Michael

Stefanic

Stefanic was with the Blue Jays last season, going just 4-for-22 at the big league level and hitting .287/.403/.383 with six home runs and six steals in 106 games at Triple-A. He figures to serve as organizational depth for the Athletics, given his ability to play everywhere on the infield.

Stefanic hit free agency over the weekend once Toronto’s playoff run came to a close. The 29-year-old infielder spent a couple weeks with the Blue Jays in May, going 4-for-22 at the dish. He’ll likely wind up settling for a minor league contract somewhere else this offseason.

Stefanic was up with Toronto for a couple weeks while Andrés Giménez was on the injured list. The 29-year-old infielder hit .182 (4-for-22) across nine games.

Stefaic was 4-for-22 while serving as the Jays’ 26th man during Andrés Giménez’s IL stint. The former Angel will probably clear waivers and could head back to Triple-A Buffalo.

The 29-year-old infielder will get his first shot with the Blue Jays while Andrés Giménez hits the injured list with a right quad strain. Stefanic hit .319/.454/.372 with zero homers, 13 RBI, four stolen bases and a 14/18 K/BB ratio over 119 plate appearances at Triple-A Buffalo. He’s unlikely to see enough playing time to gain relevance from a fantasy perspective.

No real surprises here as the biggest shockwave from Toronto came earlier on Sunday when the club announced that prospect Alan Roden made the season-opening roster over Addison Barger, who was subsequently shipped to Triple-A Buffalo.

Stefanic was jettisoned from the Angels’ 40-man roster back in late October and he’ll get an opportunity next spring to compete for a bench role with the Blue Jays. The 28-year-old infielder holds a lackluster .591 OPS across 264 plate appearances at the highest level dating back to 2022. He represents quality organizational infield depth for Toronto heading into 2025.

It’s the first outright assignment for Stefanic, who made his MLB debut for the Angels in July 2022 and was up and down several times since. He hit .232/.317/.275 in 264 plate appearances over 2 1/2 seasons. Of the three infielders here, Leblanc probably has the best chance of helping a team. The Angels, though, gave him just 28 plate appearances, in which he homered twice and walked seven times.

Stefanic missed a few days while dealing with a calf injury, but is feeling well enough to play in the series finale against Chicago.

Sefanic is out with a calf injury, and Brandon Drury is also not in the lineup with a calf issue of his own. With those two infielders not available, Jack Lopez gets another start at second base.