Blue Jays sign former Yankees reliever Green to 2-year contract
Posted January 31, 2023 2:08 pm.
Last Updated January 31, 2023 5:44 pm.
The Toronto Blue Jays bolstered its bullpen on Tuesday, agreeing to a two-year, $8.5 million contract with reliever Chad Green, according to Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi.
Davidi reports the contract carries options in 2025 and 2026. According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the second-year is a player option that Green can exercise if the Blue Jays decline a third-year team option. If both sides decline, the Blue Jays will get a second-year team option with a higher average annual salary.
Green, 31, is recovering from Tommy John surgery after he felt discomfort in his forearm in May of last season.
His agency, Frontline Agency Management, confirmed Green passed his physical with the club. Before the season-ending surgery, Green appeared in 14 games with the Yankees, finishing with a 3.00 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 15 innings.
Greeny is headed north of the border! ????????
Congrats @chadgreen24 on signing with the Toronto Blue Jays! pic.twitter.com/Y4fBsbBBPg
— Frontline (@FrontlineAM) January 31, 2023
The right-hander, originally a Blue Jays draft pick in 2010 but never signed, has been a valuable member of the New York Yankees’ bullpen for several years, with a career 2.79 ERA pitching as a reliever and 12 strikeouts-per-nine-inning (K/9), adding a swing-and-miss element the Blue Jays have lacked in recent campaigns.
It’s unclear when Green will be healthy enough to pitch, but timelines suggest he should make his Blue Jays debut in June or July.
He joins a suddenly crowded Toronto bullpen that is expected to consist of Jordan Romano, Erik Swanson, Yimi Garcia, Anthony Bass, Adam Cimber, Tim Mayza and Trevor Richards. Mayza is the only left-handed reliever among this group, though southpaw Yusei Kikuchi could factor in if he doesn’t crack the starting rotation.
Green is the second significant off-season addition to Toronto’s bullpen after the club acquired Swanson and pitching prospect Adam Macko from the Seattle Mariners for outfielder Teoscar Hernandez. The Blue Jays have more bullpen depth than in past years, with Zach Pop, Nate Pearson, Mitch White, Matt Gage and prospect Yosver Zulueta as options should injuries arise.
