A 19th-round pick as an Indiana high schooler, Stanifer was the lowest Blue Jays selection to sign in 2022, doing so for $125,000 to forego a Cincinnati commitment. It was a slow build for the right-hander over two seasons in the Florida Complex and Florida State Leagues before he took off like a rocket to begin 2025 as Trey Yesavage’s piggyback partner in Dunedin. Stanifer posted a 0.69 ERA with 38 strikeouts over 26 innings before earning a promotion in late May to High-A Vancouver, where he has carried his momentum into a starting role.
Pitching exclusively out of the stretch, Stanifer has short arm action on the mound, like he’s hiding the ball a little extra longer before bringing it home. His 2025 breakout has coincided with a fastball velocity jump, and he now sits in the 94-96 mph range with regularity. As if that wasn’t enough, the heater has exceptional ride (17-20 inches of induced vertical break) and ample armside run that can give hitters fits. His 83-86 mph slider has a gyro shape and drops almost straight down; batters didn’t have a single hit off it in Single-A this season. Stanifer reserves his 86-88 mph changeup for lefties, and while it’s getting more whiffs at High-A, it still lags well behind the other pitches in usage.
The last piece of the puzzle will be controlling that high-level quality of stuff as Stanifer climbs the ladder. His walk rates remain on the higher side, and it won’t get any easier to keep more disciplined hitters away from free passes in the upper levels. Stanifer’s jump is a notable accomplishment for Toronto’s pitching group, though, and he would have been a prominent pick in the 2025 Draft had he grown into this level of stuff over three years of school.
