The Toronto Blue Jays have been very prominent in the baseball world lately following their run to the World Series, recent free-agent signings, and overall fun clubhouse atmosphere. But what is often overlooked is the incredible amount of depth they have as an organization.
The Blue Jays have three prospects ranked on Just Baseball’s Top 100 MLB Prospects List, and their farm system has churned out some very promising big leaguers in recent memory.
One player that currently sits in limbo between Triple-A Buffalo and the Jays’ MLB roster is outfielder Joey Loperfido. Acquired at the trade deadline from the Houston Astros in 2024, Loperfido was one of three prospects Toronto received in exchange for starter Yusei Kikuchi.
He’s had a tough time cracking their big-league roster due to Toronto’s positional versatility in covering their outfield positions, boasting MLB regulars like George Springer, Daulton Varsho, Anthony Santander, and Addison Barger, who can play the positions handily and provide an offensive spark to the lineup while doing so.
Loperfido simply, and unfortunately, doesn’t have a future with the Blue Jays with the way their team is currently constructed, so what could be next for him?
Joey Loperfido’s All-Around Talent
Loperfido, while not getting much time at the MLB level this season with Toronto, had a great season down in Triple-A with the Buffalo Bisons where he slashed .264/.341/.401 with seven home runs and 44 RBI over 91 games.
While he might not be the most powerful hitter out there, he gives his team a good chance to get on base and makes the most of his hits.
He placed within the top four hitters for the Bisons in hits (87), doubles (22), RBI (44), stolen bases (11), and batting average (.264, min. 90 games) this season, putting his value on display in the International League.
Loperfido made many adjustments to his game over the last year or so, and these can be seen in his performance at the MLB level over 2024 and 2025.
When looking at Loperfido’s Batting Run Value against certain pitches on his Baseball Savant page, he’s become noticeably more able to hold his ground against a variety of pitch types — most importantly pitches with glove-side movement like sliders, cutters, and sweepers. Against these pitches in 2024, he notched a -10 RV when facing them, but he improved this greatly in 2025 to a mark of +11.
It’s worth noticing his newfound ability to reach fastballs more consistently. Against four-seam fastballs, Loperfido has lowered his whiff and strikeout rates while increasing virtually every rate metric over the last two years. In 2025, he batted .412 and slugged .676 against four-seamers and posted a +7 RV against this pitch alone.
No Room in Toronto
Now with all the successes and strong points of Loperfido’s game, why isn’t he getting a consistent chance with the Blue Jays? Technically he did, appearing in 43 games for the Jays following his acquisition in 2024 in which he sported a mere slash line of .197/.236/.343 with only two home runs in 144 plate appearances.
Loperfido was given a shot to start in the Blue Jays’ outfield in a season in which they finished 74-88, which doesn’t say much but it indicates that they were willing to try him out.
When the Jays signed Anthony Santander to a $92.5 million contract over the ensuing offseason, his outfield spot was put in jeopardy immediately.
He did get into 41 games at the MLB level this season for Toronto due to injuries to Santander and other depth options for the Jays down the stretch and he looked great, hitting to the tune of a .333/.379/.500 slash line while hitting four home runs and driving in 14 RBI in this limited big-league stint.
Loperfido showed this year that he can handle himself in a big-league environment, but he didn’t get much more than a taste of MLB action in 2025.
Especially considering Toronto’s involvement in the Kyle Tucker sweepstakes, the Blue Jays just have a crowded outfield and a player like Loperfido is better-suited in a different environment than this one.
This is not to say that Toronto couldn’t use his services as a bench bat, but rather that it’d be more valuable to the team to swap him for another player that might bring more value north of the border at the MLB level.
Trade Value
We’ve already seen Loperfido’s value play a crucial role in a team’s acquisition of a star player — he was the only player with even a remote sample size of MLB experience coming from the Houston Astros to the Blue Jays in the Kikuchi deal.
While the Jays obviously won’t be able to simply flip him for a strong MLB-caliber player by himself, he gives the team in question versatility and plenty of value.
Loperfido ranked in the 88th and 80th percentiles in sprint speed in his two seasons of MLB experience, and in 2024 his arm graded out at a +2 RV (Run Value) according to Baseball Savant. He gives potential suitors not only an outfielder who can handle himself at the plate, but one that can throw, run, and field with proficiency.
Yes, it may be true that he doesn’t have much MLB time under his belt, but this is because he hasn’t had the opportunity to. In 2024, he appeared in 38 games for the Astros, who traded him after a hot start in his rookie season and then he got about the same sample size for a middling Blue Jays team.
He began the year in the minor leagues in 2025 and didn’t get called up until July because the Jays’ MLB roster was too full for him.
In his limited sample size with the Blue Jays this season, he contributed to their league-best offense down the stretch and played a crucial role in games where key players were injured and they needed someone to step up.
Although he didn’t factor into any of their playoff games during their World Series push, he slashed a ridiculous .389/.436/.542 over a month-long span (July 6 to August 5) when he got regular starting time for the Jays. The Jays went 15-9 in this stretch thanks to his efforts.
If Loperfido could get a consistent starting opportunity on a team that needs to fill innings and is willing to take a chance on a 26-year-old with his skillset, he could really find his footing and take people by surprise. He made big strides in 2025 to fix his swing and approach at the plate, and it’s paid off for him on the stat-sheet — it’s about time it earns him a starting job somewhere.
Potential Landing Spots
Loperfido could find himself as a part of a package deal to net the Jays a big-league player, but what teams might be taking flyers on a player like him?
Toronto would have to find him a team that could play him every day in a starting role in order to maximize his value. He likely wouldn’t net the Jays anything spectacular on his own, but when packaged with some other player(s) they could get a good return.
For instance, if the Jays are still looking to add yet another reliever to add to their team, they could go after right-hander Dennis Santana (2.18 ERA, 70.1 IP) of the Pirates who don’t look competitive anytime soon.
They could also try and look at Jimmy Herget of the Colorado Rockies who had an unusually incredible season for a Rockies pitcher (2.48 ERA, 83.1 IP). Loperfido could follow in former first-overall pick Mickey Moniak’s footsteps and try to find a career resurgence in Colorado as a corner outfielder.
The Miami Marlins have plenty of talent in their bullpen such as Ronny Henriquez, Tyler Phillips, and Anthony Bender, who performed very well for a surprisingly good Marlins team in 2025.
It’s still very unclear what Loperfido’s future looks like and how long it includes him playing in the Blue Jays’ organization, but what’s certain is that he has more value than he’s being used for at the moment.
Loperfido deserves a consistent roster and lineup spot on a team that could provide him with it, and his trade value might be as high as it’ll get over the next year or two given that his years of big-league control dwindle by the year. Loperfido is a fun player to watch on both sides of the ball, and he should be looked at by the Blue Jays as an asset that can be used to garner more MLB talent.
