Covering Canada&#8217;s only team means that most of us here at Blue Jays Nation are born and bred Canadians who root for the success of players who share the same passport as us (or at least played ball North of the border at some point). The 2023 World Baseball Classic showed that there are a number of young players with the potential to make an impact at the highest level over the next couple of seasons along with the current group already in the Majors.
Cleveland&#8217;s Cade Smith and Erik Sabrowski as well as Milwaukee&#8217;s Tyler Black debuted in 2024, a small part of the 20 total Canadians (either born, have citizenship, or repped Canada at the WBC like Otto Lopez) that appeared in a Major League game last season. One notable name that was missing on that list was Joey Votto, who battled injuries and ineffectiveness in the Blue Jays farm system, ultimately deciding to hang them up after 17 big league seasons before having the opportunity to play for his hometown club. The high-water mark for Canadians appearing in an MLB game was <a href="https://www.baseball.ca/2024-opening-day-canadians">26, back in 2011</a>. In the coming years, there&#8217;s a chance that we could inch closer to that number again.
Here are four players who should make their big league debut in 2025.
Owen Caissie, OF, Chicago Cubs | Burlington, Ontario
Caissie is the player with the highest likelihood of becoming a star on this list. Appearing at #2 among Cubs prospects and #34 overall in MLB Pipeline&#8217;s <a href="https://www.mlb.com/prospects">midseason update</a> last year, the 6&#8217;3&#8243;, 190-pounder has the chance to be a quality starter in the outfield for a long time. Caissie spent the entire 2024 season at Triple-A Iowa, bopping 19 home runs and finishing with a slash line of .278/.375/.472.
The 22-year-old has some similarities to NL Rookie of the Year finalist Jackson Merrill, starting with their near-identical frame. Both players also came up as infielders, but are likely to be outfielders for the duration of their Major League careers. Merill may have better contact skills than Caissie, but the Canuck makes up for that difference with a better eye at the plate. The former Notre Dame Catholic School star owned a 12.9 BB/9 rate, seventh among International League batters with at least 500 plate appearances in 2024. The former second-round pick shouldn&#8217;t have to wait long to prove his worth at the Major League level.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Owen Caissie ‘Popular Name’ in GM Meetings Trade Buzz <a href="https://t.co/OPgmhuRoYB">https://t.co/OPgmhuRoYB</a>
&mdash; Cubs Insider (@realcubsinsider) <a href="https://twitter.com/realcubsinsider/status/1854569171599626504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
It&#8217;s also worth noting that Caissie&#8217;s name is <a href="https://x.com/BleacherNation/status/1854265200712794511">being floated around</a> early trade chatter this winter, which could change his debut timing depending on if/where he is traded too.
Expected arrival: Early season, with a chance to crack the Opening-Day roster
Denzel Clarke, OF, Oakland A&#8217;s | Pickering, Ontario
Denzel Clarke has all the tools to become a star and has a great chance to debut with the Athletics in 2025 and follow in the footsteps of his cousins, Bo and Josh Naylor, as a Major League Baseball player.
Injuries saw the 6&#8217;5&#8243;, 220-pounder suit up in 116 Double-A games in 2024 but his numbers showed what kind of potential he has. The time on the injured list may have hindered his power a little bit, as he mustered just 13 homers compared to the 12 in 2023 where he played in about half as many games while also dealing with an injury to finish off the campaign. However, Clarke was able to show off his blistering speed this season, swiping a whopping 36 bags, a career-high.
The biggest concern with his game is his swing and miss rate (29.9 K% in 2024). Clarke only started playing baseball at the age of 10, which may explain why his game may be a bit more raw than other prospects. He has handled centerfield well in his minor league career, but his size will likely push him to right field in the future. Due to the lost injury time in 2024, Clarke returned to the Arizona Fall League for the second straight year, so far slashing .389/.500/.583 with seven stolen bases. Some seasoning at Triple-A is required before he makes his debut, but Oakland is unlikely to hold Clarke back if he sees some success early in the season.
Expected arrival: Midseason
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Denzel Clarke&#39;s got wheels!
The <a href="https://twitter.com/Athletics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Athletics</a>&#39; No. 10 prospect speeds into third with his <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBazFallLeague?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MLBazFallLeague</a>-leading third triple. <a href="https://t.co/hv19r0WYWf">pic.twitter.com/hv19r0WYWf</a>
&mdash; MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBPipeline/status/1854737856406732867?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 8, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Eric Cerantola, RP, Kansas City Royals | Oakville, Ontario
Coming in at #29 on <a href="https://www.mlb.com/prospects/royals">MLB Pipeline&#8217;s</a> top prospect list for the Royals this winter, Cerantola isn&#8217;t as highly regarded as the above two players. However, it is not uncommon for relief pitchers to fly under the radar in prospect circles. Look no further than Cade Smith, who was unranked on MLB Pipeline&#8217;s Guardians prospect list last year only to lead the Majors in relief pitcher fWAR (2.7) this season, ahead of Cy Young nominee Emmanuel Clase. Cerantola may not have the same nasty stuff as Smith, but his pitch mix has the makings of a high-leverage reliever.
The 6&#8217;5&#8243; right-hander pairs his upper 90&#8217;s fastball with a mid-80s curveball and slider, all of which have the makings of plus pitches. In 2024, he compiled a 2.97 ERA and 101 strikeouts over 72.2 innings split between Double-A and Triple-A. Like many flamethrowing relievers, walks have been an issue for Cerantola throughout his minor league career (6.23 BB/9 in 2024), and will ultimately dictate how effective he can be at the next level. At 24 years old, there likely won&#8217;t be much more development left for the former Mississippi State Bulldog in the minors, making him a near-lock to debut in Kansas City sometime in 2025.
Expected arrival: Early to midseason
Damiano Palmegiani, 1B/3B, Toronto Blue Jays | Surrey, BC
Next season is somewhat of a make-or-break year for Palmegiani. He showed in 2023 that he has the power (23 home runs) and patient approach (13.1 BB%) to be an effective hitter and led the Blue Jays farm system in home runs this year with 21. But a lower walk rate, diminished power, and some bad luck on batted balls led to the disappointing slash line of .210/.311/.381 in his first full season at Triple-A Buffalo in 2024.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Heads up on I-190!<a href="https://twitter.com/BlueJays?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BlueJays</a> No. 14 prospect Damiano Palmegiani wallops a 453 ft tater for the <a href="https://twitter.com/BuffaloBisons?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BuffaloBisons</a>: <a href="https://t.co/lVzyA8oqhv">pic.twitter.com/lVzyA8oqhv</a>
&mdash; Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MiLB/status/1778549484311748908?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Palmegiani likely won&#8217;t be viewed in the same regard as Addison Barger, Will Wagner, or some of the other infield prospects heading into 2025 but a strong showing in Spring Training and in triple-A to start the year &#8211; and perhaps an injury at the big-league level &#8211; could provide him with an opportunity to make his debut at some point this season. There is still quite a bit unknown about the Blue Jays infield plans for next season, but the 24-year-old could play himself into a September call-up at the very least. The Venezuelan-born but B.C.-raised product is also Rule 5 eligible this winter, throwing another wrinkle into the potential call-up scenario if another team takes a chance on him and his power.
Expected arrival: September call-up

