Blue Jays option Richard Urena to the minors

According to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet, the Toronto Blue Jays will option infielder Richard Urena to Triple-A in order to free up a roster spot for Clay Buchholz.

The move which is surprising, to say the least, comes down to Richard Urena having minor league options remaining because he has been one of the better Blue Jays thus far. Urena is hitting .333/.360/.458 with eight hits including three doubles in 24 at-bats this season, not bad numbers for a team struggling to hit the ball on most nights.

The move also proves General Manager Ross Atkins is standing his word regarding Socrates Brito. Atkins went on record yesterday saying there is “incredible, incredible upside and potential with him.” Brito is still hitless in 14 at-bats with the Blue Jays and has looked overmatched in most of his plate appearances.

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The Jays could have also looked at cutting bait with Alen Hanson who was acquired in the Kevin Pillar trade. Hanson has only three singles in his first 17 plate appearances since joining the Jays. The brain trust opted to take the easy route and avoid placing anyone on waivers with the Urena move.

The Urena demotion was facilitated in order to make room on the 25-man roster for veteran hurler Clay Buchholz who will be making his Jays debut today versus the Rays. Buchholz has been rehabilitating from a flexor strain in his pitching elbow that he suffered last September.

Buchholz had a successful campaign last season with the Diamondbacks sporting a 7-2 record with an impressive 2.01 earned run average before the injury. The Jays are hopeful Buccholz can add some stability at the back-end of the rotation from here on out.

Urena will be back with the big club sooner than later, but for now, he is caught up in a numbers game as the Jays look to see what they have with the lesser known likes of Brito and Hanson.