In late 2015, the Toronto Blue Jays overwent some changes in their front office, with general manager Alex Anthopoulos heading to the west coast with Ross Atkins and Mark Shapiro joining the organization as general manager and CEO/president respectively.

With these changes, and the Atkins/Shapiro era inheriting a more veteran squad, I thought it would be interesting to take a trip down memory lane and look at the first draft this dynamic duo was at the helm for in 2016, but focusing on the players who chose not to sign. If you’ll recall, back then, there were still 40 rounds to the MLB Draft, meaning an uptick in prep players choosing to pursue post-secondary programs instead of transitioning to pro baseball.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at the players the Blue Jays drafted in 2016 and choose not to sign, seeing where they are now in their baseball careers.
Round 13 – Chris Lincoln (RHP)
Hailing from Rancho Verde High School in Moreno California, Chris Lincoln decided to not sign with the Jays and took his talents to the Univesity of California, Santa Barbara instead. He would later be drafted by the San Diego Padres in the fifth round of the 2019 MLB Draft, improving his draft stock. He saw a handful of games following his draft year but missed the 2020 (COVID shutting down the MiLB season) and the 2021 (injury) seasons, ret …

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Author: Tyson Shushkewich / Blue Jays Nation