Weekend Dynasty Baseball Pickups - 5/17/26

Welcome back to another week of Dynasty Baseball Pickups! In case you missed it, Kyle and I swapped this week, so Kyle did the mid-week pickups while I'm doing the weekend pickups. If you're only finding this out now because you read only the weekend articles, not the mid-week ones, I'm disappointed you're missing out on five more pickup recommendations a week. Is it because I recommended Andrew Sears and James Ellwanger, who got placed on the IL almost immediately after my articles went out? Well, Sears is now pitching in rehab games, so at least he still has a chance to bounce back.

My previous recommendations had a little extra time to simmer due to the trade, which means more time to add or subtract from their value. Michael Martinez didn't maintain the 258 wRC+ he had through 3 games, but he's up to 10 games now, and the wRC+ is still just over 200. On the other hand, Mac Heuer (the other guy I was bullish on) walked four in both of his outings since being written up; I still believe in the stuff, but if the command continues to be that bad, then he may be better utilized in the bullpen.

Dynasty Baseball Pickups - Prospects LiveRaj Mehta and Kyle SonntagProspects LiveKyle Sonntag

Weekend Pickups

Jake Bloss - 25/SP/TOR/AAA

Photo Credit: sportsnet.ca

Height/Weight: 6’3”/223 lbs Throws: Right Fantrax Roster%: 10% PLive-: 98 PLive Prospect Ranking (May 2026): 521st 2025 stats (AAA): 6 G, 23.2 IP, 6.46 ERA, 1.94 WHIP, 4.76 FIP, 20.9% K%/11.3% BB% 2026 stats (CPX): 1 G, 2.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 0.76 FIP, 40.0% K%/0.0% BB%

Why to pick up: Jake Bloss had a good amount of prospect buzz back in 2024 by working his way up from High-A to the majors for the Astros, to the point where he was a key piece sent to the Blue Jays in the return for Yusei Kikuchi. He’s yet to make his debut with the Jays in the majors, as after the trade, he spent the rest of 2024 at the Jays’ Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo and in 2025 started just 6 games there before going down with Tommy John surgery. Since Bloss has just three big league starts and 11.2 big league innings to his name, he’s still a prospect, albeit one that’s a bit under the radar at the moment due to the injury.

Before Bloss went down in 2025, he was ineffective at Triple-A, pitching to a 6.46 ERA & 4.76 FIP in 23.2 IP, in part because his command wasn’t great: he walked 11.3% of the batters he faced, up from the 9.5% walk rate he allowed in the minors in 2024. Bloss has made only one rehab start, pitching 2.1 IP, but the fact that 29 of his 35 pitches went for strikes (82.9%) is a very encouraging sign. Not only that, his velocity seemed to be up as well: compared to last year, his fastball went up from 94 mph to 96, his slider and changeup went from 86 mph and 87 mph, respectively, to 88, and his curveball went up from 79 mph to 81. Part of the uptick could be due to the adrenaline rush of finally being back, along with him pitching in a shorter outing, but I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the velo gains stuck.

Another factor to consider is the Jays’ current rotation depth, or rather, their lack thereof. Cease, Gausman, and Yesavage are a great top three, but the final two spots are currently occupied by Patrick Corbin (who’s admittedly been pretty solid) and a bullpen game with Rule 5 pick Spencer Miles as the bulk reliever. Cody Ponce is expected to miss all of 2026. Shane Bieber and Max Scherzer have yet to ramp back up via rehab outings of their own, and it was recently announced that Jose Berrios will undergo elbow surgery and is also expected to miss significant time. There is a good chance that Bloss will be fully ramped up before all those other names, and if that’s the case, the Jays may turn to him to shore up their rotation.

Why to think twice: Even if Bloss does reach the majors, there’s no guarantee that he’ll be effective. The strike-throwing and the velo bump are encouraging, but it’s also a two-inning sample. There simply isn’t enough data to draw from, and based on the rest of his track record at Triple-A with the Jays (in both 2024 and 2025), it isn’t great. The risk is the same as other rehab arms, as there’s always the chance of re-injury or ineffectiveness, but without the floor of a starter that is guaranteed to get big league innings, nor the ceiling of a potential top of the rotation arm.

Final thoughts: Bloss isn’t worth rostering in leagues with fewer than 15 teams, but given his roster rate, he’s likely already rostered in whatever 15+ team leagues you’re in. If he is, then I’d look into him as a trade target, but otherwise I’d snag him even in shallower 15+ team leagues as an arm that could potentially give some starts in a month or so.

Where to pick up: Leagues with 250+ prospects rostered FAAB Bid: Moderate (5-10%)

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