Three pitchers the Blue Jays should target as minor league depth

Matthew Boyd

The Blue Jays drafted southpaw Matt Boyd in the 6th round of the 2013 amateur draft out of Oregon State University. He’s perhaps best known by Toronto fans as part of the trade package, along with Jairo Labourt and Daniel Norris, used by then GM Alek Anthopoulos to acquire David Price for the 2015 AL pennant drive.

In 9 MLB seasons, including 8 with Detroit, he’s pitched to a 4.94 ERA over 868.2 innings, including 160 starts. Given he turns 33 next month, he’s likely reached the depth signing stage of his career, especially given he won’t be available until after the All-Star break this year as he continues his recovery from Tommy John surgery last summer.

As Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press wrote after his injury, “Boyd underwent left flexor tendon surgery in September 2021, so this marks his second arm surgery within the last two years. He hasn't pitched more than 78.2 innings (in 2021) since the 2019 season.”

Which makes him cheap and a rebound candidate from his recent arm troubles. Again, Boyd feels like a potential candidate to rework his mechanics and delivery at the Jays’ pitching lab in Dunedin as he recovers from Tommy John. If he can continue to rework his slider, perhaps he can follow the same path as Ryu and Chad Green did last year, and potentially provide pitching depth in the 2H of 2024?