Blue Jays: Big decisions coming to make the 40 man roster work

The Blue Jays are going to have some difficult decisions to make in order to add bullpen arms like John Axford and Bud Norris to the 40 man roster.

It’s funny to think about the conversation around the Blue Jays this winter and how they should add more firepower all over the diamond. Now that we’re nearing the end of Spring Training, there aren’t enough roster spots on the 25 man or the 40 man roster to keep everyone that should be able to contribute to the 2019 version of this team. Funny how that always seems to be the case, regardless of how active of an offseason we witness.

Ross Atkins and company are going to have to decide if they want to bring seven or eight relievers with them to start the year, among many other topics that I’m sure are being hotly debated in the front office right now. While we may be hoping that they’re discussing the possibility of keeping a guy like Bo Bichette with the big league team, they’ve definitely got more pressing issues to concern themselves with, and there are a lot of variables at play.

While they will have to sort out which 25 players will begin the year in the big leagues prior to Opening Day, the more difficult decisions will likely come with what to do with the 40 man roster. Obviously the two are connected as well, as the team will need to add a few potentially desirable options to their 40 man roster in order to add said player to the 25 man roster. That also means that one or more players will have to be removed, and that’s where things get complicated.

Still with me? If not it should make more sense by the time we’re done here.

Bullpen

The bullpen is arguably the biggest area of debate right now, and that’s nothing new when it comes to putting together a collection of relievers. Just as they did last season, the front office managed to bring in a few veterans on MiLB contracts, giving some depth and strength to a young group.

What that also means is that they’ll have to make room on the 40 man roster for those MiLB contracts, as there has been no need to add those players just yet. The two that stand out in particular are the returning John Axford, and the newly acquired Bud Norris.

As of right now I would guess that the “locks” for the bullpen would include Ken Giles, Ryan Tepera, and Tim Mayza, with Joe Biagini being another likely candidate. My guess is that Axford and Norris will both make the team, which leaves one spot left, or maybe two if the Blue Jays decide to carry eight relievers to start the season.

If they do carry eight, the “extra” spot will almost assuredly go to Elvis Luciano, who was acquired from the Kansas City Royals in the Rule 5 Draft, and has to be brought north in order to be retained by the Blue Jays. Regardless of whether Luciano makes the team or not, I believe the Blue Jays would have one more spot to fill anyway, and Sam Gaviglio‘s performance during Grapefruit League play may have secured him that chance.

The big choice here regarding the 40 man roster is whether or not the Blue Jays will keep one or both of Axford and Norris. They’ve both looked solid this spring and project to be decent contributors, so chances are the Blue Jays will have to make some room for them.

What becomes of Dalton Pompey?

One of the players who is really fighting for a roster spot this spring is Dalton Pompey, who has also looked pretty solid. The variable working against Pompey is that he’s out of minor league options, so the Blue Jays can’t send him back to Triple-A without exposing him to the waiver wire, where he would more than likely end up claimed.

The Blue Jays clearly still see potential in the Canadian outfielder, but it’s not going to be easy to retain him unless there is another injury to someone on the projected roster. Right now the Blue Jays are looking at an outfield picture that should include Kevin Pillar, Randal Grichuk, and Teoscar Hernandez, and it would appear that Billy McKinney has a pretty good shot at making the team as well. It’s likely McKinney that Pompey is most directly battling, as the former also has minor league options as well.

What it might really come down to for the Blue Jays is whether or not they retain Luciano and carry an eighth reliever. In that case they would have 13 pitchers to carry, leaving just 12 more spots for the position players guys. Their bench will need a back-up catcher, an infielder, and an outfielder, and that fourth, extra spot could be where Pompey would theoretically fit into the picture if the Blue Jays find room.

Of course, a lot can happen in the little less than two weeks before the season’s first pitch, just as we saw when Devon Travis went down with an injury that will likely sideline him until May. For now the Blue Jays will continue to evaluate the speedy outfielder, and this writer is hoping that his fate ends up in Toronto this season somehow, even if the cards seemed to be a little stacked against the chances.

