Blue Jays Rumors

Blue Jays Agree To Terms With First-Rounder JoJo Parker

By Anthony Franco | July 18, 2025 at 8:27pm CDT

The Blue Jays have reached agreement with eighth overall pick JoJo Parker on a $6.2MM bonus, reports Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline. That’s a few hundred thousand dollars below the $6.81MM slot value.

Parker is a 6’2″ infielder who was drafted out of a Mississippi high school. A left-handed hitter, Parker ranked between seventh and tenth on pre-draft rankings from each of MLB Pipeline, Baseball America, ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and The Athletic’s Keith Law. Evaluators uniformly praise him as one of the best hitters in the class. McDaniel, who was highest on Parker among the aforementioned prospect rankers, suggests he could be a plus-plus hitter with average power in his prime.

While he played shortstop in high school, Parker is expected to move off the position by the time he reaches the majors. Scouting reports suggest he could fit at third base, though there’s a chance he’ll need to move to a corner outfield spot. That’d put more pressure on Parker’s bat, but it’s possible he could hit enough to profile as a regular anywhere on the diamond.

Parker had been committed to Mississippi State. He’ll bypass that commitment, but his twin brother Jacob will join the Bulldogs. Jacob Parker was viewed as a solid prospect in his own right, though he was seen as more of a fourth-round talent. He didn’t find a signing bonus to his liking. The Diamondbacks eventually drafted him in the 19th round, but teams only select highly-regarded high school prospects that late in case an agreement with one of their earlier picks falls through (leaving them with unexpected bonus money).

Ryan Burr To Undergo Season-Ending Shoulder Surgery

By Darragh McDonald | July 18, 2025 at 3:50pm CDT

Blue Jays right-hander Ryan Burr will undergo season-ending surgery to address a capsule injury in his throwing shoulder. That was one of many updates that manager John Schneider provided about players on the roster. Shi Davidi of Sportsnet was among those to pass the info along.

Burr, now 31, had a solid showing with the Jays last year. He tossed 32 2/3 innings with a 4.10 earned run average. He struck out 33.6% of opponents and had a walk rate of 8.6%. If it weren’t for a .329 batting average on balls in play, he could have fared better, which is why FIP had him at 3.07 and SIERA at 2.66.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to build on that here in 2025. He started the year on the injured list due to shoulder inflammation. He eventually got healthy enough to be reinstated in early July. But after just two appearances, he was quickly placed on the 60-day IL with a rotator cuff strain.

He’ll stay on the IL for the rest of the year. He has passed three years of service time and will qualify for arbitration but the Jays may not tender him a contract. His results last year were good but he’s out of options will be coming off a lost season.

That wasn’t the only unfortunate news about the club’s bullpen depth. Right-hander Yimi García, who is on the 15-day IL due to a left ankle sprain, is experiencing ulnar nerve symptoms in his right elbow.

It’s a bit ominous, as elbow problems were a factor in his 2024 season. Right elbow ulnar neuritis sent him to the IL for about a month in June/July. He then returned to the IL in late August due to right elbow inflammation, after having been traded to the Mariners, and finished the season there.

The Jays nonetheless brought him back on a two-year, $15MM deal. He has tossed 21 innings with a 3.86 ERA this year, working around an IL stint for a right shoulder impingement, the recent ankle issue and now this elbow trouble.

With less than two weeks until the deadline, it’s possible these updates increase the motivation to add some fresh arms. Most contending clubs look for relief help ahead of the deadline and the unfortunate health developments could push the Jays farther in that direction.

There were unfortunate updates about Bowden Francis and Anthony Santander as well. Francis is on the IL with a shoulder impingement and will be shut down for ten days due to feeling “a bit cranky” in that shoulder. Santander is on the IL due to a left shoulder subluxation. He is still not swinging a bat and is set for further evaluation.

