This Blue Jays pitching prospect is looking like the real deal

Trey Yesavage, the Toronto Blue Jays' first-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, is off to a great start at Single-A affiliate Dunedin Blue Jays, and his success shouldn't go unnoticed.

His first start was a glimpse into his bright future and his subsequent three outings have been nothing short of amazing.

Over the first four starts of his professional career in the the minor leagues, Yesavage has posted a 3.12 ERA with a 2.07 FIP across 17 1/3 innings and has 28 strikeouts compared to just eight walks. Not only is he striking out over 40% of the batters he's faced this year, but he's also been very efficient at limiting the offense created by balls in play.

Yesavage boasts an incredible 4.67 H/9 rate, which shows just how effective he's been at missing bats in general. Only one of the nine hits he's allowed so far this season have gone for extra bases.

In his most recent outing, Yesavage struck out 10 hitters across 4 2/3 innings while allowing only one hit and two walks. He had a whiff rate of 44.4% in the outing and completely dominated the Tampa Tarpons, the Single-A affiliate of the New York Yankees.

This was his second straight start with 10 or more strikeouts across five-or-less innings, which shows that his his swing-and-miss stuff has been on full display.

A quick look at his performance so far this season shows why he was such a strong draft pick for Toronto, and his 2.03 ERA and 11-1 record in his final season at the NCAA level with East Carolina University.

The only remote concern with Yesavage's game at the moment is his slight problem with command. He's walked eight batters over 17 1/3 innings, which gives him a subpar 4.15 BB/9 rate. However, this is an inflated total when you look at her recent performances.

While he walked six batters in 3 2/3 innings in his first start of the year (he also allowed two runs and one hit), he's only walked two batters across 13 2/3 innings in his last three outings.

But it's not like his command has been completely crazy, as he's only thrown one wild pitch across his four outings. He's shown a distinct ability to control the strike zone and that will hopefully only improve as time progresses.

He's been absolutely dominating at Single-A so far, and one has to wonder how long it will be before he gets a well-deserved promotion. While each step of the minor leagues is noticeably more difficult than the last, Yesavage has shown that he's got the stuff to work his way up.

Trey Yesavage is the Blue Jays No. 84 ranked prospect per MLB Pipeline — one spot behind fellow Toronto prospect Arjun Nimmala, who is No. 83. With any luck, Yesavage will be in High-A or Double-A by the end of the year.

There are only 16 right-handed pitching prospects who are ranked higher than Yesavage, so he has his work cut out for him.

There have always been some rumblings that Yesavage could be on the fast track to MLB thanks to his strong arm and age (he'll turn 22 in July).

He has a fastball that can touch 95 MPH fastball and a solid cast of supporting pitches, Yesavage could be on the Blue Jays' MLB radar sooner rather than later.