Covering Canada's only team means that most of us here at Blue Jays Nation are born and bred Canadians who root for the success of players who share the same passport as us (or at least played ball North of the border at some point). The 2023 World Baseball Classic showed that there are a number of young players with the potential to make an impact at the highest level over the next couple of seasons along with the current group already in the Majors.

Cleveland's Cade Smith and Erik Sabrowski as well as Milwaukee's Tyler Black debuted in 2024, a small part of the 20 total Canadians (either born, have citizenship, or repped Canada at the WBC like Otto Lopez) that appeared in a Major League game last season. One notable name that was missing on that list was Joey Votto, who battled injuries and ineffectiveness in the Blue Jays farm system, ultimately deciding to hang them up after 17 big league seasons before having the opportunity to play for his hometown club. The high-water mark for Canadians appearing in an MLB game was <a href="https://www.baseball.ca/2024-opening-day-canadians">26, back in 2011</a>. In the coming years, there's a chance that we could inch closer to that number again.

Here are four players who should make their big league debut in 2025.

Owen Caissie, OF, Chicago Cubs | Burlington, Ontario

Caissie is the player with the highest likelihood of becoming a star on this list. Appearing at #2 among Cubs prospects and #34 overall in MLB Pipeline's <a href="https://www.mlb.com/prospects">midseason update</a> last year, the 6'3", 190-pounder has the chance to be a quality starter in the outfield for a long time. Caissie spent the entire 2024 season at Triple-A Iowa, bopping 19 home runs and finishing with a slash line of .278/.375/.472.

