Sean Keys did exactly what the Blue Jays were hoping for on Canada Day

The Toronto Blue Jays promoted slugging prospect Sean Keys to the major leagues on June 27th hoping he would inject some power into their lineup—and he did exactly that on Canada Day. Keys clubbed his first MLB home run in Toronto’s emphatic 9-3 win over the New York Mets on Wednesday, taking Freddy Peralta deep in the bottom of the third inning.

Can Keys solve the Blue Jays' power problems?

Keys, 23, got the call to the big leagues after hitting seven home runs in just 18 games at Triple-A with the Buffalo Bisons. This came after he went deep 14 times in 49 games in Double-A with the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. 

It’s been a rapid rise to MLB for Keys, who the Blue Jays selected in the fourth round of the 2024 MLB Draft out of Bucknell University. He spent the majority of his time last season in High-A ball with the Vancouver Canadians. 

Keys stands six-foot-one and weighs in at 232 pounds—he is a big man with legitimate power. The kind of thump he showed in the minor leagues can’t be faked. The biggest question is whether he will make enough consistent contact as a relatively raw prospect. 

He struck out 51 times in his 209 plate appearances with the Fisher Cats. He did cut that down to just 15 times in 77 plate appearances with the Bisons before his promotion to the Blue Jays, however. 

Five of Keys’ first 12 trips to the plate as a Blue Jay have ended in a strikeout. Whether the adjustments he made in Buffalo translate in Toronto is to be determined, but the early returns suggest his approach is still a work in progress. He’s not nearly as refined as someone like Yohendrick Piñango. 

Still, Keys’ Canada Day home run is a prime example of why the Blue Jays need to keep giving him opportunities. They entered Thursday ranked just 23rd in home runs as a team, with only one of their hitters—Kazuma Okamoto—in double digits. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., meanwhile, is on pace to hit fewer than ten this year. Toronto needs power and that’s what Keys provides. 

If this thump comes in the form of the occasional home run surrounded by a lot of unproductive outs, then, of course, the Blue Jays won’t keep running Keys out there. But if he can hit at a 20 or 30 home run pace while maintaining a playable batting average? Then he needs to be in the lineup often. 

The biggest barrier to playing time for Keys right now is his positional fit. He’s a corner infielder by trade, two positions where the Blue Jays have established regulars in Okamoto and Guerrero. He was the designated hitter in Wednesday’s game with George Springer out on paternity leave—that spot won’t be open when he is back unless the team commits to platooning him. 

Getting Keys in the lineup is going to require some creativity from Blue Jays manager John Schneider. It will be worth the effort, though, if he keeps hitting baseballs over the fence as he did on Canada Day. 

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