Northbound Jays Prospect Weekly: Sprock's Power Week Turns Heads, Perry Keeps Dealing at Double-A
By Hannah Wells ·
Northbound Jays Prospect Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Blue Jays farm system.
Sprock Puts on a Power Display at Vancouver
Ryan Sprock (A+, C, Rank: 30) posted the most eye-catching hitting line in the system this week, going 9-for-24 with two doubles, two home runs, and seven RBI across his plate appearances at High-A Vancouver. That performance pushed his last-30-day line to a .391/.481/.641 clip with three home runs, 17 RBI, and a 17.3 percent walk rate over 81 plate appearances, which is a remarkable stretch for a bat-first catcher who profiles more conservatively on paper. The contact rates back it up too: an 82.2 percent contact rate over the past month, paired with just eight strikeouts in 81 trips, shows this is not a hot streak built on lucky outcomes against weak pitching. For a 21-year-old whose season-long 82.8 percent contact rate and 16.4 percent walk rate are the carrying traits in his profile, August and early September have been a genuine step forward.
The projection here is measured: an up-down bat with positional flexibility at catcher, third base, and corner outfield, with a 50 hit tool and 45 power grade suggesting an OBP-driven profile that can sustain value without a carrying plus tool. This week's power output, six home runs combined at High-A this season, nudges at the possibility that the 45 power grade has some room in it, even if the profile ceiling stays at a depth piece or flexible bench bat. His swing rate has crept up to 46.1 percent over the last 30 days, a tick above his season average of 40.8 percent, and whether that aggression is selective or a sign of pitchers challenging him more will be worth watching. Still, a .300/.422/.469 combined line across 427 plate appearances at multiple levels in 2026 is a real statement for a late-round catcher who was not supposed to hit this much. I'd take the over on those 50/45 hit-power grades at this rate of development.
Perry Continues to Thrive at Double-A New Hampshire
Nolan Perry (AA, RHP, Rank: 6) turned in four innings of one-run ball this week, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out six on 57 pitches. The 13 swinging misses he generated in that outing fit a pattern: his season-long 35.6 percent whiff rate at Double-A is no accident, and neither is the 2.32 ERA he has posted across nine starts there. Over his last 30 days at the Double-A level, he is sitting at a 3.10 ERA in 20.1 innings with a 29.3 percent strikeout rate and 33.8 percent whiff rate, numbers that confirm the bat-missing is sustained rather than a single-outing spike. Perry's four-seam fastball, a 55-grade pitch running 94-96 mph with above-average ride, does most of the damage, and the 55-grade slider tunnels cleanly enough that hitters who see the heater up are frequently unprepared for the slide piece below the zone.
The walk rate is the variable to monitor. His Double-A BB% sits at 12.4 percent of batters faced, and this week's lone walk in four innings was a modest positive sign in that regard. The projection still points toward a reliever outcome, likely a multi-inning or high-leverage piece built around the fastball-slider combination, with the cutter, curve, and changeup providing texture without yet functioning as true weapons. Coming back from Tommy John, he has handled a full-season workload better than the risk profile suggested entering 2026, and the 82.2 innings and 117 strikeouts combined across three levels represent a meaningful durability checkpoint. A back-end starter case exists if the command ticks into the 50-55 range consistently and a third pitch develops, but the reliever path is more bankable right now, and Perry is already pitching like one who belongs in a meaningful role.
Quick Hits
Gage Stanifer (AAA, RHP, Rank: 8) · earned his first Triple-A assignment on September 8 and wasted no time making an impression, striking out seven batters in 3.1 innings while allowing just one hit and generating 17 swinging misses on 61 pitches. The whiff volume is consistent with who he has been all year: a 35.7 percent whiff rate and a 30.4 percent strikeout rate across 99 combined innings at Double-A and Triple-A in 2026. The 60-grade slider is the engine, and when it is on, it is as bat-missing a pitch as anything in this system. The promotion was earned; the next question is whether the 14.5 percent walk rate that has followed him through Double-A will loosen up against Triple-A hitters who punish free passes even more.
JoJo Parker (A+, SS, Rank: 1) · went 5-for-20 with three doubles, a walk, and three strikeouts in a week that was more about process than counting stats. The three walks against three strikeouts align with who he is: a 60 hit tool with a 19.2 percent walk rate over the last 30 days and a selective 36.7 percent swing rate. He has yet to homer at High-A across 97 plate appearances there, but the .316/.443/.434 line in that sample, combined with eight doubles and a triple, keeps the bat relevant while the power develops. The projection to an everyday third baseman still looks right, and the approach is not slipping.
Austin Smith (A+, OF, Rank: 37) · had a productive week, going 6-for-19 with two home runs and six RBI. Since arriving at High-A Vancouver, he is slashing .294/.357/.529 with five home runs across 116 plate appearances, a significant step up from a .207/.348/.268 line in 67 games at Low-A Dunedin to start the year. The 50.9 percent swing rate over his last 30 days is aggressive and the walk rate has dipped to 5.2 percent in that window, so the discipline picture is different here than it was at Dunedin. Still, a 7.8 percent strikeout rate at High-A is legitimately rare, and the 55 speed and 55 field grades give him a defensive home in center that keeps the everyday ceiling alive even if the power questions linger.
Silvano Hechavarria (A+, RHP, Rank: 11) · threw six innings of one-run ball this week, scattering five hits and striking out three with zero walks. It was his cleanest command outing of the last 30 days: his walk rate over that stretch has dropped to 4.0 percent of batters faced, a meaningful improvement from his season-long 10.7 percent. The 6.43 ERA at High-A this year is the number that needs to come down, but the last-30-day ERA of 3.80 over 23.2 innings shows some real stabilization. The mid-90s fastball and 55-grade slider give him a starter's foundation worth watching as the season ends.
Ricky Tiedemann (MLB, LHP, Rank: 10) · was recalled to Toronto on September 5. In eight appearances at Triple-A Buffalo this year, he posted a 4.50 ERA over eight innings with a 10:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio before the call. His four MLB outings have yielded a 1.69 ERA across 5.1 innings, a late-season big-league data point the organization will want to build on heading into 2027.
Johnny King (AA, LHP, Rank: 3) · had a rough outing this week, going 3.1 innings and allowing four earned runs on seven hits with two walks and five strikeouts. The 13 swinging misses he generated show the bat-missing stuff is still present, and his last-30-day ERA of 3.05 over 20.2 innings at Double-A is more representative of his season profile than this start. His combined 3.16 ERA and 30.5 percent strikeout rate across 105.1 innings in 2026 remain genuinely strong for a 20-year-old left-hander pitching his first extended Double-A run. One uneven start does not change the mid-rotation projection built around a 60-grade curveball and above-average fastball; the command, sitting at 13.3 percent walk rate over the last 30 days, is still the piece that needs to settle.
RJ Schreck (AAA, LF, Rank: 20) · was activated from the 60-day injured list on September 8 after missing most of the season. In three games since returning, he has gone 1-for-8 with two walks across 10 plate appearances at Buffalo. The small return sample tells almost nothing, but the season line of .225/.377/.393 with seven home runs across 239 plate appearances at Triple-A shows the on-base value and pop are real when he is healthy. Getting back on the field and accumulating at-bats this month is the entire mission right now.