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Blue Jays: 3 non-roster invitees who could make the Opening Day roster
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Aidan Sinclair
Feb 16, 2026, 08:00 ESTUpdated: Feb 16, 2026, 07:29 EST
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Though the Blue Jays appear to have a roster set to compete come March 27th, there remains room for some non-roster invitees to break out in Spring Training and earn an Opening Day roster spot.
Last year, Alan Roden and Myles Straw both made the team out of necessity and excellent performance in the spring, and this year, three more players possess the potential to replicate their success. 
RJ Schreck 
After it was recently announced that Anthony Santander would require surgery to repair a left labral injury, left field seems to be a position up for grabs. The Jays acquired Jesus Sanchez in exchange for Joey Loperfido on Friday, though some uncertainty exists surrounding his role.
Sanchez has elite bat speed and power potential, though he has never truly broken out at the major league level. Nathan Lukes is another left-handed option that could man left-field and did so with tremendous success in 2025, though the ceiling isn’t great for an almost 32-year-old career minor leaguer. This opens an opportunity for prospect RJ Schreck to break out in Spring Training this year to try and make the Opening Day roster in a similar fashion to Roden a year ago, who posted a 1.250 OPS last spring, forcing his way onto the Opening Day roster. 
Across 99 games in both Double-A and Triple-A a season ago, Schreck hit 18 home runs with OPSs of .914 and .828, respectively. When accounting for all four levels of the minor leagues he appeared in a season ago, he managed an .868 OPS against right-handed pitchers, with an exceptional .400 OBP through 351 plate appearances. He also held his own against lefties, registering an .808 OPS in 77 plate appearances with a formidable .382 OBP.
This contact and on-base ability fit the Jays’ offensive approach, making Schreck a likely candidate to break out and earn a spot on the Opening Day roster. 
Riley Tirotta 
Though not a flashy name, Tirotta would slot in as a perfect infield depth piece, providing insurance on the major league roster in the event of an injury.
In years past, Leo Jimenez has seemingly been the default infield backup option, though he has never performed at the big league level. Tirotta has quietly been a solid, consistent hitter in the minor leagues since he was drafted by the Jays in the 12th round of the 2021 draft. He played the entirety of 2025 in triple-A Buffalo and in 116 games, posted a .268/.359/.417/.775 slash line with 12 home runs and 13 stolen bases. A .930 OPS against left-handed pitching makes him a formidable candidate to complement Addison Barger in right field, one of Tirotta’s primary positions.
Now 27, Tirotta by definition is the epitome of a versatile defensive player, having played six different positions in 2025 alone, with the bulk of his innings coming at first and third base, along with right field. Injuries to the major league roster are inevitable, and the Jays have resorted to some interesting names in the past to fill infield voids. When Andres Gimenez went down with a quad strain in early May, it was Michael Stefanic who filled in as the backup second baseman and provided little offensively in his short Blue Jays tenure.
Tirotta has established himself as a solid minor league hitter, taking home the Stan Barron MVP award a season ago. An opportunity presents itself for him to make the Opening Day roster should he perform in Spring Training or if any current big league options succumb to injury. 
Yariel Rodriguez 
Arguably the most obvious candidate to earn an Opening Day roster spot as a non-roster invitee to Spring Training, Rodriguez will be looking to make his way back to Toronto after being DFA’d earlier this offseason.
With three years and $21.3 million remaining on his five-year contract signed before the 2024 season, Rodriguez’s 2025 was a tale of two seasons. In the first half, he posted a respectable 2.53 ERA before command issues caught up with him in the second half, leading to a 4.58 ERA, before eventually being left off the World Series roster.  
Going unclaimed and clearing waivers, Rodriguez was outrighted off the 40-man roster, thus making him a non-roster invitee looking to earn his way back on the big league staff. Though the bullpen appears to have been solidified after the Tyler Rogers signing, once again, an injury could create an opening for Rodriguez to return to a familiar role come Opening Day. 

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