Though those are unfortunate updates, they may not have too much of an impact on the deadline. Francis posted a 6.05 ERA before hitting the IL, so the Jays probably weren’t going to be relying on him too heavily for the stretch run. Getting peak Santander back would be a nice boost for the lineup but the Jays have been getting good results from George Springer as the primary designated hitter and have a fairly crowded outfield mix consisting of Addison Barger, Nathan Lukes, Myles Straw, Joey Loperfido and Davis Schneider, with Daulton Varsho on a rehab assignment and on pace to rejoin the club soon.

Image courtesy of Dan Hamilton, Imagn Images

Poll: Which Team Had The Most Impressive First Half?

By Nick Deeds | July 16, 2025 at 6:22pm CDT

The All-Star game is now behind us, and we’re in the lull before games kick back up and the second half begins. There’s still plenty of baseball left to play, but in the meantime we’ll take stock of the state of the 2025 season and weigh which team impressed the most during the first half of the season. A look at some of the league’s top teams:

Detroit Tigers (59-38)

Entering the All-Star break with MLB’s best record is a surefire way to get serious consideration for an accolade like this, but the Tigers are arguably even more impressive than their record lets on given just how much they’ve outperformed their preseason expectations. Fangraphs projected the Tigers for a record of just 83-79, with a sub-50% chance to make the postseason. Detroit would have to win only 25 games over the season’s final ten weeks in order to beat that projection, thanks to strong performances from surprise All-Stars Javier Baez, Gleyber Torres, and Zach McKinstry alongside the ever impressive work of stars like Riley Greene and Tarik Skubal.

Los Angeles Dodgers (58-39)

That the Dodgers have the best record in the National League is practically assumed in recent years, which speaks to the overwhelming dominance of the team Andrew Friedman and the rest of the front office have constructed. Shohei Ohtani is back on the mound and putting together another likely MVP campaign, Will Smith is having a career season behind the plate, and bottom-of-the-lineup players like Andy Pages and Hyeseong Kim are contributing. While dominance in Los Angeles is hardly a surprise, it’s nonetheless impressive that they’ve been able to maintain their high standard of play even in spite of the rising tide of competitive teams in the National League, extended slumps from both Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, and a patchwork rotation that at points in the first half had more Cy Young awards on the injured list than healthy members of its projected Opening Day rotation.

Chicago Cubs (57-39)

The Cubs’ front office entered 2025 feeling pressure after seven years without winning a playoff game and four without so much as a postseason appearance. That helped convince them to swing a trade for superstar Kyle Tucker, who has anchored their lineup alongside breakout MVP candidate Pete Crow-Armstrong. Tucker and Crow-Armstrong get the majority of the attention, but Seiya Suzuki, Michael Busch, and even veteran backstop Carson Kelly have put together strong seasons in their own rights. A pitching staff that lost both of its top starters early has been carried by a strong showing from offseason addition Matthew Boyd. It’s been enough to put them in the driver’s seat of the NL Central, and while that may have been expected entering the season, Chicago has made a statement by entering the second half in position to nab a bye through the Wild Card round.

Houston Astros (56-40)

After getting knocked out of the first round of the playoffs last year and the aforementioned Tucker trade, the Astros were a trendy pick to finally lose their grip on the AL West this year. They’ve answered the doubters impressively, plugging along despite getting virtually no production from Yordan Alvarez—or any other left-handed hitter, for that matter. Isaac Paredes has looked right at home in Daikin Park, and Cam Smith has taken to the majors quite well despite being getting just a handful of games at the Double-A level ahead of his big league debut. The real story of the season for the Astros has been in the rotation, however, as Hunter Brown has stepped up to make himself a true ace and legitimate Cy Young contender in a season where Houston would’ve otherwise had little certainty outside of pending free agent Framber Valdez.

