10 former Blue Jays who are playing in the 2024 MLB postseason

4 of 6

Obviously the 2024 regular season did not go according to plan for the Toronto Blue Jays. Undergoing a large sell-off at the trade deadline was not exactly a part of the organization's preseason plans, and neither was a last-place finish in the AL East.

Yet, here we are. We've already touched on some past Blue Jays playoff runs to try and keep fans occupied while they watch this year's playoffs from home. Another interesting storyline to follow is ex-Blue Jays who are still active in this year's postseason.

Turns out, there are a ton of them. The Blue Jays of years past are well-represented around the league, as a bunch of one-time Jays still have active hopes of bringing home that World Series ring.

Before we continue, there are a few notable ex-Jays prospects who are floating around out there as well, but we're not going to count them here. Joe Musgrove (Padres) and Jeff Hoffman (Phillies) stand out above the rest, as they both have important roles on their respective club's march to a deep run. News broke Friday evening that Musgrove is set to undergo Tommy John surgery, so he's off the table, but Hoffman has been a relief weapon all year long over in Philadelphia.

Let's take a look at all of the former Blue Jays who are still active in this year's playoffs. There are a lot of them, and we're going to separate them by team, as well as look at their roles on their new clubs. Let's dive in.

Editor's note: at the time of this writing, DS rosters had not officially been announced. Between now and the formal roster announcement, all players mentioned are playoff-eligible but may not be included on the final rosters.

Former Blue Jays whose playoff hopes are still alive

Cleveland Guardians (1)

The Cleveland Guardians are one of many clubs in the AL Central that either made the playoffs or were in contention for a spot until the very, very end. The Guardians, Tigers and Royals all made the cut, while the Twins fell just short despite the fact that they held a postseason spot for the vast majority of the regular season.

There's only one former Blue Jay on the Guardians' roster, and that's left-hander Matthew Boyd.

Originally drafted by the Blue Jays in the sixth round of the 2013 MLB Draft, Boyd turned into one of the organization's top pitching prospects with an incredible showing in High-A during the 2014 season and Double-A in 2015. He had a sub-2.00 ERA in both of those seasons and earned a big league promotion in '15 because of it.

He wound up making just two starts for the big league club that year, surrendering 11 runs on 15 hits in just 6.2 innings. That was good for a 14.85 ERA. The Tigers still saw enough from him during his minor-league dominance to trade for him in exchange for David Price.

Boyd wound up having a largely successful eight-year run in Detroit before latching on with the Guardians this year. Since he was recovering from an injury, he didn't sign until late in the season and made just eight starts because of it.

Those eight starts went well, though. The 33-year-old posted a 2.72 ERA, 3.29 FIP and 151 ERA+ in 39.2 innings, striking out over 10 batters per nine innings and walking just 13. He's a part of the Guardians' playoff rotation and should see some game-action during the upcoming ALDS against his old team, the Tigers.

Los Angeles Dodgers (4)

The Dodgers are one of two remaining playoff teams with four ex-Blue Jays on their roster. The club coasted into the postseason as the NL's top seed and is preparing to take on the Padres, who just recently swept the Braves in the NL Wild Card Series.

Teoscar Hernandez, a pending free agent, is wrapping up a one-year deal in Los Angeles and put together one of his best seasons at the plate. In 154 games, the popular ex-Blue Jay hit 33 home runs and drove in 99, posting an .840 OPS and 137 OPS+. He made the All-Star Game for the second time in his nine-year career and is going to be a free agent target for the Blue Jays once he hits free agency in the near future. A strong postseason for him would do nothing but add dollars onto that contract he's set to earn coming up soon.

Then there's Daniel Hudson, a relief pitcher who's managed to stay at the top of his game even as he nears the age of 40. The right-hander made 45 appearances for the Blue Jays back in 2019 as an oft-used middle-reliever, posting a 3.00 ERA and 152 ERA+ before being traded to the Nationals at the deadline. This year, the 37-year-old made it into 65 contests, earning 10 saves and posting a 3.00 ERA and 129 ERA+. He's sure to be a sought after arm in free agency, and he could fit the bill as an experienced veteran reliever that the Blue Jays desperately need more of this offseason.

Kevin Kiermaier, 34, is retiring at season's end and is getting one last shot at a World Series ring before he hangs it up. He's one of the best defensive center fielders the game has ever seen and was only just traded to the Dodgers at this year's deadline. This year, he's hitting a combined .197 with just five home runs and a 56 OPS+ through 116 games. The Dodgers keep him around strictly for his defensive prowess in center field.

That brings us to Anthony Banda, who easily had the shortest tenure on the Blue Jays. The left-hander made just seven appearances for Toronto back in 2022, surrendering three runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts and three walks in 6.1 innings of work. He's a journeyman if there ever was one, logging time with eight teams in eight years. He set a new career-high in games and innings this year after making 48 appearances for the Dodgers with a 3.08 ERA and 126 ERA+.

New York Yankees (4)

The Bronx Bombers secured the top seed in the AL and will be taking on the underdog Kansas City Royals. The Yankees, armed with Juan Soto and Aaron Judge, are one of the most dangerous clubs in the entire playoff field.

Their roster will feature four former Blue Jays, but it remains to be seen if they'll have the same impact on the games as Judge and Soto do. Probably not.

