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John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

The 2025 Canadian Futures Showcase is in the books

Originally posted on Bluejaysnation | By Nick Prasad | Last updated Sep 22, 2025 9:00 AM ET

The 2025 Canadian Futures Showcase was once again successful in execution. The annual showcase tournament, hosted by the Toronto Blue Jays, concluded on Friday, September 19th.

The tournament festivities kicked off on Tuesday, September 16th, leading off with the scout day. Players were measured for their wingspan, vertical jumps, and more. Players also ran a 60-yard dash for times, followed by positional fielding and throwing, and a batting practice portion. The scout day provides a basic display of the player’s capabilities and provides baseline numbers for evaluators.

Overall, the tournament play in-game was intriguing to watch, as many players showed skill levels from collegiate level to potential draft-worthy talent. Players from all over the nation were in attendance, including our western provinces, prairies, Atlantic Canada, Quebec, and Ontario.

Standouts from the showcase

Some impressive swings were seen in this tournament on the gap-to-gap and power end, with names such as Rogan Rivard, Quinn Carson, Quincy Jenkins, Quinn Lightfoot, Connor Simpson and more.

Pitchers were very intriguing, as some notable names made their marks. Max Nantais-Vlahovich started for Team New Blue on day one; he sat up in the early 90s and showed pitchability. Oscar Leah and Tyler McWhinnie made similar noise on the bump, showing dominance in their outings.

Julian Sabourin, an Oregon State University commit, displayed his live arm for everyone in attendance. He sat in the early 90s and flashed a very effective slider. One of the tournament’s most intriguing arms was Lukas McDowell, a right-hander from the Canada Reds. He’s a giant on the mound, at 6’8” with long-reach down the hill, and sitting up to 92 mph. McDowell and Sabourin will be names to keep in mind when conversing on the 2026 MLB Draft.

THE MAIN EVENT #TBJFUTURES pic.twitter.com/CBZHL685oj

— TBJ Baseball Academy (@BlueJaysAcademy) September 20, 2025

Home run derby, showcase MVP, and finals winners

The much-anticipated home run derby was held on the final day of the event. The competition included Mikey Batiste, Connor Comeau, Jalen Jacob, Zach Barker, Quinn Lightfoot, and Dariel Rodriguez. Rodriguez, Comeau, and Barker would make up the final grouping, with Rodriguez just nudging out Lightfoot for the final spot. He would kick things up a level in the final round, launching 11 long-balls to raise the championship belt and take home the honour, collecting over 17 total home runs in the event. Comeau and Barker would finish with nine and six homers in the final, respectively.

This year, the showcase featured a new format for the final game of the tournament. It used to be a showcase for the top players throughout the week across all six teams and would be coached by a former big leaguer (last year it was Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion). But this time, it was a head-to-head matchup between the two top-ranked teams from the previous week of gameplay. Team Royal faced off against Team Grey for the bragging rights, and it was Royal who finished on top by a narrow 4-3 score.

Mississauga HPP Tigers outfielder Quinn Lightfoot took home showcase MVP honours after an impressive late-tournament offensive show-out. He posted a .667 average, stole five bases, and added a 375 ft, 97 mph home run to earn the MVP honour.

“I’m sitting outside fastball, and if I catch something out in front, then you know, that’s exactly what happened when I hit the home run,” said Lightfoot, speaking to Blue Jays Nation. “It was a curveball inside, and I was able to catch it out, because of that approach that I’ve been sticking with, Lightfoot explained his approach.”

This marks the end of the 2025 version of the showcase. Most players will continue into their fall season, with hopes of furthering their status towards college baseball within the following years and towards chasing the professional dream. Tournament alumni include Cubs Owen Caissie, Guardians Cade Smith, Mariners Matt Brash, and many others.

This article first appeared on Bluejaysnation and was syndicated with permission.

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