The Toronto Blue Jays promoted top prospect JoJo Parker to High-A Vancouver as the shortstop continues to impress.
Toronto selected Parker 8th overall in the 2025 MLB Draft. He’s one of the top prospects in all of baseball. Although he was drafted out of high school, Parker has risen up the minor leagues and was recently promoted to High-A Vancouver.
After Parker’s promotion, Blue Jays manager John Schneider was asked about it and made his feelings clear.
“Keep him going,” said Schneider of Parker’s promotion from the single-A Dunedin Blue Jays to the High-A Vancouver Canadians. “Keep him moving up.”
The now 20-year-old was known for his bat, but his defensive play has also been solid. Donnie Murphy, the minor league infield coordinator for the Blue Jays, was recently in Toronto and praised Parker, according to Schneider.
“We were talking about him a little bit, and he’s another smart kid,” said Schneider. “For a young guy, he can obviously hit, there’s all those tools, but pretty baseball savvy.”
Parker is hitting .258 with 13 home runs and 66 RBIs this season. It’s his first pro season, and he’s already in High-A.
Blue Jays Also Promote Johnny King
Along with Parker, left-handed pitching prospect Johnny King was promoted from Vancouver to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
King is the Blue Jays’ third-ranked prospect and the second-ranked pitching prospect behind Nolan Perry. The left-hander has pitched well after being selected in the third round of the 2024 MLB Draft out of high school.
Similar to Parker, Schneider is glad to see King moving up the system quickly, as that is the goal.
“Keep him going too, you know what I mean?” said Schneider. “Minor leagues is practice.”
King went 5-2 with a 3.21 ERA in 21 games in High-A, and the Blue Jays want to see him continue to pound the zone.
“The biggest thing is if you’re posting and you continue to do well, it’s like get going,” said Schneider. “The reports on him have been really, really good for the whole time he’s been here. … I think just as he continues to go, just say, ‘hey, the more you’re around older hitters, you got to just trust that your stuff is going to be good in the zone.’”
With Parker, Perry and King in the fold, the top of the Blue Jays’ prospects are something to build on.
Parker is Known for ‘Powerful’ Bat
The Blue Jays selected Parker out of high school and signed him away from his college commitment at Mississippi State.
At the time, Parker was known for his bat, which is his case, as he has a 60-hit tool and 55-power, according to MLB Pipeline.
“Parker has a powerful left-handed swing, but he’s able to keep his hacks in control, impressing pre-Draft evaluators with the way he manages the strike zone. There was already a feel to add loft in his swing, though he tended more toward line drives, and with work from Blue Jays strength training, he could get to plus power in the future. Toronto officials already see adding muscle as a major opportunity to grow Parker’s profile,” the prospect profile read.
Parker is the 27th-ranked prospect in all of baseball.
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