of the draft thanks to a penalty they incrued due to their offseason spending. But after 37 picks went by, UCLA pitcher Logan Reddemann was still on the board. Several experts had Reddemann going to the Blue Jays in their pre-draft boards for two main reasons. One of those being the Blue Jays were expected to covet a pitcher with their first pick. The second being the fact that many teams were hesitant due to Reddemann's recent injury history.

He got shut down at the end of April and didn't pitch for the rest of the season due to arm fatigue and that knocked down his pre-draft stock. However, he got some work in at the MLB Draft Combine and in a bullpen session was hitting some mid-to-high 90s marks with his fastball, which had many people convinced he was over whatever was ailing him.

Reddemann was ranked within the Top 40 going into the draft, so getting him at No. 39 would've made a ton of sense. However, the Rockies stepped up at No. 38 and stole him right from under the noses of the Canadian franchise, possibly forcing them to go to their alternative plans.

Blue Jays still ecstatic with their first round pick

Toronto ended up grabbing Cole Carlon, an imposing left-handed pitcher out of Arizona State who stands at six-foot-five. He was ranked lower on pre-draft boards because 2026 was his first full season in the Sun Devils rotation after spending the previous two years as a reliever.

Carlon posted good numbers but his mix projects him to be a better shut down reliever over the long-term. However, Blue Jays' amateur scouting director Marc Tramuta told reporters that he was thrilled with landing Carlon.

Of course, time will tell on how either pitcher pans out. But after the first day of the draft, the Blue Jays have to like the fact they are adding a 21-year-old who looks incredibly intimidating on the mound and who can hit triple digits with his fastball.

According to Blue Jays' reporter Ben Nicholson-Smith, there were several teams ahead of the Blue Jays that really liked Carlon and were hoping that he would fall through until the second round. But with the Blue Jays almost in a sandwich pick spot between the first and second rounds, and with the fact they had small pool of signing money to play with going into the draft, they were going to have to get creative. It seems the Blue Jays did exactly that with the Carlon pick.

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