C’s Chat – 2025 Vancouver Canadians RHP #33 Jonathan Todd – C's Plus Baseball

Taking the ball for this episode of C’s Chat is 2025 Vancouver Canadians pitcher Jonathan Todd.

The North Carolina native started out as a catcher and a pitcher at Rockingham County High School in Reidsville. A growth spurt in which he went from 5-foot-10 as a freshman to 6-foot-3 as a sophomore and his growing talent on the mound led Todd to leave behind the tools of ignorance. In his high school career with the Cougars, he won 12 of 16 decisions with a 2.49 earned run average along with a strikeout/walk total of 115-37 over 107 innings. Todd was a 2019 First Team All-Conference and Second Team All-County selection and helped the Cougars win the Conference championship.

Todd then attended Rockingham Community College in nearby Wentworth and put up a 2.81 ERA over 16 innings with 20 strikeouts and five walks allowed in a COVID-shortened 2020 campaign. In 2021, he won six of seven decisions with a 4.21 ERA and set a club record with 105 strikeouts and was named a NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) Region 10 Second-Team selection, leading the Golden Eagles to a regional championship.

The 2022 campagin saw Todd chop his ERA by more than half with a 2.08 mark and fan 96 batters against 16 walks in 55 innings. He finished his three-year stay at RCC by earning NJCAA Region 10 First-Team honours. In all three years, Todd was a member of three JUCO Final Four squads.

The summer of 2022 saw him continue his season with the Mooresville Spinners of the Southern Collegiate League, where he compiled a 3-1 record with a 4.01 ERA and piled up 36 strikeouts against nine walks in 24-2/3 innings.

A transfer to Division I Western Carolina University followed in 2023, where Todd split time in the starting rotation and the bullpen. That summer, he left the Tar Heel State to join the Martinsville Mustangs of the Coastal Plain League for six appearances, striking out 10 batters over 6-2/3 innings for the Virginia-based club.

After a tough first season with the Catamounts, he put it all together in 2024 when he was moved to the bullpen. Reducing his walk rate in half helped Todd put together a season in which he struck out 49 batters over 36 innings and converted seven saves. He won Southern Conference Pitcher of the Week honours for posting back-to-back saves against Hartford on March 16 and March 17. Todd made on the NCBWA (National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association) Midseason Stopper of the Year Watch List and was named a Southern Conference First-Team All-Star by the conference’s head coaches.

In the 2024 MLB Draft, the Toronto Blue Jays selected Todd in the 15th round and gave him a $5,000 signing bonus. His pro debut came with Low-A Dunedin where finished up the season with two holds in his three appearances, allowing just one unearned run with a 6-1 K/BB total over three innings.

Baseball America tabbed Todd as the best value pick by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2024 Draft.

“Best Day Three Pick (Or NDFA): Righthander Jonathan Todd (15) has an elite pitching frame at 6-foot-6, 225 pounds with well-developed musculature, and the Blue Jays are excited about his fastball/slider combination. “

Todd got to make his Spring Training debut with the Toronto Blue Jays against the Minnesota Twins on March 22. He pitched a shutout inning to collect the save that clinched the 2025 Grapefruit League title for the Jays.

The regular season saw Todd begin his first full season with the Vancouver Canadians and he earned a victory in his first appearance at Tri-City on April 6. He earned his second win of the year with two innings of one-run relief that included two strikeouts at Everett on April 23. Another big contribution in that series at Funko Field came in the series finale on April 27 in which he stranded two runners and pitched 1-2/3 scoreless stanzas with one strikeout in an eventual 10-winning victory.

The month of May has had its ups and downs for Todd, but he has not been scored upon in three of his last four appearances. He struck out three in 1-1/3 perfect innings at Spokane by striking out the side on May 6 and spun two shutout frames against Everett on May 16. Todd is coming off his most dominant outing of the year by punching out five batters at Eugene over 1-2/3 innings and stranding a runner on May 21.

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C’s Plus Baseball chatted with the 23-year-old Todd during the team’s homestand against Everett in mid-May. This interview has been edited for clarity.

C’s Plus Baseball – When did you first start playing baseball?

Jonathan Todd – I started playing baseball when I was four. I was a catcher all the way up until I got into junior college. That’s when they put me on the mound and went from junior college to Division One at Western Carolina, and then I got drafted last year.

CPB – In high school, was there anything that stands out for you when you think back?

JT – Yeah, I couldn’t really hit, but they really wanted me to hit three or four hole being a catcher, being a big guy, but I never could come through for the team on that.

CPB – You were more of a defensive catcher growing up?

JT – For sure, for sure. Definitely. I struck out 54 times in my senior year hitting, so I definitely think pitching was the call after that.

CPB – Now that you’re on the other side of the battery, how did catching help you develop as a pitcher?

