Blue Jays Nation’s Pre-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 15: Dahian Santos

Photo credit: Dunedin Blue Jays

Feb 15, 2024, 06:00 ESTUpdated: Feb 15, 2024, 19:15 EST

Who doesn’t love pitchers with gross stuff?

This is Blue Jays Nation’s annual pre-season list, in which I’ll take a look at the top 50 prospects in the organization. We’ll look at the player’s stats, my observations, and other publications’ scouting reports if available.

Let’s take a look at Dahian Santos.

Getting to know Dahian Santos…

Position: Starting pitcher

Throws: Right

Born: February 26, 2003

Acquired: 2019 International Free Agency

2023 Team: High-A Vancouver

Previous Ranking: 14

The Blue Jays signed the Venezuelan pitcher during the 2019-2020 International Free Agency period, but he didn’t make his debut until 2021. With the FCL Jays that season, he posted a 4.58 ERA and a 4.09 FIP in 35.1 innings, along with a 35.6 K% and an 8.1 BB%. Santos, who was 18 at the time, also pitched five innings in Single-A that season, allowing seven earned runs and striking out five batters as opposed to giving up four free passes.

Santos started the 2022 season with the Dunedin Blue Jays, posting a 3.44 ERA and a 3.51 FIP in 73.1 innings, along with a great 39.3 K% and an 11.5 BB%. This was his breakout season, but struggled after a promotion to High-A, posting a 10.66 ERA and a 5.64 FIP in 12.2 innings pitched, along with a 34.4 K% and a 14.1 BB%.

Like the season prior, Santos started at the level he left off at the year before and had success. In 2023, Santos posted a 3.54 ERA and a 4.78 FIP in 48.1 innings pitched with his K% dropping to 27.2%, remaining with a high BB% of 13.1%. Unfortunately for Santos, the last time he pitched was on July 1 due to a forearm strain.

Santos’ slider is his best weapon, as it had an average spin rate of 2726 RPM during his time with Dunedin in 2022, along with a maximum of 2983 RPM. Of course, that nasty movement generates a ton of swings and misses. The fastball sits in the low-90s, while his changeup has some arm-side fade.

Ryley Delaney

@Ryley__Delaney

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Here's Dahian Santos's strikeout thread from this evening! Nasty slider here for the swing and miss. #BlueJays #NextLevel

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8:25 PM · Jun 16, 2023

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With that being said, Santos ranks on most publication’s top Blue Jays lists, with Fangraphs ranking him as their 20th-best Jay prospect, while Scott Mitchell has him as his 24th-best Blue Jay prospect, and Baseball America has him as their 18th-best Blue Jay prospect.

Both Fangraphs and Mitchell note that Santos has a lot of athleticism, but also noted that his frame isn’t the typical starter build and still needs filling out. There’s hope that Santos can add velocity as he does that, but the best pitch for him will always be his slider. If it doesn’t work out as a starter, Mitchell believes that Santos can be a once-through-the-order reliever with his slider.

Either way, it’s probable that Santos will start the 2024 season with the High-A Canadians, but will eventually find his way to Double-A where he’ll face more advanced hitters. There, the Jays will be able to tell whether or not the 21-year-old is destined for the rotation or the bullpen. A tick up in velocity and throwing pitches for strikes more often will certainly help him as well.