John Stilson Becomes Latest Blue Jays Arm Reassigned

Feb 28, 2013; Tampa, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher John Stilson throws against the New York Yankees during the bottom of the eighth inning of a spring training game at George Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

The Toronto Blue Jays had a busy day on Wednesday, reassigning both Ricky Romero and Marcus Stroman to minor league camp. The team continued their roster cuts on later in the afternoon, sending right-hander John Stilson to the minor league facility after completion of Wednesday’s win over the Philadelphia Phillies, as tweeted by Mike Wilner.

Interestingly enough, Stilson closed out the win over the Phillies prior to receiving his ticket back to the minors. Stilson turned quite a few heads this spring with some solid bullpen work, posting a 2-0 record with a 0.00 ERA, a 0.818 WHIP, and a 7.4 K/9 ratio against an opponent quality ranking (Baseball-Reference) of 7.1.

That performance likely challenged the Blue Jays mantra that they would take the best team North, regardless of player options available. However, like Neil Wagner and Chad Jenkins before him, Stilson becomes a victim of the numbers crunch in the bullpen, with a number of out of option pitchers vying for a limited number of slots.

Instead, Stilson will return to Triple-A Buffalo, where he finished the 2013 season, posting a 6-2 record, a 2.09 ERA, and a 8.9 K/9 ratio over 33 appearances for the Bisons last season. With another solid performance at Triple-A, Stilson could find his way to Toronto this season for his Major League debut.