Blue Jays roster shuffle continues as Jesús Sánchez officially moves on to Diamondbacks

The Toronto Blue Jays’ latest wave of roster moves came with both short-term reinforcements and the official end of an outfield experiment that completely went awry in 2026.

Jesús Sánchez, who was designated for assignment by Toronto on Friday (Sept. 11), was claimed off waivers by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday (Sept. 14). The move closes the book on a short Blue Jays tenure that never materialized the way the club was hoping for after they acquired him from the Houston Astros before the season in the deal that sent Joey Loperfido the other way.

Sánchez, who Jays Journal predicted wouldn't finish the season on the big league roster, appeared in 99 games for Toronto, batting .260 with 70 hits, eight home runs, 35 RBI and a .734 OPS over 269 at-bats. Those numbers look fine and respectable enough, but the underlying metrics display why his spot on the roster wasn't as safe as it appeared.

Sánchez went on a tear in May. He hit .329 with 25 hits in 27 games. He had an OPS of .858 and a wRC+ of 140. However, he struck out at a 25.9% clip and walked just 2.5% of the time. His insane .426 BABIP shows some extreme luck for all of those hits.

His numbers came crashing down over the next few months and his play in his final days with the club did not help. A handful of defensive mistakes put an unflattering spotlight on his role, and with Toronto needing every win down the stretch, the Blue Jays moved on.

Blue Jays said goodbye to Jesús Sánchez, but hello to some other familiar faces

Monday’s moves went beyond just the Sánchez transaction. The Blue Jays recalled left-handed reliever Brendan Cellucci from Triple-A Buffalo, optioned left-hander Ricky Tiedemann back to the Bisons and placed outfielder Rudy Martin Jr. on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, retroactive to Sept. 13.

Cellucci gives Toronto another left-handed option in the bullpen after putting together a solid minor-league season. The 28-year-old has posted a 3.06 ERA in 46 appearances, most of them with Buffalo, while allowing 44 hits and 26 walks with 59 strikeouts across 53 innings.

There was also a more encouraging update on Shane Bieber. The veteran right-hander had another MRI on the posterior shoulder area around his teres major, and the results looked much better than the initial imaging. After receiving that news, Bieber was cleared to throw a side session, according to manager John Schneider.

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