Toronto Blue Jays free agent target: Carl Edwards Jr.

Reuben Gasee of Jays Journal will be doing an article series of mid-tier free agents the Blue Jays should pursue. This article will take a look at Carl Edwards Jr.

One of the strengths of the Toronto Blue Jays roster in the 2020 season was the bullpen. While he did poorly in 2020, which can mostly be blamed on an injured arm that required Tommy John surgery, Ken Giles was an elite closer when healthy and was expected to perform at a high level last season. Anthony Bass posted a .189 opponent average, while A.J. Cole was relied upon quite often.

In 2019, Sam Gaviglio and Wilmer Font were key pieces of the Blue Jays pen in which the team was able to get multiple innings out of them per appearance.

All of the guys mentioned above are no longer apart of the team, as they are all free agents.

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As there are holes in the bullpen, this makes it a need to sign relief pitchers that can be relied upon when a starter gets tired, is struggling, or it gets to later in the game to hold a lead. One relief pitcher the Blue Jays should look into bringing in that Charlie Montoyo can use late in the game when things are close is Carl Edwards Jr.

Last season, he only appeared in five games due to a forearm strain with the Seattle Mariners, but did manage to post a 1.93 ERA with an opponent average of .125. Before joining the Mariners, he spent most of his career with the Chicago Cubs and was a force in the back of their bullpen with the exception of the 2019 season. In 2019, he struggled horrendously to an 8.47 ERA in 22 games (two of those with the San Diego Padres) but did limit hitters to bat .190 against him.

Prior to the 2019 campaign though, he was almost unhittable. From 2018-2015, he struck out 217 batters compared to 83 hits given up, with 54 holds and an ERA of 3.15 in 154.1 innings spread out over 167 games. In each of those seasons, he limited hitters to bat under .200 with a career-best .123 opponent average in 2016.

As he made limited appearances last season and struggled the year before, the Blue Jays could offer him a minor league deal with a bonus for cracking the big league roster, as well as incentives for games pitched.

If Edwards Jr signed with the Blue Jays, he’d be an excellent option to use when the game is close in the seventh, eighth or even ninth inning.