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Blue Jays – Four players to consider when rosters expand on Septmeber 1st

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The Toronto Blue Jays are just over the 75% mark of the 2024 schedule, sitting solely in fifth place in the AL East in what has been a major disappointment for the squad. The club has dealt with various injuries up and down the roster while also dealing with poor performances across the board, with notable everyday players struggling to find a rhythm on the diamond that turned Toronto from contenders to sellers as the season wore on.

Sitting 11 games back of a Wild Card spot, the Jays need a miraculous comeback with some inexperienced players to play postseason baseball this season and are more likely geared to playing spoiler over the next month and a half. With the recent trade deadline moves, the Jays are giving some more runway for rookie players or those who spent more time on the bench earlier this season to get increased reps at the big league level, with Ernie Clement, Addison Barger, Leo Jiménez, Joey Loperfido, Will Wagner, and Steward Berroa all reaping the benefits.

On September 1st, the rosters will expand to 28 players (maximum 14 pitchers), so the Jays will be able to call upon two more players from their 40-man roster to the big league squad. With the roster full at all 40 spots, should the Jays wish to promote someone who is not on the list, they will need to designate someone to make space.

Here are five players who should be on the Blue Jays radar when rosters expand.

* denotes they are not on the 40-man roster

Luis De Los Santos – INF

Infielder Luis De Los Santos has been grinding away in the Minor Leagues since 2015, signing alongside Vladimir Guerrero Jr. during the international free-agent period. For the past three seasons, De Los Santos has split the majority of his time between the double-A and triple-A squads (outside of injury rehab appearances) and has been sitting in the middle of the pack in terms of offensive stats.

The Dominican product started the season strong before landing on the injured list for almost two months, which put a bit of a speed bump into his stellar campaign. With Buffalo this season, the righty-batter owns a .281/.402/.490 slash line with five home runs and 13 RBIs to the tune of a .892 OPS through 35 games.

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He also had a short stint with the Jays back in July, collecting two hits through seven at-bats with one double and one RBI on record. If he can continue to put up solid stats in the batter’s box over the next couple of weeks, he should be high on the list of potential players to return to the big leagues.

Alan Roden – OF*

The Toronto Blue Jays have not had a bonafide outfield prospect in quite some time – Alan Roden is here to change that narrative.

Starting the season in double-A, Roden kept finding ways to put the ball in play with the Fisher Cats and earned a promotion to Buffalo on June 14th. While he struggled at first to adjust to triple-A pitchers, the lefty-batter has been swinging well since the tail end of July. Before last night’s game, Roden collected 24 hits through his last 19 games with five doubles, three home runs and a 1.078 OPS to boot – walking as much as he struck out (10 each).

With the ability to handle himself in both outfield corner spots, Roden has set himself up for a promotion when the rosters expand late next week.

Jake Bloss – RHP

The Jays have a few pitchers they could call upon when the rosters expand – Brandon Eisert, Jose Cuas, Luis Frías, and Yerry Rodriguez – to name a few. However, Toronto has a new arm down in Buffalo that will likely be given a chance to shine at the big league level sooner than later in Jake Bloss.

Acquired alongside Will Wagner and Joey Loperfido in the Yusei Kikuchi deal to Houston, Bloss had a handful of starts with the Astros due to their rotation issues and began his Blue Jays tenure with a trip to the Dunedin pitching lab before reporting to Buffalo.

Since joining the Bisons, Bloss has been impressive out of the gate – starting two games and holding opponents to four hits and two walks across 6 2/3 innings while allowing zero runs. He also has struck out five batters while holding opponents to a .167 batting average and a .211 BABip.

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Bloss should get two more starts under him before September rolls around and the Jays will likely give the right-hander a chance to pitch in the big leagues this season to see what he can do at the big league level (with the Jays) before the 2025 season rolls around.

Joey Votto – 1B/DH*

There was nothing but excitement amongst the fanbase when it was announced that veteran Joey Votto was joining the Blue Jays on a minor league deal before the start of the 2024 season.

Reporting to the minors due to the late start, Votto has been sidelined for a good chunk of the campaign due to an ankle injury he suffered in his first Spring Training game and is currently plugging away in triple-A in an attempt to make a comeback to the big leagues.

Intending to earn his way back to the show, Votto is still grinding away in Buffalo and owns a .143 average and a .489 OPS with the Bisons through 15 games as he continues to find his bat.

For Votto, the move to the big leagues would seem more ceremonial given his below-average batting stat lines but having the Canadian finish his career in a Jays uniform is the story many were hoping to see this season before the injury put him behind.

There is a chance Votto could be at the Rogers Centre when the rosters expand, both as a farewell and as a veteran presence for the younger players, but that seems less likely if his bat continues to trend in the wrong direction.