The Blue Jays are bringing back Eloy Jiménez on a minor league deal, according to The Athletic’s Mitch Bannon and Ken Rosenthal.
It’s a full-circle moment after Toronto designated him for assignment earlier this season despite a .290 batting average in 12 games. He cleared waivers, elected free agency, and now he’s back where he started.
Eloy Jiménez is returning to the #BlueJays on a minor-league deal, source tells @Ken_Rosenthal and I.
He hit .290 in 12 games with the Jays earlier this year, and elected FA.
The former White Sox slugger got his shot with Toronto when George Springer hit the injured list, stepping into the DH role. But the Blue Jays moved on anyway, which seemed like an odd decision at the time given his production.
Now that Jiménez couldn’t find a better situation elsewhere, he’s betting his best path back to the majors is still through Toronto. Makes sense when you consider how much the Blue Jays’ offense has struggled this season – Springer’s been slumping along with most of the lineup.
Jiménez already knows what to expect at Triple-A Buffalo from his time there earlier this year. That familiarity probably helped seal the deal.
The Blue Jays get another power bat back in their system, even if it’s not a guarantee he’ll get promoted anytime soon. But given how things have gone offensively, they might need all the help they can get.
Whether this works out better the second time around remains to be seen. At minimum, it gives Toronto another option if their offensive struggles continue.
