Blue Jays: LHP José Fernández claimed off waivers by Tigers

Caught in the roster crunch, the hard-throwing southpaw now has a new home with the Detroit Tigers.

According to an official team release, left-handed pitcher José Fernández has been claimed off waivers from the Blue Jays by the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers confirmed the claiming in their own separate official release.

Fernandez, 25, recently broke into the bigs with the Jays, pitching 10.1 frames in September to an ERA of 6.10, striking out six while walking four. According to his Baseball Reference page, his rookie status is, as of now, still intact.

Prior to coming up to the major leagues, he spent some time with the High-A Dunedin Blue Jays and Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, tossing a cumulative 276.2 innings in the Blue Jays minor league system since his signing in 2012.

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A power arm with mild control issues, it is unfortunate to see the Blue Jays lose Fernández. Though he was never ranked on the team’s top 30 prospect list on MLB Pipeline, he was, for all intents and purposes, a viable bullpen option going forward.

With bullpen arms as volatile as ever, having an influx of relievers can never be considered a bad thing. It’s almost a sure thing that Fernández will not be the last casualty of the roster crunch that has shaped some teams while broken apart others. The Tigers, who also claimed another player Friday, now have 38 players on their 40-man roster. With the Blue Jays having to re-add a few players of their own, including Troy Tulowitzki, they’re now up to 36 on their 40 man roster as well.

The Blue Jays, now that they have named a new manager, are sure to be active on the waiver wire, the free-agency market and on the trade market. With the offseason fully underway, it’ll be fascinating to see what the front office does with the remaining holes that need to be filled. Expect an active next few weeks, especially with regards to more minor moves like this one.