Toronto Blue Jays (55-41)

The narrative surrounding the Blue Jays was such a bleak one entering this season that it’s impossible to ignore how quickly they’ve managed to turn things around. After missing out on the big fish in free agency for the second consecutive year, it seemed entering the season that the questions facing Toronto this summer would be about the future of Ross Atkins as GM and whether or not they’d need to trade Vladimir Guerrero Jr. before the deadline. A resurgent season from George Springer, a career year for Alejandro Kirk, and the breakout of Addison Barger have come together to help push this club to the top of a competitive AL East, however, and with both Guerrero and Kirk locked up long term the Jays should be looking towards brighter days in the future, as well.

Other Options

While those five teams have put together some of the most impressive first halves of the season, they’re far from the only contenders. The Phillies and Mets are locked in a tight battle for control of the NL East, and the starting pitching in Queens has been a pleasant surprise given the contributions of pieces like Griffin Canning (before his season-ending Achilles tear) and Clay Holmes. The Giants and Cardinals both entered this season viewed as potential deadline sellers but have put together strong enough campaigns to remain within the thick of the playoff race.

The Brewers appeared to be a question mark after losing Willy Adames and Devin Williams this offseason, but they’re just one game back of the Cubs in the NL Central and might get even better down the stretch now that Brandon Woodruff and Jacob Misiorowski are contributing. The Mariners have been able to hang in the playoff picture despite lengthy absences for both George Kirby and Logan Gilbert, while the Yankees have overcome significant rotation injuries. The Rays entered the season without even having a proper ballpark and look as strong as ever even after selling off key pieces like Paredes and Tyler Glasnow in recent years.

With so many strong performances in the first half, which team was the most impressive? Have your say in the poll below:

Manfred: Longer Break In 2028 For All-Star Game And Olympics Is Possible

By Darragh McDonald | July 15, 2025 at 6:26pm CDT

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred spoke to the media today, ahead of tonight’s All-Star game, addressing various topics relevant to the league. One subject that got a lot of discussion was the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and the potential of MLB players participating. Baseball will be an event at the Olympics, with Dodger Stadium being the venue, but it’s still not confirmed if MLB players will be able to play. Manfred suggested it could be possible for the league to have a slightly longer midsummer break to include both the All-Star game and the Olympics, while also not impacting the regular season.

“It is possible to play the All-Star game in its normal spot, have a single break that would be longer but still play 162 games without bleeding into the middle of November,” Manfred said, per Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post. “That is possible.”

MLB players have never participated in the Olympics. Baseball has occasionally been an event in the games, but has been played by minor leaguers or college players. In recent years, it has not been unusual for MLB players to compete in international play. The World Baseball Classic has been running every few years since 2006, even though the COVID-19 pandemic threw the normal schedule off for a bit.

The main difference with the Olympics would be the timing. The WBC is held in March, ahead of the MLB regular season. The ’28 Olympics are scheduled to take place in Los Angeles from July 14th to 30th. Per J.J. Cooper of Baseball America, the baseball field would include six teams, set by qualifying tournaments, who would then play from July 15th to 20th. Per Evan Drellich of The Athletic, the league would prefer that to be a little earlier. The All-Star break is usually the second Tuesday of July, which would be July 11th in 2028. The opening ceremony of the Olympics is scheduled for July 14th.

There are logistical challenges but it’s theoretically possible to line everything up. The fact that the games are taking place in the United States is also convenient, compared to a distant country where travel would be more of a concern.

It has been suggested in the past that perhaps the league could look to skip the All-Star game for one year, with the Olympics taking over as the main midsummer event. Manfred’s comments today point to both taking place, which would raise some interesting questions. Presumably, there could be a lot of overlap in terms of All-Star selections and Olympic rosters. If a player is planning to play in the Olympics and is also selected for the All-Star game, would they simply skip the latter like injured players do? Would some try to do both?

In terms of the scheduling, the details there aren’t clear either. In recent years, the MLB season has sometimes had some teams start the regular season in mid-March in order to play games in other countries such as Japan or South Korea. Starting the regular season earlier for all teams could perhaps allow for a longer midseason break, though that would lead to many weather-related annoyances in certain parts of the country.