JT – You kinda know what it’s like from the catcher’s point of view. It’s kind of like how the catchers go about their pregame, how they have routines for certain hitters, how they’re gonna attack them. So like me and them could be on the same page more so than somebody who has no experience behind the plate, I feel like.

CPB – Moving on to college, what were the highlights of your college career? What stands out for you when you think back?

JT – When I showed up to campus, I wanted to get weekend innings in conference, wanted to throw important games. I found myself as a Friday night starter for the first four or five weeks of my junior year, and then struggled there. They put me in the pen, and they told me just to pick my leg up and throw the ball as hard as I could, and then I just flourished in the pen. That’s where I was for the last two years.

CPB – Who helped you develop as a pitcher?

JT – Reece Honeycutt, my junior college head coach. We had four catchers that fall, and he said, ‘You’re not really going to have any time back here behind the plate, so we’re gonna try you out on the mound.’ And that spring, it just took off for me. But Reece Honeycutt definitely helped me with the transition between catching and pitching for sure. And Alan Beck, my head coach at Western Carolina, he told me the intensity factor that I bring into the field, bring it every single day.

CPB – You get drafted by the Blue Jays. What was your draft day experience like and the lead up to it?

JT – The draft day experience is just like any other normal day. I hung out with my girlfriend most of the day. Me and her went fishing, and (signing scout) Bill Murray texted me, and he said, ‘Hey, would you like to get drafted this round?’ And I said, ‘Yes sir! Of course!’ I was with my family, embraced my Mom and Dad, and had a good time.

CPB – Did you have any idea beforehand that the Blue Jays were interested in you, or did you think maybe another team was going to step in?

JT – They were the last team to contact me before the draft. I’m just grateful for the opportunity that the Blue Jays gave me to come and play professional baseball.

CPB – If you had to give a scouting report of yourself as a pitcher, how would you describe yourself?

JT – Plus fastball, plus slider, plus size. I think my intimidation factor, me being a really big physical dominant pitcher in the back half of the bullpen kind of makes me stand out.

CPB – Your pitch mix, you mentioned a fastball. Is it a four-seam or two-seam?

JT – Just a four-seam fastball. It just carries well at the top of the zone. It can play both in and out to right-handed and left-handed hitters.

CPB – The slider, is it a gyro slider or a sweeper?

JT – Definitely more of a bullet spin gyro slider for sure. I don’t really get the sweep, but a fastball up, gyro slider down plays really well for me.

CPB – Did anyone teach you the slider, teach you a grip, or anything like that?

JT – Not really, to be honest. I just kind of later in my career found out that it was better because of Trackman. I was throwing that slider my whole life and thought it wasn’t good because it wasn’t going that way or had the sweep action. But the gyro, it actually plays better for me.

CPB – So is it just fastball and slider. Have you thought about adding another pitch, or are you just trying to work on those two?

JT – No, Yardley (C’s pitching coach Eric Yardley) wants me to be really good with the one-two, so that way I can come in and dominate with both pitches anytime in the game.

CPB – The technology that measures your pitches and going down to the player development complex, would you say there’s maybe something you learned about yourself and something that really stood out to you there?

JT – Yes, they have the indoor bullpen up there. It’s insane, it’s the most high-tech technology I’ve ever thrown with, and it really kind of helped me understand that my body’s able to throw really hard. It’s just I have to be able to move efficiently to be able to make that (happen).

CPB – Your first experience down in Dunedin last year, what was that first pro experience like for you?

JT – It was awesome. My first appearance I struck out a kid, and I didn’t even really kind of realize I had to call time and throw the ball in until my third baseman, Manuel Beltre, had to tell me, ‘Hey, step off, call time, throw the ball in!’ So yeah, that was funny, the guys in Dunedin are awesome. The atmosphere in Dunedin can’t compare to Vancouver in my opinion, Vancouver is an amazing place, it’s awesome to be here.

CPB – When you get down to Dunedin, you have the draft camp, you meet lots of people, but was there anybody you really hit it off with right away that you just connected with?

JT – You’re talking about draft guys or coaches?

CPB – We can start with the draft.

JT – Okay, we’ll go Javen Coleman, Colby Holcombe. Those two are my pretty, pretty close friends, Colby Martin too, he was my roommate. Coaches wise, (Blue Jays Complex Pitching Coach & Special Projects) Alex Kachler. Me and him kind of clicked as soon as we started talking about how my thought process is on how I throw. He just understands me when it comes to that.

CPB – So heading into the offseason, what was the offseason routine like for you? Do the Jays kind of give you instructions and check in with you?

JT – Oh yeah, they checked in with me, but this offseason I got a job working in a warehouse. I was a forklift driver for Walmart, me and my girlfriend lived together, so that’s what I did during the offseason. And then yes they had their normal check-ins with me, nutrition, physical, Cardona (fitness). Kachler would call me probably once or twice every week and talk about my throwing program.

CPB – What was a typical day for you. You had another job, but what was your routine like?

