Blue Jays Projected To Take High School Shortstop in Latest Mock Draft
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The Toronto Blue Jays have a lot to look forward to this season. They are still in the hunt in the American League East as the division is uncharacteristically weak this year. Additionally, the Blue Jays own the eighth pick in the 2025 MLB draft.
This is the first pick within the top 10 Toronto has had since the 2020 draft. That year, the Blue Jays took Austin Martin, a college shortstop from Vanderbilt.
Jim Callis of MLB.com projects Toronto to take high school shortstop Billy Carlson with their first round pick this year.
What Will Blue Jays Do With First Pick in Draft?
The last time Toronto took a high school shortstop was in 2023. The team took Arjun Nimmala that year. Nimmala is off to a great start this season, so Carlson would be waiting behind him. The 19-year-old is the team's No. 1 prospect, as well.
Along with Nimmala, the Blue Jays have two other shortstops in their top 30 prospect list. One of them, Josh Kasevich, is expected to make his MLB debut at some point in 2025.
Still, if Carlson is available at pick eight, the Blue Jays would not be wrong to take him.
The right-handed batter has a lot of upside with his bat. According to his MLB Pipeline profile, Carlson has 50-grade power. He is just 6-foot-1, 160 pounds, so there is plenty of room for him to grow and add muscle.
His defensive skill is the best part of his game. He has a 65-grade arm with a 70-grade glove. The sure-handed shortstop was once expected to be a two-way star in the draft. He can reach the mid-90s on the mound, but he is too much of an athlete to just be a pitcher.
Carlson will be 19 once the draft happens, which will make some teams hesitant to draft him. But, being only 19, the righty has a high ceiling. If Toronto takes him at eight, it would be a great pick for the franchise.
Past Picks
Since 2015, the Blue Jays have taken four shortstops in the first round of the MLB draft. When they are not taking a player to captain the infield, Toronto has taken four pitchers.
There is plenty of pitching talent in the draft, so if the Blue Jays do not take Carlson, it is most likely that they will pick a pitcher.
The draft is still a few months away, meaning Toronto has plenty of time to figure out who is at the top of their board.
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Cameron Zunkel is a sports writer from the western suburbs of Chicago. He played Division-II baseball at the University of Illinois at Springfield where he earned a masters degree in Communication. Cameron also played independent league baseball for the Joliet Slammers and Schaumburg Boomers of the Frontier League. He has been in journalism since 2022 and has a passion for baseball specifically, but he enjoys all sports. His other work includes writing sports betting articles for ClutchPoints. In his free time, you can catch Cam at the gym, on the golf course, or coaching the youth in the beautiful sport of baseball.