Eloy

Jimenez

Jiménez went 9-for-31 before being designated assignment to make room for George Springer on the active roster before Wednesday’s game. There likely will be interest on the market, but Jiménez will almost assuredly be looking at another minor league pact.

The Blue Jays needed a spot on the roster for George Springer (toe) to come off the injured list, so Eloy Jiménez was let go. The 29-year-old had gone 9-for-31 in his 12 games with the Blue Jays, but all nine of those hits were singles, so he wasn’t packing much of a punch. He’ll likely clear waivers and can return on a minor league deal.

Jiménez was in the lineup at designated hitter on Tuesday, batting fifth against the Angels. After drawing a walk in the fourth inning, he brought the team’s first run home on a sacrifice fly in the sixth. Jiménez later drove in an insurance run with a single in the eighth. The 29-year-old has filled in nicely at DH while George Springer (toe) has been out, hitting .381/.440/.381 over seven games. His days in the lineup may be numbered, with Springer due back later this week.

Sosa went 1-for-3 on Wednesday in his first start with the Blue Jays and will be right back out there again. Eloy Jimenez will remain on the bench with Kazuma Okamoto at first base and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at DH. It seems that the Blue Jays are going to give Sosa a chance to start against right-handed pitchers and use the DH spot as a rotational lineup spot while potentially saving Jimenez for left-handed pitchers.

On the heels of a strong spring, the 29-year-old slugger got off to a decent start at Triple-A Buffalo, slashing .257/.372/.371 with one home run, five RBI and a 9/5 K/BB ratio over his first 43 plate appearances. It’ll be interesting to see what type of playing time he sees with the Jays, though the most likely scenario has him working on the short side of a platoon with most of his action coming against southpaws. He’ll serve as the designated hitter and bat seventh against Twins’ right-hander Taj Bradley on Sunday.

Springer, who was DHing today, fouled a ball off his foot in his second at-bat and then didn’t come back out for his third. The Jays quickly announced that his toe was fractured, so he’ll likely miss at least a few weeks. This could get Eloy Jiménez back to the majors; after a nice spring, he’s hit .281/.368/.406 through 10 games in Triple-A. If the Jays don’t want to make room on their 40-man roster, their only option would be to call up Jonatan Clase. In that case, Davis Schneider and Myler Straw could share Springer’s at-bats. Straw replaced him today.

Jiménez is one of the prominent late-camp cuts for the Blue Jays after a respectable showing as a non-roster invitee, hitting .286 with two homers in 18 Grapefruit League contests. Rodríguez is the notable reliever included in this latest batch after being removed from Toronto’s 40-man roster during the offseason.

He actually hit the double 40 feet farther than the homer. (398 feet to 357.) Jiménez is slated to see some time at first base this spring with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. off playing in the WBC. He doesn’t seem like a fit for Toronto’s roster, but if he performs well, some lesser contender might want to give him a look.

Among the most highly-touted slugging prospects in recent memory, Jiménez didn’t appear in the majors last season, splitting time with Toronto and Tampa Bay at the Triple-A level. The 29-year-old masher last appeared in the majors for the White Sox and Orioles during the 2024 campaign, batting .238/.289/.336 with six homers and three steals in 349 plate appearances. His days as an impact fantasy contributor are probably over, especially since he’s basically limited to DH at this point of his career. However, he represents an interesting zero-risk addition for the Blue Jays in the event that he makes some changes and re-discovers his previously-elite in-game pop.

Once considered one of the premier young sluggers in all of baseball, Jiménez has seen his production fall off of a cliff in recent years. He spent the entire 2025 campaign in the minor leagues, slashing just .247/.326/.347 with three homers and 30 RBI in 215 plate appearances between the Orioles’ and Blue Jays’ organizations. There will probably be teams interested in taking a flier on him, but it won’t be anything more than a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.