Blue Jays: Those in danger of being dropped from the 40-man roster

Brad Hand

A name that most Jays fans were most likely waiting for on the list.

Acquired at the trade deadline from the Washington Nationals in exchange for prospect catcher Riley Adams, Brad Hand was brought in as a rental player given his veteran pedigree and ability to pitch in high-pressure situations late in ball games.

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Since joining the Blue Jays, Hand has struggled to find a groove in the bullpen, as the southpaw has pitched to a 7.50 ERA through eight appearances with two losses currently on his record. Through 6.0 innings pitched, the lefty has two walks, five strikeouts, and a 1.67 WHIP on the record.

Blue Jays fans are starting to lose their patience with Hand, with some of his noticeable highlights being:

• Giving up the eventual game-winning home run in extra innings against Cleveland in his second game with the club
• Walking home the winning run against the Seattle Mariners
• Surrendering two home runs and three earned runs against the Washington Nationals in the seventh inning after the Blue Jays offense took the lead in the top of the inning

While it seems unlikely that the Jays are going to remove Hand from the roster just yet, if the Minnesota product continues to struggle on the mound, it will be difficult to keep putting him out there if the club is really trying to contend this season.

His saving grace (like others on the list) may be when the rosters expand and he can be used in filler situations rather than later in the game, but with fellow southpaws Kirby Snead, Tim Mayza, and Tayler Saucedo also in the bullpen, the “keeping him in the bullpen because he is a lefty” arguement is not valid anymore.

While it would be a bit embarrassing for the front office to DFA a recent trade deadline acquisition, if Hand keeps going out there and failing to keep runs off the board, drastic actions might need to be taken and another arm from down in AAA can be brought up in his place.