The last spot in the Blue Jays聽rotation has been in flux all season long, and now the team has reached outside the organization for help.
The Jays have agreed to terms with free-agent pitchers Spencer Turnbull and Jos茅 Ure帽a, pending physicals.
Turnbull posted a 2.65 ERA in 54 1/3 innings for Philadelphia last season, making 17 appearances, seven of which were starts. The 32-year-old right-hander missed the final three months of the season after suffering a lat strain in late June and went unsigned through the winter.
Ure帽a, 33, threw 109 innings for Texas last season and had a 3.80 ERA while pitching in every role. The right-hander made nine starts and finished eight games out of the bullpen, earning one save.
He signed a minor-league deal with the New York Mets three weeks into spring training and made one appearance April 27, allowing five runs over three innings while picking up his sixth major-league save in a 19-5 win over Washington.
GM Ross Atkins didn’t seem upset with manager John Schneider, but other executives might have been.
GM Ross Atkins didn’t seem upset with manager John Schneider, but other executives might have been.
Ure帽a聽was outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse afterward, but chose instead to become a free agent and the Jays snapped him up.
The 11-year major-league veteran is likely to join the Jays for their upcoming road trip through Anaheim and Seattle, while Turnbull, who has been working out on his own, likely won’t be ready to pitch in the majors for three to four weeks.
Both pitchers will sign major-league contracts, which means the Jays will have to make room for them on the 40-man roster.
Max Scherzer, who is slowly ramping back up after coming out of his March 29 start with tightness in his right lat muscle and has subsequently had at least three cortisone shots in his right thumb, is a strong candidate to be transferred to the 60-day injured list to free up one spot. That would make him eligible to return May 29.聽
The same move could be made with reliever Erik Swanson, who has yet to pitch this year because of a forearm issue, or Adam Macko, recovering from surgery on a torn meniscus. If the Jays promoted Macko to place him on the 60-day injured list, they would have to pay him a major-league salary until he’s healthy.
The signings of Turnbull and Ure帽a don’t really clear up the fuzziness around the fifth starter’s spot, which comes around again Tuesday when the Jays open a three-game series at the Los Angeles Angels.聽
Ure帽a isn’t built up to start 鈥 he’s thrown 12 1/3 innings in four appearances this season, majors and minors combined 鈥 but he can at least give them a bulk option out of the bullpen or be used as an opener in front of left-hander Eric Lauer, who pitched four innings Wednesday in his Jays’ debut.
Of course, a lot of this could have been avoided had the team simply held onto versatile left-hander Ryan Yarbrough, who started for the New York Yankees on Saturday, while they had him.
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