Weekend Roster Moves: Sandlin To IL, Barnes DFA'd, Tate & Schultz Get the Call

Jacob Barnes was always the 13th pitcher for the Blue Jays, and it was kind of a surprise when he was announced to have made the Opening Day roster. However, since he was out of options, it seemed likely that he would be one of the first pitchers to be designated for assignment if the Jays needed to create 40-man space for a new arm. Barnes has always had decent stuff, with a mid-90s fastball and a high-80s cutter, but he has never been able to put it all together, bouncing around organizations throughout his 10-year career. Through six appearances with Toronto this season, he gave up nine runs (eight earned) in eight innings of work (9.00 ERA). 

On the other hand, Nick Sandlin has been a very effective set-up man for the Jays, pitching to a 2.25 ERA and a 2.78 FIP in eight innings of work, with a 27.0% K rate to a 10.8% walk rate. He has not given up a single home run. He’s been able to do this by relying on his slider and splitter, while mixing in his four-seamer and sinker to keep hitters off balance, which has resulted in a 39.2% whiff rate and a 36.3% chase rate. The side-armer will be sorely missed in the Jays bullpen, and John Schneider will need to find another reliable arm to step up in Sandlin's place while the righty is on the IL.

Dillon Tate, who re-signed with the Blue Jays late this spring after he was non-tendered by the team last fall, gets a second shot in the Jays bullpen. The former Orioles mainstay is an east-west pitcher, with his main pitch being a high-70s sweeper that gets around four inches of induced vertical break and 6.4 inches of glove side break. The pitch doesn’t have outstanding shape, but it was highly effective in Triple-A Buffalo, with a whopping 61.9% whiff rate and a low 33.3% hard-hit rate. He throws his sinker around 30% of the time, sitting around 91-92 mph on the pitch, and it has 2.7 inches of induced vertical break and 16.9 inches of arm side run. He uses that pitch to pound the zone, though its solid movement can help create chase. He also throws a changeup mostly against lefties, but it hasn’t been as effective in this limited sample. In Buffalo, he pitched to a 1.50 ERA and a 3.81 FIP with a 29.2% strikeout rate and a 4.2% walk rate. Hopefully, he’ll carry some of that success over to the big leagues. In his first appearance of the season on Sunday, he gave up two runs on three hits and a home run, but he also struck out three of the eight Mariners batters he faced.

Paxton Schultz was acquired by the Jays from the Brewers in May 2021 as the player to be named later (PTBNL) in the Derek Fisher trade, and he’s been a solid minor league arm for the Jays over the past several years. Schultz split time as a multi-inning reliever and a spot starter in Triple-A last season and this season. He pitched very solidly in 92 innings in 2024, producing a 4.11 ERA and a 4.05 FIP with a 28.4% strikeout rate to an 11.2% walk rate. This season, he looked electric in Triple-A, with a 2.08 ERA and a 3.60 FIP to go with a 27.3% strikeout rate and an improved 6.1% walk rate. Schultz is a four-pitch pitcher with an almost side-army slot. His four-seamer sits around 93-94 mph with 18 inches of ride and eight inches of run, while his cutter sits in the upper 80s with 11.6 inches of induced vertical break and 2.6 inches of glove side movement. Both pitches can generate solid chase numbers despite a lack of whiffs. He throws his mid-80s changeup mostly to lefties, and it generates solid whiff rates, although it gets tagged for hard contact when it does get hit. His mid-80s slider is mostly another look for righties, as he’s reduced the usage on it this year. Schultz will most likely be used as a long reliever to eat innings while he’s up for the Jays. Indeed, he was phenomenal in relief of Easton Lucas on Sunday, tossing 4 1/3 scoreless innings with eight strikeouts.