Toronto Blue Jays Prospects: How Jake Cook Finished in Arizona Fall League

The Toronto Blue Jays prospects saw their seasons end this week in the Arizona Fall League, but it was a truly great run in the fall for outfield prospect Jake Cook.

Cook had two-hits in a playoff loss on Thursday, including an RBI double. He hit .343 in 17 games with a blistering 14 stolen bases. Playing for Mesa, he also had seven RBIs and drew six walks. He had a .397 on-base percentage.

He was one of three Blue Jays prospects to make the Arizona Fall League All-Star Game, including pitcher Jake Bloss and catcher/outfielder Aaron Parker.

Drafted in the third round of the 2025 MLB Draft out of Southern Mississippi, Cook was formerly a two-player in Hattiesburg. However, he struggled to throw strikes and ended up just hitting in 2025. He hit .350 for the Golden Eagles and also displayed his elite speed and defensive ability.

He didn't play professionally after the draft last year and began his minor league journey this season, playing 77 games between Rookie Ball and Single-A Dunedin.

He hit .247 with a .366 on-base percentage, also hitting four triples, five home runs and 42 RBIs. Speed is his biggest calling card and he stole 22 bases in just those 77 games. He clearly continued that this fall.

It's always hard to tell because you never know exactly what a team is going to do, but Cook is projected to make the big leagues in 2028 by MLB Pipeline. Toronto has three left-handed hitting outfielders on its roster right now, which further complicates things. Addison Barger, Brett Bateman and Nathan Lukes are all under team control for multiple years, and Barger and Bateman look like long-term answers as well.

Speed like this cannot be taught, so you have to imagine that the Blue Jays will find a way to utilize him in some way.

At the major league level, everyone is worried about the impact of the MLB lockout, for understandable reasons. However, the minor leagues will be unaffected. Cook is not on the 40-man roster, so that means he will be eligible to play in the minor leagues, even if there are games missed at the big league level. That will be critical for his development and will give him chances to grow and accelerate his timeline.