Per Cooper, insurance is another potential hurdle. For the WBC, there are insurance policies in place to compensate an MLB team if one of their players is injured. But the WBC is put on by MLB, whereas the Olympics are put on by the International Olympic Committee. As noted by Cooper, it’s unclear if the IOC would be willing to pay the insurance premiums or if MLB would be willing to do so. MLB wouldn’t be directly benefiting from the event, since the IOC receives the proceeds, though the league would obviously hope that the Olympics would help to grow the MLB brand and expand its reach. Cooper mentions the possibility of Olympic committees of individual countries covering the insurance premiums but says this is the least likely scenario.

Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the logistical challenges could lead to San Francisco hosting the 2028 All-Star game. She says the league and the MLBPA would prefer a West Coast club host that year, in order to be near the Olympics in Los Angeles. She points out that San Diego, Seattle and Arizona have all hosted the All-Star festivities fairly recently, whereas the Giants last hosted back in 2007.

Slusser adds that MLBPA executive director Tony Clark also seemed open to the players agreeing to the Olympic plans, though with some details still to be worked out. “There’s just a lot of conversation that needs to be had sooner rather than later to see how viable this is,” Clark said. “But we’re hopeful that we can figure our way through it for the benefit of the game.”

If it comes to pass that the Giants host in 2028, it will kick things down the road for other clubs that have been waiting their turn. Last year, Manfred acknowledged that the Blue Jays were due, since they haven’t hosted since 1991. However, the Phillies are hosting in 2026, a decision that was made long ago to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It seems likely that the Cubs, who haven’t hosted since 1990, will be hosting in 2027. Putting the 2028 game in San Francisco would mean the Jays and other teams hoping to host would probably have to wait until 2029 at the earliest.

Manfred still seems to have a Toronto All-Star game on his radar, per Shi Davidi of Sportsnet. “Obviously, (the Blue Jays) are kind of perking up to the top of the list based on time,” he continued. “I’d like to be back in Toronto. Rogers has made a really significant investment in terms of improvements in the stadium. TBD at this point, beyond that.” Davidi adds that the Orioles and Red Sox are also interested. Baltimore last hosted in 1993 and Boston in 1999.

Photo courtesy of Brett Davis, Imagn Images

Jim Clancy Passes Away

By Anthony Franco | July 14, 2025 at 11:58pm CDT

Former All-Star Jim Clancy has passed away, the Blue Jays announced. He was 69.

Clancy was drafted by the Rangers in the fourth round of the 1974 draft out of a Chicago high school. The 6’4″ right-hander pitched three seasons in the minors. The Blue Jays selected him in the expansion draft in advance of their inaugural season in ’77. Clancy made his big league debut against his former club that July. He started 13 games as a rookie and would remain a fixture in Toronto’s rotation for the next decade.

He won 10 games with a 4.09 earned run average over 31 outings during his first full MLB season. He struggled through an injury-plagued ’79 season before breaking out the following year. Clancy turned in a career-low 3.30 ERA across 250 2/3 innings in 1980. After a down season in ’81, he was one of the top pitchers in the sport in 1982. Clancy led MLB with 40 starts and tossed a career-high 266 2/3 innings. He won 16 games and earned an All-Star nod.

That kicked off a six-year run in which he posted five seasons with a sub-4.00 ERA. Clancy surpassed 30 starts and 200 innings in all but one of those years. While injuries limited him in 1985, he managed a 3.78 ERA across 23 starts and helped the Jays to the first playoff berth in franchise history.

Clancy pitched in Toronto through the end of the ’88 campaign. He finished his Jays tenure with a 4.10 earned run average and 128 wins. Longtime teammate Dave Stieb is the only pitcher in franchise history to top Clancy’s 2204 2/3 innings pitched. He trails only Stieb and Roy Halladay on the franchise leaderboard in strikeouts and wins. After leaving Toronto in free agency, he finished his career as a swingman with the Astros and Braves.

