January’s arrival can mean only one thing around these parts: it’s time to rank minor-league prospects. Every team across the majors is selling hope to their fans: some are selling it in a more immediate fashion, in the form of active offseasons full of free-agent signings and trade acquisitions. Others, meanwhile, are selling it in the personage of prospects who could make the difference over the coming years.
CBS Sports will spend the next month examining the top three prospects in each organization. Our definition of “prospect” is simple: does that player have rookie eligibility remaining for the 2025 season? If so, they’re a prospect; if not, that’s probably why your favorite young player is absent from the proceedings.
As always, these lists are formed following conversations with scouts, analysts, player development specialists, and other talent evaluators around the industry. There’s a fair amount of firsthand evaluation, statistical analysis, and historical research mixed in, too. Plus a heaping of personal bias — we all have certain traits and profiles that we prefer over others; there’s no sense pretending otherwise.
Keep in mind that there’s no one right answer with these sorts of things. Besides, these are merely our opinions, meaning they have no actual bearing on the future. We already published our ranking of the top 25 prospects in all of the minors.
With all that out of the way, let’s get to ranking the top three prospects in the Toronto Blue Jays system.
The short hook: Physical middle-of-the-rotation prospect
The Blue Jays plucked Yesavage with the 20th pick in last summer’s draft after an impressive career at East Carolina University that saw him return to action shortly after suffering a partially collapsed lung. His game is built on verticality: beginning with his steep release point and extending to an arsenal that includes, among other pitches, a rising fastball, a hammer curve, and a split-change. Yesavage hasn’t yet made his professional debut, but he ought to move quickly once he does. MLB ETA: Summer 2026
The short hook: The waiting is the hardest part
Nimmala was always going to take time to develop. It wasn’t too jarring, then, that he required a stint last summer on the development list. Nimmala fared much better upon returning to regular competition, hitting .265/.331/.564 in his final 53 games. Although he was the youngest qualified player in the Florida State League, where he faced opponents who were on average three years his senior, he still hit the fourth-most home runs. The upshot here is a power-hitting shortstop; that’s worth exercising some patience. MLB ETA: Summer 2028
3. Jake Bloss, RHP
The short hook: Another mid-rotation starter prospect
Bloss made a rapid ascent to the majors, debuting within a year of being selected by the Astros in the third round of the 2023 draft. He was then shipped to the Blue Jays as part of the Yusei Kikuchi trade. Bloss didn’t appear in the majors again after that point; instead, he spent the rest of the year in Triple-A, posting some ugly surface-line statistics. Bloss has an expansive arsenal, including a quality sweeper, and he’s undeniably a difficult at-bat for right-handed batters given he releases the ball from beyond the third-base side of the rubber. With a little more refinement, Bloss ought to find himself pitching in the middle of the Toronto rotation. MLB ETA: Already debuted
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