Despite not being non-tendered, five Blue Jays will shortly be off the roster.
The Toronto Blue Jays are now in the midst of a crucial offseason for the team’s future. Chris Bassitt, Erik Swanson, Kevin Kiermaier, and Daulton Varsho were all brought in for the 2023 regular season, and they all had significant roles to play.
There will be a lot of the same kinds of movements this offseason. There will be adjustments have to be made within the 40-man roster with every addition, whether it comes via a trade acquisition or a free agent. After adding Brandon Little and Adam Macko, the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster is currently at 38.
This implies that the team can add two more players without having to worry about their being placed on waivers. On the other hand, the Jays need to add, add, add during this offseason. Toronto will need to hit hard and often since they have some of the biggest names at the top of their priority list. There will undoubtedly be more than two moves made, which means that players who are on the roster bubble will probably be cut.
Adam Cimber was the only Blue Jays player who was not tendered before the deadline for teams to decide which players they will (and won’t) tender contracts to. Some players who were toward the bottom of the 40-man roster unexpectedly made it through this round of cuts.
Now, let’s examine a few guys who were not non-tendered but may soon find themselves without a spot on the roster.
RHP Wes Parsons.
Early in the 2023 season, Wes Parsons signed a minor league contract with the Blue Jays. The right-hander’s prior big league experience was valued because it included 33 appearances in 2018 and 2019.
Throughout his season with the Blue Jays, the 31-year-old did not see a change in his problem of walking batters. He did, however, maintain a positive trend in his HR/9 and H/9, both of which were below the career average from previous years.
His 4.55 ERA, 10.6 SO/9, and 9-4 record gave him a chance to play in the major leagues. He came up and made his first big league start on the last day of the regular season. The plan was not followed by events. Parsons struck out three and walked three in his four innings of work, giving up nine runs. It was obvious from the outset that this outing would see him “held out to dry,” so to speak. He needed to play as many innings as possible for the club.
It’s hard to see how Parsons fits into the Blue Jays’ plans moving forward. He was minor league filler for the whole previous year, so the likelihood of his having a significant effect on the big league squad in 2024 is low. It would be wise for the Jays to keep him in Buffalo if he gets passed over through waivers because he is a trustworthy arm to have in the high levels.
RHP Trevor Richards.
Trevor Richards had a good season in 2023 overall. The right-hander performed a variety of duties for the Jays, including opening for three “starts,” and he never wavered in his commitment to putting the team first.
The season for Richards was divided into two parts. With a wipeout changeup that hitters wouldn’t hit even if he told them it was coming, he was undoubtedly one of the greatest relief pitchers in the first half of the game. With nearly 13 strikeouts per nine innings and a 3.02 ERA in 30 games, he limited the opposition to a.196 batting average.
He battled ailments in the second half and was never quite the same pitcher when he came off the injured list. Ultimately, he finished with a horrifying 8.04 ERA in 26 games during the second half. He was suddenly allowing batters to bat.274 off of him, and it appeared like he had lost his touch.
Richards is by no means a DFA candidate right now. Although his contract was taken up in arbitration for the following season, at the end of that one he will become a free agent. He feels more like a trade prospect than an obvious DFA at this point. In trade negotiations, he might still be valuable if parties recognize his value from the first half of the previous season.
INF/OF Otto Lopez.
Although he never saw any game action, Lopez actually spent a day on the big league roster in May of this past season. He was hurt or struggling in the upper minor leagues for the remainder of the season.
Lopez, 25, is a player that any team would be lucky to have on their roster because of his interesting combination of speed, gap power, contact, and baseball IQ. His output did, however, cease in 2023. He appeared in 84 games for the Buffalo Bisons, batting.258 with an OPS of.656 and just 17 extra-base hits.
Lopez’s tremendous positional diversity on defense only adds to his worth. He played shortstop, left field, center field, third base, and second only last year.
Similar to Richards, Lopez, who is currently with the Leones del Escogido in the Dominican Winter League, has been hitting well and may be increasing his trade worth. He is 13-for-34 (.382) with two stolen bases and an OPS of.980 through 10 games played thus far. Should his performance persist, he might make a valuable trade asset.
RHP Zach Pop.
Pop surprised everyone by being added on the Blue Jays Opening Day roster for 2023 following a strong 17-game performance the previous season. After giving up four runs in a game against the Astros, he had a 1.08 ERA through his first nine outings. After that, things soon went south for him.
Ultimately, he concluded his major league career with a 6.59 ERA in 15 appearances. He made 31 appearances in the minor leagues and had a 5.51 ERA, but he was letting runners reach at a rate that was a little too high. This offseason, he might be a trade or DFA candidate, although his trade value isn’t exactly astronomically high at the moment.
RHP Hagen Danner.
This year, Danner, 25, made his big league debut after showing promise as a relief pitcher. He had to be taken out of the game after recording only one out due to an injury that ultimately ended his season just a few weeks into it.
Since switching to the mound in 2021, the catcher-turned-pitcher has drawn attention. In just 39 innings this year in the lower leagues, he has struck out 56 batters. With his excellent breaking stuff and blistering fastball, he could be an asset to almost any team. Since there’s no chance the Blue Jays would DFA Danner, a trade is how we envision him losing his job. Although he is prepared for a major league role, the Blue Jays’ bullpen might not have room for him in the future.