Spencer

Turnbull

Turnbull latches on with Kansas City as emergency pitching depth after being cut loose earlier this week from his minor league pact with the Cubs. The 32-year-old veteran was hit hard in three appearances for the Blue Jays earlier this season and hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since June.

It’s unclear whether it’s a major league deal or if Turnbull will head to Triple-A initially. He’s been out of work since the Jays cut him on June 27, so he probably is going to need a few minor league appearances as a tune-up. He had a 7.11 ERA in 6 1/3 innings during his time in Toronto.

Turnbull’s comeback didn’t quite go as planned with the Jays as he posted a 7.11 ERA over 6 1/3 innings of work across three appearances (one start). Given the lack of quality pitching depth throughout baseball though, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Turnbull land on his feet and secure another opportunity elsewhere in relatively short order, provided that the 32-year-old hurler wants to continue pitching.

The move comes as a mild surprise given Turnbull is a prominent name with plenty of big-league experience, but there’s no role for him in Toronto anymore with Eric Lauer pitching well and Max Scherzer returning from the injured list. The 32-year-old veteran leaves the Blue Jays after struggling to a disastrous 7.11 ERA across 6 1/3 innings (three appearances, one start). There might be some interest on waivers given his previous track record.

The White Sox jumped all over Turnbull here. Andrew Benintendi took him on a first-pitch fastball right down the middle in the first then they put up two more in the second. Turnbull then walked Miguel Vargas to start the third inning and was immediately pulled from the game. This was Turnbull’s first start of the season after making a few appearances out of the bullpen. He could get another turn in the rotation given the Blue Jays’ lack of starting options at the moment. If so, his next start would likely come against the Guardians in Cleveland, but that’s not guaranteed.

The 32-year-old hurler has made two appearances out of the bullpen for the Jays, posting a 2.08 ERA, 2.08 WHIP and a 2/2 K/BB ratio across 4 1/3 innings. Given his limited workload so far, he may struggle to get through five innings against the White Sox on Friday, which is something to keep in mind if you’re planning on streaming him in deeper leagues.

The Jays didn’t trust Lauer to finish the fifth with a 5-2 lead. In posting a 2.37 ERA in nine appearances for the Jays, he’s pitched at least three innings seven times, but he’s never completed five innings, which means he really needs to work behind an opener to have much chance of getting a win. The victory today wound up going to Spencer Turnbull, who threw scoreless sixth and seventh innings. The Jays have off days tomorrow and Monday, so Lauer probably won’t be needed again for a while.

The 32-year-old hurler made five minor league starts with the Jays as he was getting stretched out, posting a miserable 7.13 ERA, 1.81 WHIP and a 14/9 K/BB ratio over 17 2/3 innings. Turnbull is expected to make his Blue Jays’ debut on Wednesday against the Cardinals in St. Louis. We have seen Turnbull be a viable fantasy option in the big leagues before, but you’d like to see him have some sort of success before trying to trot him out there in your lineups. He makes for an intriguing stash in all formats, but wait to see what he looks like before risking the ratio damage that he could inflict.

He also walked three and struck out one while throwing just 30 of his 53 pitches for strikes. Turnbull was signed by the Blue Jays on May 5 and had made four appearances at High-A before being promoted to Triple-A. He figures to need a few more appearances at Triple-A before he can become an option for the Blue Jays at the big league level.

The move was reported on Saturday and is now official. Turnbull will be optioned to the complex league in order to build up his pitch mix and get ready to push for a starting rotation spot. Max Scherzer was transferred to the 60-day IL to make room on the 40-man roster.