Blue Jays: 10 Minor League Contract Targets

Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

Chris Volstad, SP, 29 yrs old

• Last played for (MLB): PIT in 2015
• Last played for (AAA): Harrisburg, Eastern League (WAS)
• 2015 Stats: 27 GP / 155.2 IP / 159 H / 3 HR / 43 BB / 97 Ks / 3.18 ERA / 1.30 Whip

Now, if I’m Tony LaCava and I know the budget I have to work with is limited, this is one of the first guys I target on the minors free agent market. He could provide you with a ton of innings if required, and actually performed fairly well during inter-league play over his career with an even 4 ERA and 1.389 Whip. This included wins during his only appearances against the Yankees and Red Sox.

Looking at his peripherals from the 2015 season, he has come a long way and although he isn’t going to rack up the Ks, he can provide quality innings without giving up many HRs (only 3 given up over 155.2 IP last season). That should provide the Manager some time to pull the plug on him if he struggles on any given outing.

 Carlos Triunfel, INF, 25 yrs old

• Last played for (MLB): LAD in 2014
• Last played for (AAA): Harrisburg, Eastern League (WAS)
• 2015 Stats: 314 AB / 83 H / 27 XBH / 33 RBI / 3 SB / .264 / .287 / .398

Triunfel should be a familiar name for those who take part in Fantasy Baseball. He was a popular pick years ago as an up-and-coming SS for the Mariners, but has fallen off the map since. He got a shot for a short stint with the Dodgers in 2014, but toiled in AAA last season, trying to find his bat.

While the stats listed above look fairly pedestrian on the surface, I’d like to point out that he hit .310/.332/.452 against RHP with 19 extra-base hits in 192 AB. That’s a very decent line for a middle-infielder. He’d be a pretty decent utility player as he’s capable of playing 2B, SS, and 3B, although his bat seems to come alive most when he plays 2B (.319/.333/.493) and least when he plays 3B (.218/.240/.386).

I was a big fan of having Ryan Schimpf as a backup infielder because his bat played up so much and I would have liked to see him get a shot in The Show with the Jays. But with his being a free agent now,  if we can’t bring him back I’d like to see the Jays add a quality utility type like Triunfel to provide depth in case of injuries and/or trades.

Next: A couple of great depth pieces next