It's better to admit a mistake than wait around and hope things better, and the Toronto Blue Jays admitted a mistake with reliever and trade deadline pickup Brad Hand on Tuesday. The Blue Jays have designated Hand for assignment, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. The move clears a roster spot for catcher Danny Jansen, who was activated off the injured list.
Toronto acquired Hand, a three-time All-Star with the Padres and Cleveland, from the Nationals at the trade deadline. He pitched to a 3.59 ERA with 42 strikeouts in 42 2/3 innings with Washington prior to the trade, then allowed 10 runs (seven earned) in 8 2/3 innings with the Blue Jays. Hand blew one save and took two losses in 11 games with the Blue Jays.
Although Hand's numbers were strong last season (2.05 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 22 innings), there were red flags abound. His velocity was down and the swing and miss rate on his trademark slider had declined significant. Cleveland put Hand on waivers after the season in an effort to avoid the $1 million buyout of his $10 million club option, but no team took the bait.
It was not until late January that the Nationals signed Hand to a one-year deal worth $10.5 million. Hand came out ahead financially -- he received $11.5 million total between his 2020 buyout and 2021 salary rather than the $10 million he would have received had his option been picked up -- though the lack of interest over the winter told us teams were wary of committing to him.
Players must be in the organization by 11:59 p.m. ET on Aug. 31 to be eligible for the postseason, so if another club wants Hand and wants him on their postseason roster, they must complete a trade before midnight Tuesday. Hand does not need to be on the active MLB roster to be postseason-eligible, just in the organization.
The Nationals received catcher Riley Adams in the 1 for 1 trade and the 25-year-old is 15 for 44 (.341) with two homers in 19 games with Washington. Baseball America ranked Adams the No. 18 prospect in their system earlier this month, saying "should hit enough to get to his power and is a good enough receiver to project to be the Nationals' long-term backup catcher."
Toronto comes into Tuesday with a 68-61 record and 4 1/2 games behind the second wild card spot. The Nationals are 55-75 and well out of the race. Hand was part of their trade deadline sell off, which most notably sent Max Scherzer and Trea Turner to the Dodgers.
The Blue Jays have seven days to trade, release, or place Hand on waivers now that he's been designated for assignment. As noted, he must be with a new team by 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday night to be eligible for the postseason roster.
