Blue Jays’ latest flurry of roster moves includes a shocking but needed demotion

In the midst of a three-game losing streak, the Toronto Blue Jays decided to try and shake things up with a flurry of roster moves before Sunday's series finale in Chicago (Apr. 5). The Blue Jays selected the contracts of both pitchers Joe Mantiply and Austin Voth and promoted them to the majors ahead of their game on Sunday.

For the corresponding moves, Toronto shockingly, yet unsurprisingly, optioned reliever Brendon Little, along with pitcher Lazaro Estrada to Triple-A Buffalo. In addition in a side note, the Blue Jays officially transferred Cody Ponce and Anthony Santander to the 60-day IL.

Blue Jays shake things up with a move many fans had been clamouring for

The demotion of Little came as somewhat of a shock, given that he had been a key cog of the Blue Jays bullpen for the past two seasons. From 2024 and 2025, the 29-year-old left-hander had posted a solid 3.32 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, along with 127 strikeouts in 114 total innings pitched over 128 appearances with Toronto.

However, an underwhelming postseason performance in which he compiled a dismal 11.25 ERA and 3.00 WHIP in six playoff games has unfortunately carried over into his 2026 campaign. This season to date, Little has been hit hard, giving up 10 earned runs on 10 hits including three home runs over 3.2 innings of work. Hopefully a much-needed reset down in the minors can help him find his game and regain his prior dominant form in due time.

As for Estrada, he was called up recently to serve as a bulk reliever for Toronto this past Saturday. The 26-year-old right-hander did exactly what the Blue Jays needed from him by going a strong four innings of no-hit ball with two walks and three strikeouts to give them all the opportunity to win the game. However, with the Blue Jays short in the rotation due to the recent injury to Ponce, Estrada became a victim of the numbers game as Toronto needed some fresh arms for the coming days to work around the pitching shortage.

Mantiply was one of the Blue Jays’ valuable depth signing this past offseason when they inked him to a minor league deal back in March. The former All-Star reliever, who had impressed during Spring Training where he amassed a 3.00 ERA with two strikeouts in three innings of work, has continued that success down with Buffalo to start the 2026 season. In two appearances, Mantiply yielded one run with three strikeouts in 3.2 innings of work. As a left-hander, he is essentially Little’s replacement while the latter works out his kinks.

For Voth, the Blue Jays had recently signed him to a minor league deal to add pitching depth to the organization after he was released by the White Sox following training camp. He has appeared as a starter in one game so far with Buffalo, going three innings giving up two runs on three hits with two strikeouts. Voth had previously spent seven seasons in the majors, posting a 17-19 record with a 4.70 ERA and 1.34 WHIP over 207 appearances that included 39 starts. With the ability to pitch as a starter or a reliever, he will take the place of Estrada in providing bulk innings for Toronto in the coming week.

As for Ponce and Santander, they are both expected to be sidelined for a significant period of time as the Blue Jays hope that they can have their services back before the end of the 2026 season. In the meantime, Toronto will look to turn things around this week with their new additions to their roster.