Sources: Right-hander pitcher Lazaro Estrada has re-signed with the Toronto Blue Jays for the 2027 season. Estrada, 27, appeared in the majors with the Jays in 2025 and 2026. The minor league contract includes an invitation to MLB Spring Training. Estrada is represented by Show more
Blue Jays re-sign Lázaro Estrada and five other minor leaguers
Photo credit: © Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Nov 7, 2026, 16:00 ESTUpdated: Nov 7, 2026, 15:47 EST
Recently, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy released an article focusing on minor league transactions. It turns out the Blue Jays have re-signed a handful of players, including Lázaro Estrada, later confirmed by Francys Romero.
Other minor league players who have re-signed are Josh Stephan (acquired in the Josh Smith trade), Geovanny Planchart, Hedbert Perez, Alexis Hernandez, and Adrian Pinto.
Estrada is the lone player of the six to appear in a big league game in 2026. The Cuban righty pitched in eight Blue Jays’ games in 2026, authoring a 5.54 ERA and 6.25 FIP across 13 innings of work. Estrada also appeared in two games during the 2025 season, striking out four and allowing just one earned run across four innings of work in his debut, but giving up six earned runs in his other outing.
The 27-year-old righty mainly spent the 2026 season at the Triple-A level, where he had a 3.25 ERA and 4.49 FIP in 18 outings, or 36 innings of work.
Perez and Hernandez were both selected in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft, Hernandez in 2023 and Perez in 2025. Hernandez had a strong 2026 season, slashing .298/.386/.493 with 15 home runs across 439 plate appearances split between High-A and Double-A. The outfielder finished his season with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
As for Perez, he was once one of the Milwaukee Brewers’ best prospects back in 2021, but struggled in his final few seasons with the 2026 World Series champions. The 23-year-old outfielder began the season on the injured list, but immediately got hot on his rehab assignment, hitting four home runs in just 26 plate appearances.
His stint with the Fisher Cats saw him slashed .227/.337/.420 with six home runs in 175 plate appearances, cooling off after a month with the team.
Stephan was acquired ahead of the 2026 trade deadline, and he made seven starts for the Bisons to end the season. Across 39.1 innings of work, the 25-year-old had a 6.44 ERA and 5.62 FIP, with a 19.4 K% and 6.9 BB%. With the Texas Rangers’ Triple-A team, Stephen had a 5.44 ERA and 5.62 FIP in 101 innings of work.
Pinto, acquired in the Randal Grichuk trade all the way back in 2022, missed a large chunk of the 2026 season due to injury, which has been the case for the majority of his career. When healthy, he spent most of his season with the Fisher Cats, slashing .240/.352/.387 with two home runs in 178 plate appearances. He hit an additional home run on a rehab stint with the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays.
Planchart was signed as a minor league free agent last off-season. He appeared in just 16 games in 2026, slashing .250/.380/.250 between the Florida Complex League and Double-A.
Cynthia Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, DFOEdmonton, and DFOCalgary. She can be followed on Twitter @CynthiaRDelaney.