“The Kids”

I’m not talking about Vladimir Guerrero Jr. when I mention the “kids” right now, because we already know that a strained oblique has nullified the option of him starting the year with the team, even if it probably wasn’t going to happen anyway. That said, the Blue Jays will have to make room for him when he’s eventually healthy and promoted.

I include this one mostly because I feel like a lot of you would ask why I neglected it if I didn’t, so here goes.

I don’t think that either Bo Bichette or Anthony Alford are going to make the team to start the year.

I’m not saying that they SHOULDN’T, I’m saying that I don’t think they will. I’m more than aware of how they have performed this Spring, and I’d love the idea of seeing both of them in the every day lineup to start this rebuild off on an exciting note.

When it comes to Bichette, there are a few things working against him here. First, he would have to be added to the 40 man roster in order to make the team, and without a few injuries I just can’t see the Jays cutting other potentially valuable pieces in order to make that happen. They have stated that they’re committed to letting him get experience at the Triple-A level before he’s promoted to the big leagues, and I’m sure they’ll commit to that plan regardless of how well he performs in the pre-season. They would also have to start his service time clock if he makes the team now, and I don’t know that they’ll do that.

Alford is a different story, and I could be wrong about him when it comes to making the team. That said, I feel like playing every single day would be the highest priority for the former two-sport athlete, and having him on the big league roster may not be the easiest way to make that happen right now. Sure, you could argue that he should take Pillar’s job, but I can’t see the Blue Jays making that move unless they’re trading the latter, which doesn’t seem terribly likely at the moment.

Grichuk is going to play every day and be a central part of the offence, and I’m sure the Blue Jays want Teoscar Hernandez getting a lot of reps in the outfield too. There’s also McKinney and Pompey, as we’ve already discussed.

Again, I’d agree with you if you were arguing that Alford’s (and Bichette’s) performance warranted starting at the highest level this year, I just don’t think it’s going to happen. I do think we’ll see Alford sooner than later though, and hopefully Bichette won’t be far behind, although it could be 2020 before we see him make the final leap. You know, contract control and all that jazz.

Who ends up being removed from the 40 man roster?

If the Blue Jays ultimately decide to carry both John Axford and Bud Norris, as I believe they will, then they will have to make room for them somehow.

That could happen in a few different ways, and here are my top candidates, in no particular order:

Pompey- I hate to say it, but this feels like his last chance in Toronto and the roster crunch isn’t helping things. As I said, I’m rooting for him but with his being out of minor league options I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Jays look for a trade partner very soon.

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Travis- This might be the least likely option (in my eyes), but sadly I do feel it’s a realistic one that will be discussed by Atkins and his team.

Luciano- As I said above, I think the Blue Jays like him enough to give him a shot to stick at the beginning of the year, and are hoping the youngster can handle the gig. He definitely possesses the tools to be a talented big league pitcher, it’s just a matter of if he’s ready enough now for it not to ruin his development. I think he gets the chance to show what he can do in the regular season.

Jonathan Davis– The other candidate I could see on the bubble is Jonathan Davis, who is yet another outfielder that is lost in the depth chart. We saw him get a cup of coffee with the Blue Jays last year and he showed some promise, but I think he’s too far behind the others to justify keeping him around. His game reminded me a lot of Rajai Davis last season, and while it’s possible he could slip through waivers, I don’t know if he will either.

It might not be a Blue Jays team that’s set to contend this year, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t important roster decisions that could affect both the 2019 season, and the rebuild beyond that. And if you’re thinking that it might not matter, just remember that the Pittsburgh Pirates once traded some guy named Jose Bautista in order to make some room on their 40 man roster.

While that sorta thing doesn’t happen very often, you don’t want to be the team that let go a potential star for nothing, or even a solid contributor. While I’d love to sit in the GM’s seat (who wouldn’t?), I don’t envy the choices they’ll have to make in the next week or two.