Blue Jays announce huge slate of roster moves prior to series vs. Rangers

With the regular season winding down, the Toronto Blue Jays continue loading up on arms in the hopes of finding an uncovered gem among the many names that travel through the waiver wire at this time of year.

They already claimed Dillon Tate from the Baltimore Orioles earlier this month. More recently, they picked up a pair of pitchers from the Miami Marlins, Emmanuel Ramirez and Brett de Geus.

The Blue Jays were at it again on Tuesday, claiming right-handed reliever Nick Robertson off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels, as first reported by Steve Adams of MLBTR. The Blue Jays officially announced the move as well (X link), along with a massive list of additional roster moves.

Robertson has been assigned to Triple-A to join the Buffalo Bisons. Bo Bichette has been activated from the injured list, Will Wagner (knee inflammation) and Daulton Varsho (shoulder strain) have been placed on the IL and outfielder Steward Berroa has been recalled from Buffalo.

Blue Jays announce huge list of transactions prior to Rangers series

Robertson, 26, has already spent time with four organizations since being drafted in the seventh round in 2019 by the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was traded to the Boston Red Sox in the middle of last season before landing with the St. Louis Cardinals in the offseason. The Angels claimed him off waivers from St. Louis on Aug. 13.

Robertson has seen limited time in the majors during his professional career. He appeared in eight games for the Cardinals this season, posting a 4.38 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in 12 1/3 innings. He logged a 26.9 percent strikeout rate while only walking batters at a 3.8 percent clip. In 2023, he had a 6.04 ERA and 1.75 WHIP in 22 1/3 MLB innings split between the Dodgers and Red Sox.

During his short stay with the Angels Triple-A affiliate, he posted a less than encouraging 6.92 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP in 13 innings our of the bullpen.

Bichette had been on the shelf since July 19 and was a shell of the player he once was when he was on the field. He's appeared in 80 games this year and has recorded just 21 extra-base hits with only four of them leaving the yard. His huge power outage has also been met with an abysmal .595 OPS and 69 OPS+ as well, which makes the 2024 campaign a complete lost one for him.

Wagner, 26, was one of the pieces the Blue Jays acquired in the Yusei Kikuchi trade. He has 24 big league games under his belt and has looked seriously impressive during that stretch of play. He's got eight extra-base hits with a .305 average, .788 OPS and 123 OPS+ all while playing passable defense at second base. According to Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith, his year is finished, but he'll certainly be back next season.

With Varsho's injury being retroactive to Sept. 14, there's still a good chance he makes a return before the season ends. The five-year veteran is having an excellent year on both offense and defense for the Blue Jays, continuing to be one of the best defensive outfielders in the game while also showing improvements at the plate across the board compared to his debut season in Toronto.

The Jays will swap one slick-fielding outfielder for another, as Berroa is back up once again to ride the bench. The 25-year-old hasn't shown much in his first 24 big league contests, but he's quick on his feet and can play all around the outfield. Nathan Lukes is likely to get more playing time on a regular basis while Berroa becomes the oft-used backup outfielder.