Under the Radar Blue Jays prospect: Gage Stanifer

One of the most impressive pitching performances from a Blue Jays minor leaguer early this season came courtesy of the player we’ll look at in this article.

This week’s Under the Radar Toronto Blue Jays prospect we’ll look at is right-handed pitcher Gage Stanifer, who was selected in the 19th round of the 2022 draft out of Westfield High School.

Like many pitchers the Blue Jays draft, the Indiana native didn’t make his professional debut until the following season with the Florida Complex League Blue Jays. In 2023, the righty had a 6.33 ERA and a 4.42 FIP in 42.2 innings pitched, with a 24.4 K% and an 11.9 BB%.

Stanifer had a similar 2024 season to his 2023, pitching in Single-A and posting a 6.34 ERA and a 5.27 FIP in 59.2 innings pitched, starting 17 of the 19 games he pitched in that season. His K% dropped to 23.2% while his BB% increased from 11.9% to 18.1%. There was a five-start stretch early in the season where he pitched well, posting a 1.29 ERA and a 3.89 FIP in 21 innings pitched from May 12 until June 9. So he’s shown flashes in the past.

So far in the young 2025 minor league season, Stanifer has pitched in just one game for the Dunedin Blue Jays, coming in the wild 22-walk game against the Jupiter Hammerheads on Tuesday that also saw Trey Yesavage make his big league debut.

It was a good outing for the 21-year-old righty, pitching four scoreless innings with just one hit allowed. He also struck out six and walked two, giving him a 2.03 FIP after his first appearance.

More importantly, his stuff looked great in his appearance. Overall, he threw 63 pitches, 48 of which were sink fastballs (76%), reaching a max pitch velocity of 97.4 mph and averaging 95.5 mph. The two-seamer generated nine swings and misses on 23 total swings for a 39 whiff%. The slider also generated two whiffs on three total swings, both for the strikeout, as you can see in the video below.