<span style="font-weight: 400;">A few seasons ago, the weakest position in the Blue Jays’ farm system was undoubtedly in the outfield.</span>



<span style="font-weight: 400;">Fast forward to around two months into the 2024 season, and it’s become one of the most well-stocked positions in the organization.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">That begs the question, who are some outfielders the Blue Jays have percolating in the minor leagues? We’ll look at outfielders with a wRC+ above 100 (min: 50 plate appearances), as well as some potential breakout outfielders and outfielders with a track record.</span>
<h2><b>Devonte Brown</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">I often ask the question “how was Devonte Brown undrafted”, and the question still rings true.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">This season with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, the 24-year-old is slashing .270/380/.431 with six home runs in 205 plate appearances. He has a good eye at the plate, posting a 13.7 BB%, but is struggling mightily with the strikeout rate, as it’s elevated to 37.6%.</span>

https://twitter.com/Ryley_L_D/status/1799583678357541209

<span style="font-weight: 400;">All in all, his 133 wRC+ is tied for first among outfielders in the organization. <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-prospect-profile-outfielder-devonte-brown">I wrote more on him in my latest Toronto Blue Jays Prospect Profile</a>.</span>
<h2><b>Nathan Lukes</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">This is Nathan Lukes’ third season in the organization, and it’s his third season of hitting well. The 29-year-old is slashing .333/.406/.480 with six homers in 192 plate appearances, along with a 9.9 BB% and a 15.1 K% for a 133 wRC+, tied for Brown.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Sadly, Lukes was recently placed on the 7-day Injured List with an injured thumb. There has been no update on his condition.</span>

https://twitter.com/ShiDavidi/status/1799873254137467200
<h2><b>Alan Roden</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">If you had to pinpoint one player who broke out during the 2023 season, Alan Roden is probably the guy you’re looking at. This season with Double-A New Hampshire, the 24-year-old corner outfielder is slashing .263/.372/.438. He’s also hit seven home runs in 231 plate appearances, along with a 12.1 BB% and a 13.9 K%. This gives him a 130 wRC+ for the season.</span>

https://twitter.com/FisherCats/status/1798853451964981754

<span style="font-weight: 400;">It is worth mentioning that his play has seen a slight drop since his tenure in New Hampshire last season, as he slashed .310/.421/.460 with six homers in 209 plate appearances for a 147 wRC+.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Still, a promotion to Triple-A should be in order around the All-Star break.</span>
<h2><b>Dasan Brown</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Dasan Brown will make the big leagues, but in what capacity is the question. This season in High-A Vancouver, the 22-year-old centrefielder is slashing .260/.369/.416 with five homers in 203 plate appearances. His 12.8 BB% is the highest of his career, minimum 100 plate appearances, while his K% of 24.1% is the lowest in his career.</span>

https://twitter.com/Ryley_L_D/status/1789012050141753772

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Overall, he has a 129 wRC+ and has been the driving force of Vancouver’s offence. He’s also stolen 12 of 13 bases this season, and a promotion to New Hampshire should be coming soon.</span>
<h2><b>Addison Barger</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Addison Barger has played more innings at third base, but Fangraphs considers him an outfielder (117 innings between left and right field), so I do too. This season with the bat, Barger is slashing .265/.384/.488 with the Buffalo Bisons, along with eight homers in 204 plate appearances.</span>

https://twitter.com/BlueJays/status/1785115560843399331

<span style="font-weight: 400;">In total, he has a 127 wRC+, and his K% has continued to drop, now sitting at 18.6%. The BB% is sitting at 15.2%. He’s one of a few infielder-turned-outfielders we’ll look at in this article.</span>
<h2><b>Victor Arias</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">The first Single-A Dunedin player we’ll look at, Victor Arias is a 20-year-old, left-handed batting corner outfielder. This season with the D-Jays, Arias is slashing .264/.379/.384 with two homers in 190 plate appearances, along with nine doubles, two triples, a 11.6 BB%, and a 23.2 K% for a 126 wRC+.</span>

