The Blue Jays are signing reliever Vinny Nittoli to a minor league contract, reports Robert Murray of FanSided (Twitter link). The 31-year-old recently opted out of a similar arrangement with the division-rival Yankees.
A former 25h-round pick, Nittoli has spent the bulk of his career in the Mariners organization. He reached the big leagues with Seattle last year, getting the briefest cup of coffee with one inning of relief in his only appearance. The M’s outrighted him off their 40-man roster and later released him, and he caught on with the Twins for the stretch run. That agreement with Minnesota didn’t result in a big league look, and Nittoli returned to the open market as a minor league free agent, where he caught on with New York.
Assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for the entirety of the 2022 campaign, the right-hander worked 36 2/3 innings across 22 appearances. He posted a 3.44 ERA, punching out a strong 29.9% of batters faced against a fine 8.8% walk rate. He’ll add some non-roster depth behind a Toronto relief corps that ranks 21st in MLB with a 4.11 ERA.
Leave the gun, take the Nittoli.
Any idea on what his average fastball velo is? Jays desperately need some heat out of the pen.
Probably 86mph
Jays seem to only give a flyer to slow throwing , spin it type bullpen arms . They don’t believe in velo
93.1 as a major leaguer last year. I don’t think you can get that info from the minor leagues so no idea what he’s throwing now. I don’t know if they need premium velocity so much as premium swing and miss stuff. Nearly 30% K rate is nice. Options remaining so there’s more flexibility if they do add him.
So Nittoli, with his extremely limited MLB experience, is a better bullpen option than Sergio Romo?
It’s his limited experience that gives the team some flexibility with usage. In Romo’s case, the fact he is experienced and has certain protections on his career means they can’t hoard him as depth. He has to be given the opportunity to move on to his next gig. Guys like Romo are often just victim of circumstance. A starter doesn’t go deep, the pen works a lot over a short stretch and the team needs to freshen up arms and needs a roster spot. It kind of seems unfair that the guys who did their job covering some of those much needed innings lose their job because of it. They aren’t fresh so they are the logical choice to go out the door.
Interesting to see he’s been with The Blue Jays organization before back in 2019. He did well in 29 games in New Hampshire.
May 18, 2019: Signed as a Free Agent with the Toronto Blue Jays.
November 2, 2020: Granted Free Agency.