With the 117th overall pick of the 2019 MLB Draft, the Blue Jays stuck to their flock in selecting right fielder Will Robertson from the Creighton University Bluejays. The only other time the Blue Jays have drafted and signed a Bluejay was 20 years ago, when they took RHP Peyton Lewis in the 18th round though he only lasted one year in the system.
Will Robertson hits baseballs far. LET’S GO! #RoadToOmaha pic.twitter.com/VKc3QUaD9I
— Colin Belmont (@cbelmont15) June 2, 2019
Robertson is an corner outfielder whose main calling card is his bat. Over the last two years at Creighton, he hit .321/.410/.619 in 488 plate appearances, with 27 home runs among 67 extra base hits. He struck out 70 times while while walking 42 and adding 23 hit-by-pitches for a total of 65 free passes to first. Creighton plays its home games at TD Ameritrade Park, so while that line was not produced in one of the premier college conferences, his home park is a very difficult in which to hit home runs and for power more generally.
In addition to that robust line college line, Robertson has a track record against good pitching with wood bats, as he was a standout for Cotuit last summer in the Cape Cod League. He hit .294 with 15 extra base hits in about 200 PA, with a 16/31 K/BB ratio.
An uneven junior season apparently cost him in terms of draft positioning, though like Griffin Conine last year he finished strong and his overall production ended up largely in line. This is reflected in that the consensus of multiple rankings which had him higher than where the Jays took him — 61st by Fangraphs, 81st by MLB Pipeline, 95th on BA’s broad. In this sense, there’s some parallel to Riley Adams, who had a similar track record of offensive production and the Jays nabbed 99th overall in the 3rd round of the 2017 draft despite a significantly higher consensus ranking.
Will Robertson gets the bats going early for Creighton and the Bluejays take the early lead! #RoadToOmaha | @CU_Baseball pic.twitter.com/NnDnkadDhg
— NCAA Baseball (@NCAACWS) June 3, 2019
With this pick, among their first two picks the Blue Jays have taken one of everything — one college bat, one college arm, one high school arm, one high school bat.