https://twitter.com/MiLB/status/1795970496816697556

<span style="font-weight: 400;">He’s still quite a few years away from even reaching the upper-minors, but Arias has hit at any level he’s been at so far in his four-year career, with this being his best season (min:100 plate appearances)</span>
<h2><b></b><b>Steward Berroa</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Another prospect I once covered in the <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-prospect-profile-outfielder-steward-berroa">Toronto Blue Jays Prospect Profile series</a>, Steward Berroa has quickly become a prospect worth watching in Triple-A Buffalo. This season, he’s slashing .297/.381/.485 with six homers (one short of his career-high) in 177 plate appearances, along with an 11.3 BB% and a 26 K%.</span>

https://twitter.com/BuffaloBisons/status/1799572245234192688

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Overall, the 25-year-old has a 119 wRC+, but has also stolen 27 of 34 bases. Not as great as his 47/57 rate last season, but he’s a menace on the base paths.</span>
<h2><b>Enmanuel Bonilla</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">The Blue Jays signed Enmanuel Bonilla to a signing bonus of $4.1 million, the highest bonus they’ve given out in international free agency. Yes, even higher than what Vladimir Guerrero Jr. received.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">This season with the Florida Complex League Blue Jays, Bonilla is slashing .289/.364/.464 with three homers in 110 plate appearances, already matching his career-high from last season. However, his K% jumped from 24.3% to 30%, while his BB% decreased from 11.9% to 6.4%.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Still, Bonilla has a 119 wRC+ along with six doubles and a triple. It’s not a hot take to say at some point, he’ll be in the Top 100 best prospects list.</span>
<h2><b>Jace Bohrofen</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Jace Bohrofen was selected in the sixth-round of the 2022 draft, and has spent his entire 2024 season with the Vancouver Canadians. So far in 2024, he’s slashing .232/.363/.361 with three homers in 191 plate appearances, along with a 14.1 BB% and a 27.2 K%.</span>

https://twitter.com/Ryley_L_D/status/1798593782805578183

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Notably, the 22-year-old hit six homers in 77 plate appearances with the Single-A Blue Jays last season. Moreover, since May 22, Bohrofen has slashed .096/.145/.192 with a 1.8 BB% and a 34.5 K% for a -3 wRC+. Hopefully, this is just a small blip in a successful career.</span>
<h2><b>Alexis Hernandez</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Selected by the Blue Jays in the Minor League portion of the Rule 5 draft in 2023, Hernandez has had a solid start to his Blue Jays’ career.</span>

https://twitter.com/DunedinBlueJays/status/1794515367081001032

<span style="font-weight: 400;">This season in Single-A, he’s slashing .234/.354/.371 with four homers in 147 plate appearances, along with a 12.2 BB% and a 25.2 K% for a 115 wRC+. The four homers is a career-high, and it came in a five-game span at the end of May.</span>
<h2><b>Sam Shaw</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">The second of three infielders-turned-outfielders, Sam Shaw is a 19-year-old Canadian who was selected with the ninth-round pick in 2023. This season in the Florida Complex League, he’s slashing .240/.373/.354 in 119 plate appearances.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">There hasn’t been much in terms of extra-base hits, as he has two homers, three doubles, and a triple, but he’s shown an excellent eye at the plate registering a 16 BB% compared to a 10.9 K%. Overall, he has a 104 wRC+, and has played 19 innings in left field.</span>
<h2><b>Jean Joseph</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">The last player who has an average or better wRC+, Jean Joseph is slashing .229/.313/.374 with a career-best three homers in 150 plate appearances for a career-best 100 wRC+. He also has a 7.3 BB% (the lowest of his career) and a 22.7 K%.</span>