Jon Berti first broke in to the big leagues back in 2018 as a member of the Blue Jays. His tenure in Toronto consisted of just four games, but he notched his first big league hit, double, triple and stolen base in that time. All told, he went 4-for-15 (.267) with two runs scored and two RBI. Since then, he's suited up as an oft-used utilityman for the Marlins and now the Yankees. In his first season on the Yanks, Berti hit .273 in 25 regular-season games, registering appearances at second base, third base and left field. Every playoff team needs a jack-of-all-trades type of player like him on their squad.

One of the more recognizable and popular former Blue Jays here is Marcus Stroman, who spent the first six years of his big league career in Toronto. The right-hander made an All-Star Game, won a Gold Glove and earned Cy Young votes during his time with the Jays and had a 3.76 ERA in 135 games for them. Now he finds himself in New York for the second time, this time with the Yankees. He made 29 starts for them, going 10-9 with a 4.31 ERA and 95 ERA+ along the way.

Mark Leiter Jr., 33, made it into eight games for the Blue Jays back in 2018 alongside Berti. The right-hander always finds a way to land a job at the big league level despite the fact that he wasn't very good until last season. This year, he was traded to the Yankees at the deadline and has a combined 4.50 ERA through 60 games between the Cubs and Yanks.

At the time of his release and eventual signing with the Yankees, Tim Mayza was the longest-tenured member of the Blue Jays' roster. The left-hander was as durable and reliable as they come through the vast majority of his time on the Jays, but this year the wheels completely fell off. With the Jays feeling like they could turn things around before the end of the year, they cut him rather than give him more time to figure things out. He went on to make 15 regular-season outings for the Yankees, posting a 4.00 ERA in 18 innings which is much better than the 8.03 mark he had in 24.2 innings for the Jays.

Philadelphia Phillies (1)

Another one of the most dangerous clubs still alive in this postseason, the Phillies were the No. 2 seed in the NL but have excellent odds of making it back to the World Series this year. The club is armed to teeth on offense and on the pitching side of things.

Only one of their players previously spent time in the big leagues with the Blue Jays: right-handed pitcher Taijuan Walker.

Walker, now 32 years of age, is under contract with the Phillies on a four-year deal he signed with them prior to last season. He's just wrapping up the second of four years and has struggled so badly that it's almost worth wondering if the Phillies should eat his salary and cut him altogether.

The 12-year veteran made 19 appearances (15 starts) for the Phillies this year, going 3-7 with a ghastly 7.10 ERA, 6.94 FIP and 57 ERA+. The ERA+ alone suggests that his overall production was 43 percent below league-average. That's suboptimal.

Walker hasn't always been this type of pitcher though. At various points throughout his career, he's been an All-Star-caliber starter, even making the ASG back in 2021 with the Mets. He's struggled with durability over the years, but it wasn't so long ago that he was actually a decent big league starter.

Back in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, the Blue Jays got a brief glimpse of him, as he made six starts for them down the stretch. In that time, he went 2-1 with a 1.37 ERA in 26.1 innings of work. He struck out 25 batters and walked 11 while allowing just four earned runs.

Walker, like Banda, Berti, Boyd and Leiter before him, didn't get a ton of playing time on the Blue Jays, but he still qualifies for this list either way.

It remains to be seen whether he'll make the Phillies' playoff roster or not, but it'd make sense for him to squeak his way into the back-end of the roster over the likes of someone like Kolby Allard, who is less experienced and has never appeared in a postseason game.

Former Blue Jays whose playoff hopes just ended

Atlanta Braves (3)

The Braves just barely made the playoffs and were also one of the first teams sent packing. Three former Blue Jays were on their Wild Card roster and just had their playoff hopes dashed. This includes the following:

Jesse Chavez, a 41-year-old reliever who's just wrapping up his 17th season in the big leagues. He made nine appearances for the 2012 Blue Jays and then 39 more in 2016. At this point, he's played for practically every team at some point.
Whit Merrifield, who spent a year and a half in Toronto before hitting free agency this past offseason. He was a solid player for the Jays, even making an All-Star Game in 2023, but his production fell off a cliff this year in 95 games split between the Phillies and Braves.
Gio Urshela, a nine-year veteran whose Blue Jays tenure consisted of just 19 games back in 2018. He's bounced around the league a little bit but is still able to find a job every year as he still swings a decent bat and can play multiple positions around the infield.

Houston Astros (1)

The Astros' dynasty may finally be coming to a close after their latest premature playoff exit. They have been one of the AL's best teams for years, but the underdog Tigers sent them packing early this season. Only one former Blue Jays player was on their roster at the time of their elimination.

Yusei Kikuchi, traded from Toronto to Houston at this year's deadline, is the lone representative here. The left-hander was rock-solid for the Blue Jays across his three years north of the border (especially in 2023 and the first-half of 2024), but he really elevated his game down in Houston. In 10 starts for the Astros, he went 5-1 with a 2.70 ERA, 3.07 FIP and 147 ERA+.

Milwaukee Brewers (1)

In one of the most depressing twists of fate we've seen in quite some time, the Brewers were just three outs away from toppling the Mets and advancing to the NLDS. Instead, pending free agent Pete Alonso (who sure would look great in a Blue Jays uniform) hit a three-run home run in the top of the ninth that gave the Mets a lead they never relinquished. On the roster in the WC Series was just one former Blue Jay.

Joel Payamps, who made 22 relief appearances for the 2021 Blue Jays, has been one of the more oft-used relievers on the Brewers for the past two seasons. He has made a combined 137 appearances in just two years, posting a 2.78 ERA in 129.2 innings. On the Jays, he had a 2.70 ERA in 30 innings but walked more batters than the Jays were comfortable with.

manual

Home / Toronto Blue Jays History