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Blue Jays 2026 Draft: History of the 131st overall pick
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Photo credit: © John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Jun 28, 2026, 10:00 EDTUpdated: Jun 27, 2026, 20:18 EDT
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The Toronto Blue Jays third pick in the 2026 Major League Baseball draft is the 131st selection.
Last off-season, the Blue Jays signed Dylan Cease, forfeiting their second and fifth-highest pick. They’ll keep their fifth-round pick, instead losing the compensation pick they would’ve received for losing Bo Bichette.
As for the 131st overall pick itself, it has produced three All-Stars, with one of them playing for the Blue Jays. On top of that, the Blue Jays have selected 131st overall twice in franchise history, both coming in the 1980s.
Let’s take a look at those two players, as well as other notable players selected 131st overall.

David Trimble, 1980

The Blue Jays selected third baseman David Trimble 131st overall in the 180 draft. With the Blue Jays’ rookie league team, the Medicine Hat Blue Jays, Trimble slashed .228/.346/.321 with four home runs in 266 plate appearances.
His 1981 saw him slashing .188/.226/.275 with one home run in 85 plate appearances, his final plate appearances in his career.

Jeff Mays, 1985

Five years later, the Jays selected Jeff Mays 131st overall. With the Med Hat Blue Jays, he appeared in 17 games, posting a 6.24 ERA in 53.1 innings pitched.
In late-August, 1985, the Jays sent him and two other right-handed pitchers to the Texas Rangers for Cliff Johnson. Mays played another three seasons of professional ball, reaching as high as Double-A before retiring.

Notable players selected 131st overall

The lone player selected 131st overall to play for the Blue Jays is Paul DeJong. His All-Star appearance came four years before joining the Jays, as the shortstop slashed .233/.318/.444 with 30 home runs in 2019.
Before the 2023 trade deadline, the Blue Jays sent relief prospect Matt Svanson to the Cardinals for DeJong. Getting a shortstop suddenly became a necessity, as Bichette went down with an injury. DeJong was DFA’d shortly after Bichette return, and he most recently playing in the big leagues in 2025.
There was another player selected 131st overall who pitched in the Jays organization, Patrick Kivlehan. Drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 2012 draft, Kivlehan made his professional debut with the Everett AquaSox in 2012. In 2019, he was traded to the Blue Jays, pitching for their Double-A and Triple-A team.
A decade later, another 131st overall pick had a link to the AquaSox, as Eric Farris served as the manager in 2021 and 2022. Farris was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2007, and appeared in 14 big league games.
Torey Lovullo also has a link to the Blue Jays, serving as the team’s coach in 2011 and 2012. He won the World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2013, and won the National League Manager of the Year at the helm of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2017. It’s a position he remains in to this day, but he’s had a far better managerial career than playing career.
Of the 21 players selected 131st to play in the big leagues, no player has a higher bWAR than Ed Whitson’s 21.2. Selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1974 draft, he earned an All-Star nod in 1980 with the San Francisco Giants, posting a 3.10 ERA and 3.18 FIP that season.
Over 15 big league seasons, the right-handed pitcher posted a 3.79 ERA and 3.82 FIP in 2,240.1 innings of work, retiring following the 1991 season.
The other All-Star selected 131st overall is Robert Fick. In 2002 with the Detroit Tigers, he slashed .270/.331.433 with 17 home runs in, representing the Tigers at the midsummer classic. Over 846 games, Fick slashed .258/.328/.405 with 69 home runs in 2,658 plate appearances.
Moreover, Fick hit the final home run at Tiger Stadium on September 27, 1999, a grand slam in the eighth inning which also happened to be the 11,111th home run hit at the stadium. Four years later, he hit a double that drove in the final two runs ever scored at Veterans Stadium. Fick represented Italy at the 2009 World Baseball Classic.
Another catcher of note selected 131st overall is Doug Mirabelli. He won the World Series twice with the Boston Red Sox, serving as Tim Wakefield’s personal catcher. Wakefield was originally drafted as a first baseman, but turned to pitching when he was in the minor leagues.
There are two players selected 131st overall who began their professional career as a position player, but turned to pitching. Nick Ramirez, drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2011, didn’t make the big leagues until 2019. He did so after eight seasons playing first base in the minor leagues.
Similarly, Marcus McBeth played centre field for the first three seasons of his professional career after the Oakland Athletics selected him 131st overall in the 2001 draft. He began the 2005 season as a reliever, appearing in 23 games with the Cincinnati Reds in 2007.
There’s just one player selected 131st overall who has appeared in a big league game this season. Jake Irvin, drafted by the Washington Nationals in 2018, has made 11 starts with the National League East team, posting a 5.23 ERA and 4.24 FIP in 51.2 innings pitched.
Mark McLemore, selected 131st overall by the Houston Astros in 2002, appeared in just 29 games with the team in 2007. However, a different Mark McLemore is one of seven players in MLB history to play for all five teams in a division. 
Drafted by the California Angels in 1982, the other Mark McLemore played 272 games with the Angels, 635 games with the Texas Rangers, 466 games with the Seattle Mariners, 77 games with the Oakland Athletics, and 21 games with the Astros. However, this was pre-realignment, as the Astros were still in the NL when McLemore played for them.
McLemore joins Steve Pearce, Kelly Johnson, Brad Hand, Steve Finley, Matt Herges, César Izturis, and Ted Savage as the seven players to play for all five teams in a division in their present-day alignment.
The last player of note is a fun one, even if his impact in the big leagues was miniscule.
Rod Allen played just 31 big league games, but he’s remembered for one of the most infamous mound charges in baseball history. While in Japan, Allen was hit in the hip by pitcher Kazuhiko Daimon, leading to Allen charging the mound. Daimon ran away, and Allen followed him into the outfield with both teams following closely behind. 
It’s something we’ll never see again in a professional baseball game. But hopefully, we’ll see the Blue Jays draft a notable player 131st overall in the 2026 draft.

Other history of a pick…

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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