Blue Jays Nation’s Pre-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 34: Hayden Juenger

The Toronto Blue Jays have a thing for bulk relievers.

This is Blue Jays Nation’s annual pre-season list, in which I’ll take a look at the top 50 prospects in the organization. We’ll look at the player’s stats, my observations, and other publications’ scouting reports if available.

Let’s take a look at Hayden Juenger.

Getting to know Hayden Juenger…

Position: Relief Pitcher

Throws: Right

Born: August 9, 2000

Acquired: 6th-round, 2021 draft (Blue Jays)

2023 Team: Triple-A Buffalo

Previous Ranking: 25

After the Blue Jays signed him to a bonus of $197,500 after the 2021 draft, he hit the ground running for the High-A Vancouver Canadians. In 20 innings pitched, all in relief, Juenger had a 2.70 ERA and a 1.33 FIP, along with a fantastic 45.9 K% and a 5.4 BB%.

The Blue Jays experimented with Juenger as a starter in 2022 with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats. The righty started 17 of the 20 games he pitched for the team, posting a 4.02 ERA and a 5.04 FIP in 56 innings pitched. Juenger struck out 29.5% of batters, but his walk rate increased to 9.3%. Moreover, a long running issue since 2022 is the number of home runs he’s given up, as he allowed 12 home runs in his brief stint in the Granite State.

Nonetheless, the Jays promoted Juenger to Triple-A Buffalo in 2022, where he had a much better 3.31 ERA and 5.34 FIP in 32.2 innings pitched. Upon his promotion, he only started two of the 18 games he appeared in and had a 24.6 K% and 11.9%, the lowest and highest totals of his career respectively. Moreover, Juenger allowed six home runs in his Triple-A stint.