Under the Radar Blue Jays prospect: Je’Von Ward

Exaggerated stat lines are always fun.

In this edition of Under the Radar Blue Jays prospect, we’ll look at Je’Von Ward, a player that the Toronto Blue Jays signed in the middle of the 2024 season from independent ball. If you missed last week’s Under the Radar prospect, we looked at Nate Garkow, another player signed as a free agent from independent ball.

Unlike Garkow, Ward was drafted, as the Milwaukee Brewers selected the outfielder out of Gahr High School in California in the 12th round of the 2017 draft. Ward played 32 games in 2017, slashing .276/.326/.325 with no home runs in 132 plate appearances. He stuck around in rookie ball in 2018, slashing .307/.391/.403 with two home runs in 271 plate appearances.

In 2019, Ward finally made the “A” affiliates, playing for the Brewers’ Low-A affiliate and slashing .225/.311/.322 with two home runs in 423 plate appearances. Like all minor leagues, Ward missed the 2020 season thanks to the global pandemic, but played for the Brewers’ High-A team in 2021, where he slashed .259/.312/.387 with five home runs in 312 plate appearances.

Ward missed all of the 2022 minor league season due to injury but represented the Glendale Desert Dogs in the 2022 Arizona Fall League. He returned for the 2023 season, also in High-A, where Ward slashed .231/.297/.390 with eight home runs in 291 plate appearances, but was released at the end of August.

The 25-year-old outfielder didn’t find a new MLB organization at the start of the year, so he joined the Kane County Cougars of the American Association. In 103 plate appearances, Ward slashed .292/.388/.416 with a home run. That caught the eye of the Blue Jays, who signed him to a minor league deal and placed him in High-A, where he slashed .279/.393/.443 with seven home runs in 252 plate appearances for a 137 wRC+.

Unsurprisingly, Ward started the 2025 season in High-A with the Vancouver Canadians. While his batting average has dropped off considerably (.215), he’s walked an incredible 27.9% of the time for a .437 on-base percentage. Add in the fact that he has four home runs, and Ward has a 133 wRC+.

The other day, Ward was promoted to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats along with Kendry Rojas. It’s the first time in his career he’s not only reached the upper minors but played at two different levels in the same season. Ward will be tested in Double-A, as pitchers tend to have more control over their pitches and are more experienced.

Either way, Ward has a pretty cool story, and it’ll be interesting to see what he does moving forward.