Trenton Wallace has become a pitching prospect to keep an eye on in the Blue Jays organization

Starting the year in High-A Vancouver, left-hander Trenton Wallace quickly established himself as one of the top arms on the team. His first start of the season was against the Tri-Cty Dust Devils and the 6 foot 1, Rock Island, Illinois product allowed just two hits through five innings, striking out five batters while throwing strikes at a 63.2% rate.

While his next start saw him put up four earned, Wallace returned to form and allowed just four runs through the next six games and 30 1/3 innings, including a three-game stretch where he did not allow a single earned run. Through that time, the University of Iowa product allowed just 15 hits and nine walks while limiting opponents to a .140 batting average and a .410 OPS, quickly establishing himself as a top arm on the Canadians’ rotation. His best outing of the season came against the Everett Aquasox back on May 12th, where he no-hit the club through five innings and struck out seven with zero walks (the bid would be lost the next inning).

“Pitching at ‘The Nat’ really gives you that feeling of what professional baseball truly is,” said Wallace to the Blue Jays Nation. “The fans are loud and you have that consistent ‘buzz’ throughout the stadium at all times. Truly one of my favourite parks I’ve played at.”

Trenton Wallace has been One of the Best Arms in the Blue Jays Farm System

Drafted in the 11th round of the 2021 Draft, Wallace split last season between Single-A Dunedin and Vancouver, finishing the year with the Canadians where he pitched to a 3.66 ERA through nine starts. This season, Wallace has improved upon that stat for the time being, amassing a 1.79 ERA through eight starts and 40 1/3 innings of work while authoring a 10.5 K/9.

“Honestly, this year is just simply throwing more strikes. I’ve been trying to challenge hitters and force weak contact by limiting walks. Strikeouts will come by attacking hitters early and giving yourself a chance to get ahead in the count.”

Even with the impressive stats and the work he has been doing on the mound, Wallace is always looking for ways to improve his game, “I’m looking to keep my velocity up the whole season. I feel comfortable throwing strikes and with the average velocity up a little higher than last year I’m looking to keep it consistent and possibly improve more.”

Amongst the Canadians’ rotation arms, Wallace ranks first in numerous categories, including innings pitched, ERA, strikeouts (47), WHIP (0.818), and BB/9 (2.5) while facing a team-high 156 batters.

With Alek Manoah being optioned to the FCL Blue Jays last week, a flurry of internal moves followed, including Bowden Francis being sent to the active roster and Paxton Schultz being moved to Triple-A from Double-A. As well, Wallace was promoted to Double-A New Hampshire to take Schultz’s spot in the rotation and the southpaw made his debut against the Harrisburg Senators, facing top prospects from the Washington Nationals organization in James Wood (#1), Robert Hassell III (#2), and Trey Lipscomb (#18).