At age 35, Clancy was part of Atlanta’s pennant-winning ’91 team and made three appearances in that year’s classic World Series against Minnesota. He was the winning pitcher in Game 3, recording one out in the top of the 12th inning before Atlanta walked it off in the bottom half. He made his final major league appearance two nights later, tossing two innings of one-run ball to record a hold in an eventual blowout win. That pulled Atlanta ahead in the series by a 3-2 margin, but Minnesota won the final two games in extras (capped by Jack Morris’ 10-inning shutout in Game 7) to win the title.

MLBTR joins others throughout the game in sending our condolences to Clancy’s family, friends, loved ones and former teammates.

Blue Jays, Joe Mantiply Agree To Minor League Deal

By Steve Adams | July 14, 2025 at 11:58am CDT

The Blue Jays have agreed to a minor league contract with left-handed reliever Joe Mantiply, per the transaction log at MiLB.com. Toronto also recently inked utilityman Buddy Kennedy to a minor league pact after he was released by the Phillies. He’s already made his debut with their Triple-A affiliate.

Mantiply was released by the Diamondbacks in early June after struggling considerably early in the year. The 34-year-old has a nice track record and was an important piece of Arizona’s bullpen from 2021-24, tossing 198 1/3 frames with a 3.63 earned run average, 22% strikeout rate, 6.1% walk rate and 51.9% ground-ball rate. He picked up three saves and 50 holds over that four-year run.

That track record feels like a distant memory after Mantiply was rocked for a 15.83 ERA in 9 2/3 big league innings this season. He’s never been a hard-thrower, but Mantiply’s 88.2 mph average fastball in 2025 was well shy of its 91.3 mph peak or even last year’s 89.5 mph average. Mantiply has struggled both in the majors and in Triple-A this season; he was tagged for a 5.56 ERA in 11/3 innings with the Diamondbacks’ Reno affiliate.

The Jays already have a pair of lefties in the big league bullpen: Justin Bruihl and breakout setup man Brendon Little. A third southpaw, Mason Fluharty, was just optioned to Triple-A Buffalo late in the season’s first half. Bruihl is a minor league signee who was just selected to the big league roster a few weeks ago. Fluharty was excellent up into early June but was rocked for a dozen runs in a span of 7 1/3 innings before being optioned back to Buffalo.

Mantiply will add some left-handed depth beyond that trio. He’ll join Amir Garrett — also with the Jays’ Triple-A club — as a veteran lefty reliever with some track record hoping to earn a look in Toronto.

Kennedy has appeared in parts of four major league seasons between the D-backs, Tigers and Phillies, but he’s only tallied 157 plate appearances in that time. He’s a .193/.287/.296 hitter at the big league level but touts a nice .279/.388/.432 slash in just over 1600 Triple-A plate appearances. Kennedy has already taken eight plate appearances in Buffalo, going 0-for-7 with a walk. He’s primarily played second base and third base in pro ball but does have more than 400 innings at first base and 93 innings of left field work under his belt.

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Alcantara, Cabrera, Fried, Gil, Garcia, Rodriguez

By Mark Polishuk | July 13, 2025 at 10:59pm CDT

A ten-game winning streak has launched the Red Sox back into the playoff race, and all but confirmed that the club will be looking to buy before the trade deadline. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has stated that the Sox are looking at pitching options, and MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam opines that the Red Sox would likely prefer controllable pitchers in particular, so this new hurler could help support the club’s talent core for more than just the remainder of 2025. However, as of two days ago, McAdam noted that Boston hadn’t yet spoken with the Marlins about two controllable potential trade candidates — Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera.

While there’s still plenty of time before the July 31 deadline for the Sox to inquire about either pitcher, the lack of interest to date might indicate that Breslow simply might have other pitchers on his target list. Alcantara’s past Cy Young Award-winning form makes him perhaps the summer’s likeliest trade candidate, yet the right-hander has struggled badly in his return from Tommy John surgery. Cabrera is arbitration-controlled through 2028 so the rebuilding Marlins might not see a reason to move him just yet, and certainly not for anything less than a massive trade return. Health is also a concern with Cabrera, as he left Friday’s start early due to elbow discomfort but might be able to avoid the injured list after a precautionary MRI came back clean.

