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Blue Jays' minor-league overhaul: 11 players out in two days

One big name cut after the two day exodus.
ByMatthew Sookram
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Mar 29, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The Toronto Blue Jays 50th anniversary logo displayed on the jersey of third baseman Kazuma Okamoto (7) duringa game against the Athletics at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Mar 29, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The Toronto Blue Jays 50th anniversary logo displayed on the jersey of third baseman Kazuma Okamoto (7) duringa game against the Athletics at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Toronto Blue Jays haven't made a big-league move yet this offseason. However, the front office has been busy. At the GM Meetings it was reported that Ross Atkins and staff were schedule to have over 100 meetings with players' agents and other teams, scouring the free agent and trade markets. They've also trimmed their own system just before the weekend.

Eleven players were released from the organization across Thursday and Friday, according to the MiLB.com transactions log. None of them were on the 40-man roster, so no big-league spots opened up. But for a farm system that FanGraphs already calls "thin overall," there were some interesting cuts made to further deplete this group.

The headliner is first baseman Peyton Williams, released from Triple-A Buffalo on Friday. The 26-year-old was promoted to Buffalo late in 2026 and hit .278 with three home runs there. Of the 11 players cut loose, he was arguably the closest to a major-league debut. The fact that he hits for a ton of power should have been enough to keep him around.

Nicknamed "The Iowa Meat Truck" Williams hit 16 home runs across 111 minor league games this year with a .204 ISO and 119 wRC+. For a team that ranked last in the majors a year ago in home runs, it looked like a safe bet that they would keep a pure slugger in their system.

It's likely Williams gets resigned by the Blue Jays to a minor league deal, but right now he's on the market and available to all other 29 teams.

Blue Jays part ways with several lower level pitchers as they clear room among their minor league teams

The Thursday cuts were all pitchers. Left-hander Trenton Wallace, released from Buffalo, had been with the Blue Jays since he was an 11th-round pick in 2021. He didn't pitch at all in 2026 because of an injury, but was activated off the 60-day injured list on Nov. 2, and was released ten days later.

Right-hander Michael De La Cruz (Florida Complex League) had signed a minor-league deal in May 2025. Right-hander Eminen Flores (High-A Vancouver) had been in the organization since signing as an international free agent in January 2022. Left-hander Luis Torres (FCL) rounded out the group.

Friday's other six cuts were spread across the lower levels: right-hander Victor Espiritu and outfielder Yorman Licourt (both Dunedin), right-hander Sann Omosako (Dunedin), shortstop Max Viera (Vancouver), left-hander Ramon Suarez (FCL) and right-hander Freigher Barco (FCL). Williams was the only one of the seven who had played at Triple-A.

Earlier in the month the Blue Jays had already released eight other players. Tanner Andrews, Josbel Garcia, CJ Van Eyk, Beau Phillips, Raimundo de los Santos, Daz Cameron, CJ Stubbs and Rhylan Thomas. That's 19 players out the door since the start of the offseason.

But the Blue Jays aren't just subtracting. They have added 18-year-old Korean right-hander Woo-jin Cho (assigned to the Dominican Summer League), Taiwanese lefty Cheng-Hao Wu, Nurberto German and Feremi Suriel, plus minor-league deals with spring-training invites for outfielder Victor Arias and pitcher Josh Stephan.

It appears as if the Blue Jays are clearing room ahead of Tuesday's Rule 5 protection deadline and that in itself will be fascinating to watch as to who the Blue Jays protect and who they don't.

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