Brazilians in Toronto: Blue Jays Player Development Highlights Career of Two Brazilian Prospects

Franchise from Canada is a well-known destination for Brazilian athletes; as 2025 approaches, another prospect foresees MLB debut.

(Photo: Natan Pires)

Counted as one of the countries that make up the group of Latinos in the MLB, Brazil doesn’t usually figure among the big developers of athletes when compared to its neighbors in South America. Yan Gomes, who in 2012 became the first Brazilian to make his MLB debut for the Blue Jays, was the only athlete to officially represent the country as one of the foreigners to be part of an active MLB squad on Opening Day 2024. Besides him, currently, only Bo Bichette, also from the Blue Jays, is another name to be part of a 40-name squad and to have already defended Brazil in an official team competition.

Despite this, the country currently has 11 names signed by Major League Baseball franchises, divided into practically all levels of the system—reinforcing the work being done in the youth ranks. As the 2024 Minor League Baseball playoffs draw to a close and the Rookie Leagues are finalized, it’s a good time to take a look at some of the top Brazilian players in professional baseball.

Starting today, you can follow a weekly series of articles on the current development of the main names in Brazilian baseball. We start with the Toronto Blue Jays franchise, where important names from the recent wave of new talent from Brazil stand out and are gaining ground, looking to the future.

Pitching Duo Stands Out in Toronto’s System

Eric Pardinho, RHP – Buffalo Bisons (Triple-A, Toronto Blue Jays)

Making his Triple-A debut in 2024, Eric Pardinho was once considered the top Brazilian prospect in baseball – the #5 best international prospect of the 2017 window. Despite injuries hampering his development over the last few years, the Toronto Blue Jays’ gamble paid off. Pardinho’s performance at the start of the season was enough to earn him a promotion to the Buffalo Bisons in June.

Having the opportunity to pitch healthy without distractions brought on by injuries are the main factors for Eric’s advancement. The change in body language in 2024 is one of the highlights in the Brazilian’s evolution curve. Cory Popham, who coordinated pitcher development at the franchise until early September, highlighted Pardinho’s workload and focus during training sessions in an interview with Doug Fox of the Future Blue Jays Newsletter.

“He focuses on throwing. He throws into a miniature strike zone; he does that more than any other guy I’ve seen on my visits. And so it’s not a surprise that it’s paying off. He just works really hard, and he’s learned his arsenal more, and he’s got really good stuff.

With his contract coming to an end at the end of the 2024 season, Pardinho, who is only 23 years old, is looking to consolidate his place among the names on the list for the Blue Jays’ arms rebuilding project over the next few years – including a solid possibility of debuting in MLB. In 2024 (between AA and AAA), the pitcher posted a 2-1 record, with a 3.25 ERA in 55.1 IP, accumulating a career-high 66 strikeouts.

Sann Omosako, RHP – FCL Blue Jays (Rookie affiliate, Toronto Blue Jays)

Sann Omosako’s second year in the system represented a solid step in his development, as he was promoted from the Dominican rookie leagues to the Florida Complex League, where he had more contact with college players.

If Omosako already stood out for his control in the Dominican Republic, the expectation is that his good numbers will continue in Florida. With more than twice as many innings pitched in 2024, Omosako gave up just one more walk than in 2023, when he had the lowest BB% rate among DSL-eligible pitchers.

Joe Sclafani, Farm System Director for the Blue Jays, highlighted the points of improvement in Omosako’s career looking forward. “We were pleased with his year overall. He’s a really good strike-thrower. The stuff is a tad light, and we’re working to hopefully see an uptick in that area, but his pitchability leaves a nice floor. There are some physical opportunities that we’re hoping helps on the stuff front as well.”

New Roster Rules Contribute to Brazilian Player Cut 

As part of the Blue Jays franchise since the 2021 international window, RHP Rafael Ohashi has had some standout moments in Toronto’s pitcher training program. Despite injuries in 2022, the 22-year-old Brazilian had a good season and continued to progress rapidly, to the point of opening the 2024 season with the Vancouver Canadians (High-A).

Throughout the first half of the year, the righty recorded 16.2 scoreless innings, but a series of factors left Ohashi with little room in the system. The athlete was shifted to reliever duties in a bullpen loaded with good numbers. Unfortunately, changes to the MLB’s roster rules, which are now more restrictive, led to the Brazilian’s dismissal, and he is expected to seek a new contract during the offseason.

Follow the series of articles on the current training of Brazilian athletes in Major League Baseball’s Minor League System. Next week, Gabriel Barbosa’s change of scenery as part of the New York Yankees franchise!