Blue Jays Interested In Zac Gallen

By Mark Polishuk | July 13, 2025 at 5:00pm CDT

After operating with a short-handed rotation for much of the season, starting pitching is a natural need for the Blue Jays as the deadline approaches. The Jays “are looking for a front-line pitcher,” USA Today’s Bob Nightengale writes, and Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen is one of the hurlers on Toronto’s target list.

The D’Backs took a 46-50 record into today’s game with the Angels, and they sit 6.5 games back of the final NL wild card spot. A team with such high expectations (and a club-record payroll) might wait until closer to the deadline before finally deciding to sell, but barring a major winning streak after the All-Star break, it certainly looks like Arizona will be moving some talent at the deadline. Nightengale writes that the Diamondbacks are already open to discussing impending free agents, which could make Arizona a sought-after trade partner if such players as Gallen, Eugenio Suarez, Josh Naylor, or Merrill Kelly are available.

Gallen is perhaps the most difficult player of that group to evaluate in terms of trade value, as he is posting the worst season of his seven-year MLB career. The righty has a 5.40 ERA in 115 innings and a slate of unimpressive Statcast metrics, including some of the worst hard-contact rates of any pitcher in the league. Gallen has been prone to hard contact even in his best years, but a worsening walk rate over the last two seasons has contributed to his struggles. A 4.18 SIERA indicates that Gallen should be out-performing his actual ERA, though those are still the numbers of more a mid-rotation arm rather than a front-of-the-rotation type.

The catch is that Gallen has looked like an ace in the past, with three top-nine finishes in NL Cy Young Award voting on his resume. His best finish was a third-place result in 2023, when Gallen had a 3.47 ERA over 210 innings for an Arizona team that made a surprise run to the NL pennant. The 210 frames was a career high for Gallen, and he added another 33 2/3 innings on his arm during the Diamondbacks’ lengthy playoff run. It can’t be overlooked that Gallen hasn’t quite looked the same since that signature season, as his production took a step backwards in 2024 before his sharper downturn this year.

Arizona is surely still going to put a significant asking price on Gallen, hoping that rival teams could view him as a change-of-scenery candidate. The Diamondbacks’ trade efforts will also naturally be helped by the fact that basically every contender could use a starter, plus Gallen is relatively affordable (around $5.625MM remains on his $13.5MM salary). A pitcher with Gallen’s history will draw interest even if his most recent results haven’t been good. From the perspective of trade suitors, however, those 2025 numbers will surely loom large, as clubs will have to gauge how much they’re willing to offer for a rental pitcher who isn’t in top form.

The Blue Jays have leaned hard on Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, and Chris Bassitt as the top three starters in their rotation this season, as Max Scherzer’s injuries and Bowden Francis’ struggles left Toronto operating with what felt like a three-man rotation for a big chunk of the first half. Scherzer has since returned to the mound (though is still managing thumb discomfort) and minor league signing Eric Lauer has pitched really well since joining the rotation in May, plus Alek Manoah has started a rehab assignment and is expected to be back at some point late in the second half in his return from UCL surgery.

With this much uncertainty, another solid starter would go a long way towards helping the Jays’ chances of keeping their lead in the AL East, or at least making the postseason bracket. Gallen figures to be one of many names linked to the Blue Jays as GM Ross Atkins evaluates what promises to be a typically busy trade market for pitching.

Trade Deadline Outlook: Toronto Blue Jays

By Mark Polishuk | July 12, 2025 at 9:18am CDT

MLBTR’s new deadline preview series (available to Front Office subscribers) continues with a look at the Blue Jays, who held a 26-28 record on May 27 and seemed to be headed for another also-ran season. However, the Jays have since won 29 of their last 40 games, pushing Toronto to the top of the AL East. With the postseason now looking like a very realistic possibility, the Jays have plenty of options available to them as they consider roster upgrades.

