For the Blue Jays to have any hopes of creeping into a wild-card spot in the American League playoff race, they’ll certainly need some more offence.
But they won’t be getting any from a former Silver Slugger award winner — and we’re not talking about the struggling Vladimir Guerrero Jr., either.
On Tuesday, the Blue Jays organization quietly released designated hitter Eloy Jimenez, who had been playing for the team’s minor-league affiliate in Buffalo.
Neither the Blue Jays nor Bisons officially announced the move, but the transaction appeared on Buffalo’s roster activity page online.
Jimenez had a brief stint with the MLB club earlier this season, getting called up when George Springer was placed on the Injured List with a broken toe.
In 12 games, Jimenez posted a solid .290 batting average but didn’t notch any extra-base hits in his 35 plate appearances before being designated for assignment upon Springer’s return and electing to become a free agent.
He re-signed with the Blue Jays in early June, returning to Buffalo on June 9 after a brief stint in single-A.
However, his lack of power didn’t improve and Jimenez was released by the franchise on Tuesday, the day after the MLB trade deadline.
When did Eloy Jimenez win a Silver Slugger?
In 119 at-bats with the Bisons this year, Jimenez had just six doubles and one home run.
That’s a far cry from the heights of his rookie season in 2019, when he was one of the hottest young hitters in the Majors.
The Dominican slugger burst onto the scene with the Chicago White Sox, hitting 31 home runs to lead all AL rookies.
He followed that up with 14 home runs in 55 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign before his numbers began to dip.
Over the next three seasons, he hit 44 total home runs and was traded to the Baltimore Orioles during the 2024 season, where his struggles continued.