The Blue Jays called the infielder Sean Keysreports Keegan Matheson of MLB.com. The Jays will need to make consistent moves to add keys to both the 40-man and active rosters. He likely won’t be officially added until Saturday, according to Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith.
Keys, 23, was a fourth-round pick in the 2024 draft. He pitched in 22 Single-A games after that draft, making 98 plate appearances. His 21.4% strikeout rate was around average while he drew walks at a strong 13.3% clip. He hit .293/.378/.451 with a 134 wRC+. He spent 2025 at the High-A level with very strong results. He hit 19 home runs and drew walks at a 16.3% clip. Despite a low .250 batting average in balls in play, he slashed .217/.365/.408 for a 119 wRC+.
He was even better here in 2025. He started in Double-A and was promoted to Triple-A earlier this month. Between those two stops, he already has 21 homers on the year. His 23.1% strikeout rate is good and his 13.6% walk rate is quite strong. He has a combined .284/.409/.619 line and a 164 wRC+ on the year. Baseball America ranks him as the club’s #14 prospect, his bat receiving more praise than his speed or glove work.
Given those strong results from the batter’s box, the Jays will call him up to see if he can shake up their big league team. What remains to be seen is how they will fit him in on defense. Keys has played either first or third base in his professional career. Nicholson-Smith reported this week that the Jays had started thinking about getting Keys some outfielders, but that hasn’t happened in any official game yet.
The Jays have it Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as their first regular player, Kazuma Okamoto for the third time George Springer as a regular designated hitter. Guerrero had a rough season, relative to his high standards. He has only four home runs. He has missed time this month with back strain, without going on the injured list. Maybe Keys’ presence will allow him to head to IL or just stay more often.
Okamoto’s first MLB season saw him hit hard but lead the team with 18 home runs, more than double anyone else on the team. He’ll stay on the roster, or maybe spend more time at first if Guerrero takes a break. Okamoto played left field in Japan but only played in 26 games after the 2019 season.
Springer hasn’t pitched this year but logged more than 400 innings in the outfield last year. Manager John Schneider told Matheson earlier this month that the Jays were considering putting Springer in right field on occasion. If Springer were to put on his glove occasionally, that would reduce the playing time of other outfielders. The Jays use Nathan Lukes again Jesus Sánchez especially against rights, while Myles Straw again Davis Schneider see more time against lefties.
Time will tell how the Jays make the playing time work but it is understandable that they will look to improve their system. The team has a slash line of .249/.311/.391 and a wRC+ of 96 this year, which ranks them in the third lowest of clubs in the majors. They have a lousy 39-42 record, though that’s enough to tie them for a playoff spot in the American League’s weakest field. Any kind of edge could be the difference maker in such a tight race, so they will see if the keys can help them open another offense.
Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images
