TORONTO – When the Toronto Blue Jays take the field again, active rosters will increase from 26 to 28, allowing managers a bit more leeway in making late-game adjustments.
At least one of the new players must be a position player, with the other likely going to a pitcher. Complicating things further, the Blue Jays are set to face off against the Cleveland Guardians, who are currently just 1.5 games ahead of them for the final American League wild-card spot.
While plans aren’t fully established yet, the Blue Jays spent some time this weekend discussing potential September call-up options.
“I wish I could give you a clear-cut answer, but there are a lot of moving pieces,” manager John Schneider said. “There are guys that we’ve seen before, guys that we like, and there’s just a lot of moving pieces, so we’ve got to figure out how it all works. But it’s nice to have a handful of options.”
As Tuesday’s game approaches featuring Spencer Arrighetti and Gavin Williams, let’s take a look at some possible candidates for those two new roster spots on the Blue Jays:
Available on the 40-man roster but not yet eligible to be recalled barring injury: Davis Schneider
Available on the 40-man roster and eligible to be recalled any time: Sean Keys, Yohendrick Piñango
The most straightforward move might simply involve activating Smith, who was rehabbing at triple-A over the weekend.
However, given this Blue Jays lineup’s need for power, team officials might also consider Keys, who slammed seven home runs with an OPS of 1.154 at triple-A in August.
There’s also a chance they may explore options on the waiver wire for additional support-similar to what the Baltimore Orioles did by claiming Luis Robert Jr. from the New York Mets on Monday.
No matter what happens, it seems likely that only one of those two openings will go to a position player. Unless there’s an unexpected addition, Smith seems well-positioned to join the major league squad.
Available on the 40-man roster but not yet eligible to be recalled barring injury: Brendan Cellucci, Chad Dallas
Available on the 40-man roster and eligible to be recalled any time: Chase Lee, Ricky Tiedemann, John Klein
The initial intention was for Taillon to rejoin Toronto’s rotation in Cleveland; however they’ll opt for Arrighetti along with Dylan Cease and Jose Soriano instead. This means Taillon won’t need activation until later in Kansas City this weekend.
Mantiply pitched in two rehab games at triple-A last week which suggests he’s getting close to being ready for MLB action. If Mantiply requires more time before returning, Tiedemann could get called up for some games.
A key point: both Mantiply and Tiedemann throw left-handed which may help counteract a Guardians lineup filled with lefty batters and switch-hitters during this crucial series with playoff stakes involved.
Teams can’t share information about waivers due to strict regulations; thus very few details leak out publicly. However it has been reported that John Schreiber from Kansas City Royals is among those available-and there are likely others as well. Anyone claimed before September 1 can participate in postseason play so now’s prime time for such moves.
Since Taillon doesn’t need immediate activation right away, it looks like Toronto might lean towards someone like Mantiply as they prepare themselves strongly in Cleveland.
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