https://twitter.com/DunedinBlueJays/status/1792228936631345435

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The improvement is nice to see, especially as he’s already hit a career-high. He’s a good outfielder as well, and has played over 100 innings in centre and left, as well as 78 innings in right field.</span>
<h2><b>Yhoangel Aponte</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Now on to players with a sub 100 wRC+, first up is Yhoangel Aponte. Last season with the FCL Jays, he slashed .231/.344/.462 with a career-best eight homers in 183 plate appearances, along with another one with Dunedin at the end of the season.</span>

https://twitter.com/GeoffPontesBA/status/1782113922398490823

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The 2024 season hasn’t gone as well for the 20-year-old corner outfielder, as he’s slashing .204/.330/.331 with three homers in 218 plate appearances. Notably, his K% dropped a bit and now sits at 28.9%, while his 12.8 BB% is nice. Aponte has a 95 wRC+ for the season.</span>
<h2><b>Rafael Lantigua</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Rafael Lantigua, 26, was one of the Buffalo Bisons best hitters last season, slashing .305/.425/.469 with 12 homers in 578 plate appearances, along with a 17 BB% and an 18.5 K% for a 131 wRC+.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">After electing free agency and re-signing with the Blue Jays, it’s been a rough go of things for the infielder-turned-outfielder-that-still-plays-the-infield. This season, he’s slashing .273/.357/.360 with two homers in 196 plate appearances, along with an 11.2 BB% and a 21.9 K% for a 92 wRC+.</span>

https://twitter.com/BuffaloBisons/status/1796340373255496048

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The batting average is there, but after hitting 40 doubles and 12 homers last season, he has just nine doubles and two home runs.</span>
<h2><b>Will Robertson</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">A pure outfielder, Will Robertson had a great 2023 season, slashing .245/.323/.488 with 19 homers in 412 plate appearances for a 118 wRC+. This was carried by a huge second half, along with a great Arizona Fall League.</span>

https://twitter.com/BuffaloBisons/status/1777846888944767239

<span style="font-weight: 400;">However, after a solid start to his 2024 season where he hit four home runs in six games, Robertson’s bat has gone cold. Over his last two months, he’s slashing .175/.291/.270 with a 12.8 BB% and a 31.8 K% for a 51 wRC+.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">For the season, he’s slashing .218/.326/.408 with seven homers in 172 plate appearances, along with a 12.8 BB% and a 32 K% for a 90 wRC+. Hopefully another great second half is in order here.</span>
<h2><b>Jaden Rudd</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Another breakout candidate, Jaden Rudd was selected in the seventh-round of the 2021 draft and is just 21. Yet, he’s already had some clutch moments in his young career, including a two-run double for Team Great Britain, during the 2023 World Baseball Classic.</span>

https://twitter.com/WBCBaseball/status/1635394051209043968

<span style="font-weight: 400;">On the affiliate side of things, Rudd is slashing .233/.333/.288 with no homers, two doubles, and a triple in 84 plate appearances with the Vancouver Canadians. While he’s always had a great eye at the plate (13.1 BB% this season), his K% has jumped to 31% from 25.6% the season prior.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Still, he’s someone who I think can break out in the next few seasons.</span>
<h2><b>Gabriel Martinez</b></h2>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">One player who had a breakout already was Gabriel Martinez. During the 2022 season, he slashed .293/.355/.477 with 14 homers in 389 plate appearances in the Complex League, Single-A, and Triple-A.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">However, he struggled in his first full season in 2023 with Vancouver, slashing .242/.300/.374 with 12 homers in 448 plate appearances, along with a 6.9 BB% and a 16.5%. After a good start to his 2024 season with the Double-A Fisher Cats, he’s slashing .202/.264/.343 with four homers in 193 plate appearances, along 11 doubles and a triple.</span>

https://twitter.com/FisherCats/status/1793077579018391594

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The 21-year-old is a former top 10 prospect for the team, but after a rough 2023 season, he fell off the MLB Pipeline Top 30 list, and his 2024 hasn’t helped his case.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Still, there’s a track record there and he’s still young for the level.</span>

<hr />

<i><span style="font-weight: 400;">As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.</span></i>

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