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3 recently DFA’ed played the Blue Jays could target
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Photo credit: © John Froschauer-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Mar 27, 2025, 08:00 EDTUpdated: Mar 27, 2025, 02:42 EDT
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There are several players the Toronto Blue Jays should be targeting.
It’s around the time when plenty of roster moves are made as veterans opt out of their minor league deals or are added to the 40-man roster. In turn, players are designated for assignment to make room for said players, leaving interesting players available for anyone.
We saw this with Ryan Yarbrough, who opted out of his minor deal and almost immediately signed a one-year, major league deal with the New York Yankees.
That begs the question: Who could the Blue Jays target on the waiver wire or the free agent market? Let’s find out!

Ángel Perdomo

Ángel Perdomo is a left-handed pitcher who was designated for assignment by the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday.
The 30-year-old made his big league debut with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2020, posting a 20.25 ERA in two and two-thirds innings pitched. He got more of an opportunity the following season, posting a 6.35 ERA and a 6.11 FIP in 17 innings pitched with a 35.4 K% and a 20.3 BB%.
After not pitching in the big leagues in 2022, Perdomo returned to the National League in 2023 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he had a respectable 3.72 ERA and a 3.01 FIP in 29 innings pitched. More impressively, though, Perdomo had a 37.6 K% and a 9.4 BB%.
Perdomo, who was originally signed by the Blue Jays back in 2011, missed all of the 2024 season due to injury. Standing at 6’8”, 265 lbs, the left-handed pitcher averaged just under 94 mph on his fastball in 2023 and generates a ton of whiffs.
It certainly wouldn’t be the worst idea to bring him back as a depth option. Speaking of options, he has none remaining, means he’d need to make the 26-man roster or the Blue Jays would have to DFA him as well. Could be worth a shot, though.

Mitch Haniger

Why not take a flyer?
Mitch Haniger was released by the Seattle Mariners and is owed over $15 million by the team. This comes after he reportedly had shoulder soreness and three rather mediocre seasons, albeit only one was with the Mariners. Since the start of 2022, the outfielder is slashing .218/.287/.368 with 29 home runs in 899 plate appearances for a 90 wRC+.
Before that, though, oh man, was Haniger ever a dangerous power hitter. In 2021, Haniger slashed .253/.318/.485 with 39 home runs in 691 plate appearances for a 120 wRC+ and a 2.2 fWAR.
His best season was in 2018, where he hit 26 home runs and slashed .285/.366/.493 in 683 plate appearances for a 137 wRC+ and a 5 fWAR. The 34-year-old played significant time in the outfield last season. Perhaps a move to a full-time designated hitter role could help him hit better.
There’s no such thing as a bad minor-league deal, and if the Blue Jays can get him on one, they could open up a spot if he performs well in Buffalo. It seems highly unlikely, but it’s been a while since the Jays took a risk like this.

Alexander Canario

From a player on the back-end of his career to a player who hasn’t even hit his prime yet, Alexander Canario hasn’t been designated for assignment just yet; however, the plan is to place him on waivers as he’s out of options, according to the New York Post’s Mike Puma.
Canario, 24, was acquired by the New York Mets early in Spring Training and actually had solid results, slashing .306/.419/.611 with three home runs in 43 plate appearances for a 165 wRC+. So far in his big league career (45 plate appearances), he’s slashing .286/.333/.524 with two home runs.
Last season with the Chicago Cubs Triple-A team, the outfielder slashed .243/.336/.514 with 18 home runs in 283 plate appearances with a 116 wRC+ and a 30.4 K%.
It’s clear the talent is there, but the 24-year-old is out of option years, meaning that any team that picks him up on waivers would need to DFA him to get him to the minor leagues. It could be worth it for the Jays, as he has plenty of pop and is MLB-ready, but it would add another outfielder to an already crowded outfield.
The Jays have five outfielders on their big league roster – Anthony Santander, Nathan Lukes, George Springer, Myles Straw, and Alan Roden. Add in Davis Schneider, and there’s not a whole lot of room on the big league roster.
Assuming they could sneak him through waivers, he’d be fighting for playing time with Addison Barger, Will Robertson, Steward Berroa, Jonatan Clase, and Joey Loperfido.
Still, it’d be nice to see the Jays claim a high-potential player off waivers.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. They can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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