JT – I wake up probably like nine o’clock and then me and my girlfriend go to the gym. After that she would follow me to the field and she would basically be my throwing partner on days that I have light catch and on heavier days where she would just velo my throw downs or my pull downs or my short box (pilates routine), whatever I had to do that day. And I’d come back and then I’d have to go work from 4:00 pm to 2:00 in the morning, that was my day in the offseason.

CPB – You talk about your girlfriend and your family. How key is their support and help as you try carve out a big league career for yourself?

JT – If you think that you can do this by yourself, you can’t. You’re only as strong as the people around you, and I think if you surround yourself with strong people, I don’t think there’s anything that can come in between you and reaching that end goal.

CPB – I wanted to ask about spring training. In your one appearance, you get a save, and as it turns out, it was the clinching game to help the Blue Jays win the Grapefruit League title. What do you remember about that day?

JT – I showed up to the field and it was Max Scherzer‘s start day, and obviously he’s a really big name in Major League Baseball. But being able to go out there and play with Major League guys or Double-A guys, being able to get that experience around those type of guys, it definitely sets you apart from the people that don’t get the opportunity. It’s just being able to understand that we’re all the same. It’s just whatever routine that you find that helps you, that’s what’s going to take you to the next level.

CPB – You mentioned Max Scherzer, was there anyone else maybe you had a chance to interact with?

JT – To be honest, I think that’s the only one that’s stuck in my mind, because he was my locker mate beside me when I walked in. And I was like, ‘Wow, okay! Max Scherzer’s beside me, that’s cool.’

CPB – Was there any talk about winning the Grapefruit League?

JT – I had no idea. They told me in the 7th inning that I would have the 9th inning if it would go to plan, and it went to plan, and I got the job done for the team, so it was good, it was awesome.

CPB – You get here to Vancouver, how have you found it going here so far in the Northwest League?

JT – It’s amazing, the views on the west coast in another country, it’s nothing I would ever expected. It blows me away every day when I come to the field. There’s a new sight, there’s a new view. I see snow on top of the mountain sitting in the bullpen, so it’s like there’s no other place on this earth that’s gonna have that, it’s awesome.

CPB – Has it been a big step up in competition from Florida State League to here?

JT – Yes, I say here you find a lot more four-year veteran college guys and the younger 19, to 20-year-old prospects that have legitimate MLB-grade stuff.

CPB – I wanted to ask you about one outing you had. The last game in Everett, you came in. There were two runners on base and you managed to strand both of them. What do you remember about that outing ?

JT – I came in, that was the day that Grant (Grant Rogers) started that day. I came in, two runners on, I just do what I got to do to put up a zero for the team and put us in the best chance to be able to win later on in the game. Just keep it as simple as we can when it comes to that.

CPB – Did you have a favourite major league team or player growing up?

JT – Albert Pujols was my favorite player growing up.

CPB – Cardinals fan or Angels fan?

JT – It was just because whenever I watched, he always hit. It was just like that was his prime when he was with the Cardinals, before he went to the Angels.

CPB – Did you have any other favorite pro sports teams?

JT – I’m a big fan of the Carolina Hurricanes. Me and my buddies in college used to you know play hockey together and I was like ‘Hey, I like Carolina, I’m from there so we’ll pull for the Hurricanes.’ I’m kind of new to it though, but they’re in the playoffs now, I’m following them. The Carolina Panthers, I’m a big fan of. Honestly, any North Carolina team I’m gonna be a fan of.

CPB – Final question. The Canadians have lots of different uniforms—red, black, blue, white, gray and the lumberjack, do you have a favourite?

JT – The black one, that has the Canadian (Monty the Mountie) on the front, the black one.

Jonathan Todd File

Born – August 21, 2001, in Stoneville, North Carolina
Height/Weight – 6-foot-6, 225 pounds
Bats/Throws – Left/Right
Uniform Numbers – Wore number 23 with Rockhingham Community College from 2020-2022. Wore number 37 in 2023 and number 21 with Western Carolina in 2024. Wore number 7 with Dunedin in 2024. Also wore number 34 with Vancouver in 2025.
Professional Debut – August 28, 2024, for the Dunedin Blue Jays versus Lakeland Flying Tigers, earned hold with an unearned run allowed over one inning.
First Professional Strikeout – August 28, 2024 for Dunedin vs Lakeland, striking out Corey Joyce.
First Professional Win – April 6, 2025, for the Vancouver Canadians at Tri-City Dust Devils. Pitched 1-1/3 innings of one-run ball, striking out a batter and stranding a runner.
Instagram – @jonathan_todd21
Twitter – @Jonathan_Todd34
Mound Music – “Hells Bells” by AC/DC.
The More You Know – Todd hopes to join righthander Paul Menhart as former West Carolina Catamounts to pitch for the Blue Jays. Menhart had a three-year MLB career that began with Toronto in 1995.