Austin

Voth

Voth returns to Toronto on a brand-new pact after electing free agency last week. The well-traveled 33-year-old made one relief appearance for the Blue Jays prior to being designated for assignment and passing through waivers unclaimed.

The 33-year-old hurler was designated for assignment earlier in the week. He passed through waivers unclaimed, then rather than accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Buffalo, he chose to peddle his wares on the open market instead. Look for him to latch on elsewhere on what will presumably be a minor league pact.

Voth allowed one run in 2 2/3 innings this year but the Blue Jays wanted Josh Fleming up for length in the bullpen and had to free up a roster spot.

The Blue Jays made a series of roster moves on Sunday, with Voth getting added to the club’s 40-man roster in place of the injured Cody Ponce. It’s unclear if he’ll take Ponce’s spot in the rotation or if he’ll just add length to the bullpen for a few days while they sort it out. Either way, he can probably be ignored for fantasy purposes.

Voth was in camp with the White Sox this spring after pitching overseas in Japan last year. The 33-year-old veteran provides Toronto’s injury-depleted pitching staff with some additional emergency long relief depth at Triple-A Buffalo.

Voth last pitched in the majors in 2024 with a solid 3.69 ERA and 61/18 K/BB ratio over 61 innings as a member of the Mariners. The 33-year-old stands a good chance of winning a job with the White Sox with a good showing in the Cactus League.

The 32-year-old hurler was non-tendered by the Mariners in late November and didn’t find a deal to his liking on the open market, so he has decided to head overseas for the 2025 season. Voth did a nice job out of the M’s bullpen in 2024, registering a 3.69 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and a 61/18 K/BB ratio over 61 innings. What’s intriguing is that the plan is for him to work as a starter in Japan — perhaps with the idea of returning to the big leagues for the 2026 season in that same role if he has success there.

Every year at this time difficult decisions need to be made around the league regarding each club’s 40-man roster. This one is a bit surprising though. Voth was a major asset to the M’s bullpen in 2024, registering a 3.69 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and a 61/18 K/BB ratio across his 61 frames. MLBTradeRumors.com had projected the 32-year-old hurler to earn $2.2 million through arbitration, so it’s not like the salary jump should have made a major difference in their decision. It shouldn’t take Voth long at all to find a new opportunity on the open market.

If things go well, the Mariners will also have control of Voth through arbitration in 2025. The 31-year-old righty had an excellent 3.04 ERA in 17 starts and five relief appearances for the Orioles in 2022, but he missed much of last season with an elbow injury and finished with a 5.19 ERA in 34 2/3 innings out of the bullpen. It’s possible that he’ll be a rotation stopgap for the Mariners if pitchers start getting hurt, but he’s likely looking at a role in middle relief otherwise.

It’s a little bit surprising to see Voth get a major league deal after a 2023 season in which he missed time with an elbow injury and put up a 5.19 ERA in 34 2/3 innings while healthy, but he was quite good for a stretch in 2022. The Mariners will likely use him in middle relief.