GDB -1.0: The Toronto Blue Jays take on the Philadelphia Phillies to begin their Grapefruit League Spring Training campaign.
That didn’t stop the Jays from engaging in free agency, though. They made two fairly surprising trades in late December: they signed utility guy Isiah Kiner-Falefa and brought back outfielder Kevin Kiermair.
January saw a rush of minor league transactions, but Big Red, the seasoned slugger Justin Turner, also made a platoon and doubled as the Jays’ designated hitter. More minor league signings occurred in February, including the contracts of third baseman Eduardo Escobar and big man Daniel Vogelbach.
They also signed Cuban pitcher Yariel Rodriguez to a five-year, $32-million contract with option, escalator, and performance bonusesโpossibly their most significant move to date.
After losing to the Minnesota Twins in two games last fall, the Jays are counting on positive regression from a squad whose bats slid too far the other way just when they needed it most. This is far from the offseason that many in the Six were hoping for.
Today was meant to be the perfect start to the spring training season, with top prospect Ricky Tiedemann taking the mound to begin the opening game. However, due to some left hamstring soreness, he was left off the starting lineup. Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reported on Thursday that Tiedemann is regarded as day-to-day and that it was felt early in training that day.