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4 Prospects Who Could Help the Blue Jays Down the Stretch
September call-ups aren't what they once were, but teams still get to add two players for the playoff push in the final month.
For their late-season call-ups, the Blue Jays have options—able to add a few arms to deepen the bullpen, bring up an extra catcher, or add a useful bench bat. Among Toronto's choices are some of the organization's top prospects, who could help carry the Jays into the playoffs in 2022:
C Gabriel Moreno
In his first 18 MLB games, Gabriel Moreno hit .276 with a .593 OPS. While he had just one extra-base hit, the defensive athleticism and contact skills were on full display. But when Danny Jansen returned from injury, Moreno still found himself as the odd man out.
Toronto's top prospect was sent down because the organization wants him getting every day playing time, GM Ross Atkins said. As the Jays creep closer to October, there will likely come a point where Moreno's bat and explosive arm are more valuable to the Blue Jays than his developmental playing time in the minors this year. He's proven he can play at this level, and it's only a matter of time before he's back.
"I could not be more pleased and that was a lot of what I articulated to [Moreno], but I think there was a part of him that was humbled as well," GM Atkins said. "This is hard, not something that he doesn't have the confidence that he will be able to handle, but I think there was a piece of him that had a great deal of respect for the challenge of being a major league player."
1B/LF Spencer Horwitz
With 20 games at Triple A under his belt, Spencer Horwitz's approach and bat clearly play. The 24-year-old 1B/LF is slashing .289/.397/.489 across Double and Triple A this season, and members of the organization laud Horwitz's overall maturity as a hitter and ability to break down what opposing pitchers are trying to do to him.
While the MLB Jays haven't had too many issues with right-handed pitching this season, it's clear what Horwitz, the organization's best left-handed hitting prospect, could bring to the big leagues. He has a .312 BA, .946 OPS, and 83% of his homers against right-handed pitching, positioning him as a capable platoon bat or bench piece late in the season.
RHP Yosver Zulueta
Yosver Zulueta has a shot at the big leagues this year, and the Blue Jays aren't trying to hide it. Despite having 46 career minor league innings (that have all come this year), the 24-year-old Cuban is on the fast lane to Toronto.
He's long been seen as a guy who could quickly scale the system, but a 2019 Tommy John, 2020 rehab, and 2021 torn ACL sabotaged his chance the last few years. He's got a fiery four seamer that sits in the high-90s and can touch 100, with a high-spin slider, a darting changeup, and an occasional curveball.
Soon after a promotion to Double A in late June, Zulueta converted to the bullpen—preparing for a potential place in the big league 'pen later this year. In three outings in relief, Zulueta has pitched 4.2 innings, allowing two earned runs. The strikeout totals have remained high, but he's had some issues with control in recent weeks.
RHP Hayden Juenger
Though Hayden Juenger has 17 starts this season, he's long been preparing for a future relief role. Even most of his starts this season only lasted three or four innings, and in recent weeks he's converted into a two-inning reliever for Triple A Buffalo. In his four outings with the Bisons, the righty has 8.1 IP, 1ER, 8K, 4BB.
Juenger has three solid pitches to get out lefties and righties, mixing a mid-90s fastball with a sweeping slider and an electric changeup with plenty of run. The 22-year-old has the stamina and pitch mix that should play in the big leagues in a multi-inning relief role.
Other players currently in the minor leagues who could join the Jays down the stretch include P Nate Pearson, INF Tanner Morris, and RP Adrian Hernandez
