A former Blue Jays reliever is likely heading for free agency, as the Minnesota Twins have designated Trevor Richards for assignment after claiming reliever Michael Tonkin off of waivers. Richards was dealt to the Twins at the trade deadline in exchange for infield prospect Jay Harry.

Since joining the Twins, Richards has posted a 4.15 ERA with one save through 10 outings and 13 innings. The 31-year-old has held opponents to a .182 average and carries a 1.46 WHIP working out of the bullpen, allowing eight hits and six runs.

The biggest knock on Richards’ tenure with Minnesota has been his wildness on the mound, as the right-hander has allowed 11 free passes and hit two batters since the trade.

He has more wild pitches through the 10 outings in the AL Central compared to the 45 appearances with Toronto before the deal (seven vs. six wild pitches) and has posted a 7.6 BB/9 after the deadline. While he has seen a dip in his command, he was still striking out batters at a 9.0 K/9 clip, a bit below his single-season career stats but still on the right side of the numbers overall.

For the Jays, Harry has collected 14 hits through 64 at-bats with the high-A Vancouver Canadians including five doubles, three home runs, and eight RBIs. He has amassed a .438 SLG and a .703 OPS with Vancouver so far and has worked defensively at shortstop, second base, and in centre field.

With the designation, Richards can refuse an assignment to the minor leagues given his service time (and he is out of MiLB options anyways) and will likely hit free agency unless another team files a claim on the pitcher with just over a month left to go in the season.