Blue Jays lose pair of Canadians in recent offseason moves

The Toronto Blue Jays lost Canadian pitcher Jordan Romano and outfielder Connor Panas in a pair of recent offseason roster moves.

Pitcher Jordan Romano was the first to go when the Blue Jays surprisingly left him exposed for the Rule 5 Draft. The 25-year old was quickly snatched up by the Chicago White Sox who then shipped Romano to the Texas Rangers.

The native of Markham, Ontario sported a 12-8 record with a 4.11 earned run average in 26 minor league starts last season. He figures to land a bullpen role with the Rangers when the team breaks camp at the conclusion of spring training.

Romano must remain on the Rangers 25-man roster for the entire season or be offered back to the Blue Jays as part of the Rule 5 stipulations.

Romano spent the entire 2018 campaign minus one-start with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats. The right-hander owns a career 3.31 earned run average in 82 minor league appearances over four seasons.

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Yesterday the Blue Jays acquired veteran hurler Clayton Richard from the San Diego Padres in exchange for Canadian outfielder Connor Panas. The 25-year old Panas is a native of Toronto, Ontario and spent last season with Romano on the Fisher Cats.

Panas hit .232/.296/.359 with 86 hits including 9 home runs in 105 games in his first taste of Double-A. The Padres have already reassigned Panas to their Triple-A affiliate in El Paso.

The outfielder owns a professional line of .251/.338/./424 with 48 home runs in 368 minor league games. He hit a career-high 18 homers in 2017 while with High-A Dunedin and a change of scenery could bode well for Panas especially if he begins the season in Triple-A.

When it comes to a global sport like baseball, it really doesn’t matter where a player hails from, however, on a personal note, it is always fun to follow and root for the Canucks honing their craft throughout the Jays minor league ranks.

Unfortunately, we now have two fewer Canadians to cheer for in 2019.