The 22-year-old has some similarities to NL Rookie of the Year finalist Jackson Merrill, starting with their near-identical frame. Both players also came up as infielders, but are likely to be outfielders for the duration of their Major League careers. Merill may have better contact skills than Caissie, but the Canuck makes up for that difference with a better eye at the plate. The former Notre Dame Catholic School star owned a 12.9 BB/9 rate, seventh among International League batters with at least 500 plate appearances in 2024. The former second-round pick shouldn't have to wait long to prove his worth at the Major League level.

https://twitter.com/realcubsinsider/status/1854569171599626504

It's also worth noting that Caissie's name is <a href="https://x.com/BleacherNation/status/1854265200712794511">being floated around</a> early trade chatter this winter, which could change his debut timing depending on if/where he is traded too.

Expected arrival: Early season, with a chance to crack the Opening-Day roster

Denzel Clarke, OF, Oakland A's | Pickering, Ontario

Denzel Clarke has all the tools to become a star and has a great chance to debut with the Athletics in 2025 and follow in the footsteps of his cousins, Bo and Josh Naylor, as a Major League Baseball player.

Injuries saw the 6'5", 220-pounder suit up in 116 Double-A games in 2024 but his numbers showed what kind of potential he has. The time on the injured list may have hindered his power a little bit, as he mustered just 13 homers compared to the 12 in 2023 where he played in about half as many games while also dealing with an injury to finish off the campaign. However, Clarke was able to show off his blistering speed this season, swiping a whopping 36 bags, a career-high.

The biggest concern with his game is his swing and miss rate (29.9 K% in 2024). Clarke only started playing baseball at the age of 10, which may explain why his game may be a bit more raw than other prospects. He has handled centerfield well in his minor league career, but his size will likely push him to right field in the future. Due to the lost injury time in 2024, Clarke returned to the Arizona Fall League for the second straight year, so far slashing .389/.500/.583 with seven stolen bases. Some seasoning at Triple-A is required before he makes his debut, but Oakland is unlikely to hold Clarke back if he sees some success early in the season.

Expected arrival: Midseason

https://twitter.com/MLBPipeline/status/1854737856406732867

Eric Cerantola, RP, Kansas City Royals | Oakville, Ontario

Coming in at #29 on <a href="https://www.mlb.com/prospects/royals">MLB Pipeline's</a> top prospect list for the Royals this winter, Cerantola isn't as highly regarded as the above two players. However, it is not uncommon for relief pitchers to fly under the radar in prospect circles. Look no further than Cade Smith, who was unranked on MLB Pipeline's Guardians prospect list last year only to lead the Majors in relief pitcher fWAR (2.7) this season, ahead of Cy Young nominee Emmanuel Clase. Cerantola may not have the same nasty stuff as Smith, but his pitch mix has the makings of a high-leverage reliever.

The 6'5" right-hander pairs his upper 90's fastball with a mid-80s curveball and slider, all of which have the makings of plus pitches. In 2024, he compiled a 2.97 ERA and 101 strikeouts over 72.2 innings split between Double-A and Triple-A. Like many flamethrowing relievers, walks have been an issue for Cerantola throughout his minor league career (6.23 BB/9 in 2024), and will ultimately dictate how effective he can be at the next level. At 24 years old, there likely won't be much more development left for the former Mississippi State Bulldog in the minors, making him a near-lock to debut in Kansas City sometime in 2025.

Expected arrival: Early to midseason

Damiano Palmegiani, 1B/3B, Toronto Blue Jays | Surrey, BC

Next season is somewhat of a make-or-break year for Palmegiani. He showed in 2023 that he has the power (23 home runs) and patient approach (13.1 BB%) to be an effective hitter and led the Blue Jays farm system in home runs this year with 21. But a lower walk rate, diminished power, and some bad luck on batted balls led to the disappointing slash line of .210/.311/.381 in his first full season at Triple-A Buffalo in 2024.

https://twitter.com/MiLB/status/1778549484311748908

Palmegiani likely won't be viewed in the same regard as Addison Barger, Will Wagner, or some of the other infield prospects heading into 2025 but a strong showing in Spring Training and in triple-A to start the year - and perhaps an injury at the big-league level - could provide him with an opportunity to make his debut at some point this season. There is still quite a bit unknown about the Blue Jays infield plans for next season, but the 24-year-old could play himself into a September call-up at the very least. The Venezuelan-born but B.C.-raised product is also Rule 5 eligible this winter, throwing another wrinkle into the potential call-up scenario if another team takes a chance on him and his power.

Expected arrival: September call-up

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