Blue Jays ready to get creative to find value in Draft

SAN FRANCISCO -- The 2026 MLB Draft brings another opportunity for the Blue Jays to add young talent to a farm system that’s back on the rise, but you’ll have to wait a while to hear their first pick.

The Blue Jays won’t pick until No. 39, as their first-round pick dropped 10 spots from No. 29 for exceeding the second surcharge threshold of competitive-balance tax. Unlike drafts in the NFL, NBA and NHL, though, the Blue Jays could get creative financially to land top-end talent, such as high school players with strong NCAA commitments.

It’s a unique challenge, though. The Blue Jays probably don’t need to waste time scouting UCLA’s Roch Cholowsky or Fort Worth Christian High School’s Grady Emerson, projected to go No. 1 and No. 2 in our latest MLB Pipeline Mock Draft, because neither will come close to pick No. 39.

“You still want to go scout the top players, but you don’t want to waste too much time when we think a Top-10 or Top-15 [player] is going to be gone,” director of amateur scouting Marc Tramuta said. “As the spring goes on, you get that sense and that feeling from scouts. The challenge early on is to keep it the same, scout how we normally would and then narrow the scope and focus to a different group of players as we get to the midpoint.”

Now, the Blue Jays’ job is to find value. Tramuta still sees opportunity in this class, especially on the mound.

“There’s depth, so I feel pretty good about the players. Let’s say there’s a group of 10 or 12, just to use a number, that I think are going to be there who we like, who we’ve spent a lot of time on,” Tramuta said. “There’s depth in the pitching, both college and high school. There’s some good college hitters. I think if there’s one area, and we’ll look back five years from now to say I’m right or wrong, but the one area that’s a little bit less is the high school position player. We still spend time on that, but we’ve really dug into the pitching class because there’s numbers, there’s volume, there’s depth there.”

Of course, that doesn't mean a pitcher at No. 39 is a sure shot. Baseball may have the most unpredictable Draft in North American pro sports, and if you’re a Blue Jays fan, you can look at that as another reason for optimism.

• Day 1 picks: 39, 103, 131
• Bonus pool allotment: $5,543,100
• Last year’s top pick: JoJo Parker, SS, pick No. 8 -- Billed as one of the top prep bats in the 2025 Draft class, Parker is already living up to the expectations. A recent surge has Parker up to nine home runs with an .845 OPS entering play Monday, and he’s even been a pleasant surprise on the bases with 21 steals in 25 attempts. The perfect project for a player development staff that’s also on the rise, Parker (No. 1 Blue Jays prospect, No. 27 overall) is the face of the Blue Jays’ farm system and could be their best position player prospect since the years of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette.
• Breakout 2025 pick: Blaine Bullard, OF, pick No. 352 -- The Blue Jays went well above slot value with a $1.7 million bonus to sign Bullard away from his commitment to play NCAA ball at Texas A&M. That’s already looking like money well spent. Bullard’s offensive approach is a work in progress, as he’ll work to cut down his swing-and-miss rate over the years, but the 19-year-old is already a strong defender and has stolen 29 bases in just 32 attempts. His playing style makes Bullard, Toronto’s No. 14 prospect, one of the most exciting prospects in this system to watch on a nightly basis.

Tramuta and his staff have also worked with the Blue Jays’ player development group more closely over the past year, a smart idea given that these players will be put in their hands immediately following the Draft. That’s been a welcome growth for all involved.

While this class won’t likely have another Parker right off the top, this group is showing an encouraging ability to develop young talent over the past couple of seasons. With another Trade Deadline approaching and the Blue Jays intent on competing for years to come, Draft day is one of the most important on the calendar.