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Blue Jays: Sean Keys hits two home runs in Bisons’ 18-11 loss
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Photo credit: © Mike Watters-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Jun 24, 2026, 18:30 EDTUpdated: Jun 24, 2026, 18:48 EDT
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It’s only late June, but Toronto Blue Jays prospect Sean Keys has already surpassed his home run total from the 2025 season.
The Buffalo Bisons played their second game against the Iowa Cubs in Des Moines, Iowa on Wednesday afternoon. It was a high-scoring affair, with the  Bisons ultimately falling 18-11. More important though, was Keys’ performance.
With the Blue Jays down 17-3 in the top of the sixth, the third/first baseman stepped up to the plate for his third plate appearance of the game with a runner on first. On a 2-1 count, Keys hit a 96.1 mph sinker for a 426 foot blast, coming off the bat at 109.9 mph.
Not only was this home run his organization-leading 19th of the season, but Keys matched his home run total from the 2025 season, which actually led the team as well. But it got even better in his next plate appearance.
With the Bisons now down 18-5, Keys had another runner on first with two outs. The first two pitches weren’t remotely competitive, forcing Cubs’ pitcher Vince Reilly into the zone. Keys punished the 2-0 pitch, an 87.7 mph cutter in nearly the exact location of his first home run, driving it 395 feet and coming off the bat at 100.2 mph.
Keys finished the evening driving in four of the Bisons’ 11 runs, hitting two home runs in five plate appearances, drawing a walk all the way in the first inning. Since joining the Bisons, Keys is slashing .288/.408/.712 with six home runs in 71 plate appearances, with a 21.1 K%.
When including his 49 games in Double-A, Keys is slashing .286/.411/.615 with 20 home runs in 280 plate appearances, with a 23.6 K% and 13.9 BB%. For context, his 19 home run last season were in 529 plate appearances, granted half his games were played at Nat Bailey Stadium, a tough place for left-handed power.
Keys is a bat first prospect, and at this point, he’s deserving of a look in the big leagues. Before Tuesday’s game, Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins noted that if Keys is good enough (which it sure looks like he is), they’ll find a way to get hit bat in.
That said, Keys’ fit in the lineup is difficult. Not only is he a left-handed hitter, but the only two positions Keys has played since college are first and third base. Both positions are currently blocked by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Kazuma Okamoto respectively. He’s lacking defensively, meaning a fit in the designated hitter role would work out, but that’s blocked by George Springer, who has started to get hot recently.
It’s not the first time the Blue Jays faced this type of dilemma, as Spencer Horwitz was a bat-first first baseman. Also blocked by Guerrero Jr., Horwitz went on to play second base and the outfielder when he was with the Bisons, eventually playing about half his innings there in 2024 before being traded. Learning a new position, which will take Keys some time to learn, isn’t on the table right now, as the Blue Jays need his bat right now.
At this point, he’s proving to be deserving of a call-up, but it’ll take some work to make him fit.
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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