The Toronto Blue Jays are dripping with feel-good stories throughout the organization right now. Up and down from the DSL to the big league roster, you can find a litany of feel-good stories and breakout stories.

None, however, might be as cool as what Colby Martin is doing right now down in Dunedin as a flame-throwing reliever.

To fully appreciate his season to date, you have to go back in time. Martin didn’t start pitching full-time until last season! The right-hander bounced around multiple Division III schools as a second baseman before landing with Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia. He was an All-American second baseman in 2021 and missed the 2022 season due to Tommy John Surgery before returning in 2023 and once again becoming an All-American infielder.

Around that time, Shenandoah began experimenting with Martin coming out of a bullpen on occasion because of his ability to hit 100 MPH from the infield. It didn’t go well as he posted a 16.20 ERA in just three appearances. Teams had taken notice of his undeniable arm talent, however, and were looking to draft Martin as a pitcher in the 2023 amateur draft. The Pennsylvania product had landed tryouts from the Mets, Red Sox, and Phillies before the draft, while the San Diego Padres personally invited him to showcase his talents at Petco Park in front of key members of the Padres front office. They liked what they saw because while they didn’t draft Martin, they did sign him as a UDFA just after the draft. However, they quickly rescinded the offer after they found issues with his MRI following the surgery he had had on his UCL. A crushing moment undoubtedly.

Martin decided to go back to school and hone in on pitching even more, landing at Southeastern University. Martin posted a 4.41 ERA across 16 innings while punching out 31 hitters and topping out at 102 MPH. His perseverance paid off as the Toronto Blue Jays selected him in the 16th round of the 2024 draft.

Martin made his professional debut just a few weeks after hearing his name called on draft day, slotting into nine games with the Dunedin Blue Jays and producing a 7.27 ERA. To say walks were an issue would be an understatement – he walked 29.2% of the batters he faced in 2024. Of the 215 pitches he wound up throwing, 110 of them were balls. He threw more balls than strikes. His elite stuff wouldn’t be of much use if he couldn’t control them worth a lick.

That said, pitching was still incredibly new to Martin; he’s only had a year of being a full-time reliever under his belt. The stuff was/is undeniable, he just had to get more reps in so he could improve the feel and gain more confidence and conviction in his stuff. With an offseason to continue to focus solely on pitching and refining his control/command, Martin worked closely with the Blue Jays at their Player Development Complex in Dunedin, where he was already pitching. He was hoping to come out of the gates much better in 2o25.

Wielding mainly a two-pitch mix featuring his power 4-seamer and cutter, Martin has started the year as a much-improved pitcher.

Through his first 19 innings of work, he’s produced a 1.86 ERA backed up by a very respectable 3.20 FIP. The walks are still higher than what he’d like, but it’s a stark improvement from last year, as he’s walking “only” 17.3% of hitters this year. Martin has continued to miss bats at extremely effective rates; his 32% strikeout rate is among the leaders of all arms in the organization. He has once again hit 102 MPH with his fastball while sitting at 96.7 MPH. If you take Martin’s three main pitches (fastball/cutter/occasional slider) and their respective whiff rates, you get an average whiff% of 49.6%. What that means is that if you account for every single swing hitters have taken on Colby Martin this year, HALF of them have resulted in a swing and a miss. That is UNHEARD of for any pitcher, let alone someone completely new to the role.

Where things go from here remains to be seen. Martin should be in line for a promotion to Vancouver soon. His electric stuff, which has produced outlier results from a whiff standpoint, is impressive. He still has a long way to go, obviously, but if he can continue to sustain this level of stuff, while simultaneously refining his control and command, Martin has the makings of a future high-leverage shutdown reliever.