Record: 55-39 (89.3% playoff probability, per FanGraphs)

Other series entries: Rockies, Giants, Phillies, Pirates, Astros, Marlins, Athletics, Orioles, White Sox, Nationals, Cubs, Rays, Dodgers, Braves, Yankees, Angels, Mets

Buy Mode

Potential needs: Starting pitching, relief pitching, outfield depth, bench depth, possibly third base

Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, and Chris Bassitt have been invaluable to the Blue Jays, as the steadiness and durability of the top three starters helped keep the pitching staff on track amidst some early chaos at the back end of the rotation. Minor league signing Eric Lauer has a 2.78 ERA over 55 innings, and his entry into the fourth starter's spot was a key element of Toronto's success over the last six weeks. Max Scherzer has pitched only 23 innings due to his ever-present thumb problems, and it remains to be seen whether or not Scherzer can remain healthy enough to contribute as a full-fledged starter or perhaps as a piggyback starter in front of a long reliever.

Even with Alek Manoah aiming to return from UCL surgery at some point in August, Manoah's own struggles since Opening Day 2023 make him far from a possible savior. The Jays could obviously use an extra arm to help stabilize the starting five, as if Lauer starts to regress or one of the top three starters gets injured, the pitching situation could quickly go south. That would in turn put more pressure on the bullpen, which itself could use some reinforcement after tossing a lot of innings over the first half.

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Blue Jays Select Tommy Nance

By Darragh McDonald | July 11, 2025 at 5:25pm CDT

The Blue Jays announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Tommy Nance. In a corresponding move, fellow righty Ryan Burr was placed directly onto the 60-day injured list with a right rotator cuff strain, which opened both an active roster and a 40-man roster spot for Nance.

Nance, 34, had a decent run late last year with the Jays. The club had planned to compete in 2024 but fell out of the race and ended up as a deadline seller. Nance was added to the roster in August, as the club was playing out the string on a lost season. He posted a 4.09 earned run average in 22 innings. His 20.4% strikeout rate and 9.7% walk rate were both a bit shy of average but he had a strong 52.4% ground ball rate.

The Jays kept him on their 40-man through the winter but he didn’t break camp with the club. Since he is out of options, he was designated for assignment and outrighted to Triple-A Buffalo. Since then, he has tossed 31 1/3 innings for the Bisons with a 4.60 ERA, though it seems like there’s a lot of bad luck in that figure. His 31.3% strikeout rate, 5.2% walk rate and 58% ground ball rate are all well above average. He’s seemingly been held back by a .363 batting average on balls in play and 55% strand rate, which are both to the unfortunate side. His 2.63 FIP suggests his ERA might be too high by almost two full runs.

The Jays will slot Nance into the bullpen to see if his numbers can regress towards the mean at the big league level. As mentioned, he is out of options and can’t be easily sent back down to Buffalo. If he holds onto a roster spot through the end of the year, he can be retained beyond this season. The Jays are leading the American League East and will presumably pursue relievers ahead of the deadline.

As for Burr, it’s an ominous development. He started the year on the IL due to shoulder inflammation. He worked his way back to health and was only reinstated off the IL five days ago. He appeared in two big league games but departed the second outing, which was on Wednesday, with an apparent injury. With the Jays immediately placing him on the 60-day IL today, it suggests they don’t expect him back until September even in a best-case scenario.

Like Nance, he got some run with the Jays last year. He tossed 32 2/3 innings with a 4.13 ERA, 33.6% strikeout rate and 8.6% walk rate. Perhaps a .329 BABIP hurt him, as his 3.07 FIP and 2.65 SIERA suggested he deserved better. Unfortunately, he hasn’t had a chance to build off that performance in 2025. He has already spent most the 2025 season on the IL and that will continue for a few more months at least.

Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images

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