Omar Vizquel's playing skills may have significantly diminished as he's reached his mid-40's, but his knowledge of the game is something Toronto clearly wants to keep around. The Blue Jays did just that, optioning Vizquel's competition to Triple-A on Wednesday.
Following a miraculous 2010, Vizquel looked like a 44-year-old with the White Sox in 2011, posting just a .287 on-base percentage. But his defense took a more significant hit, as his range and arm strength just weren't good enough to warrant the kind of playing time he received.
While there may not be any direct causation, that Vizquel was on the White Sox roster during Alexei Ramirez's development from a decent shortstop to deserving Gold Glove winner shouldn't be overlooked. The year before that, Vizquel backed up Elvis Andrus -- who has similarly developed into a Gold Glove-caliber shortstop.
It'll be interesting to see how long Vizquel sticks with Toronto -- if the Blue Jays have any deserving prospect who should be pushing for a roster spot, Vizquel would probably be the first man to go. Still, it's nice to see him stick around, especially now that we can take a step back and appreciate him without scrutinizing his performance.