Blue Jays sign free agent All-Star, immediately add him to spring training roster

The Toronto Blue Jays liked Joe Mantiply enough that they acquired the former All-Star reliever in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks at last year’s deadline.

They ultimately had better options for their October bullpen. Toronto clinched the American League pennant and took the Los Angeles Dodgers to the brink of defeat in Game 7 of the World Series without Mantiply. The left-hander lingered on the free agent market until this week.

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The Blue Jays liked Mantiply enough to bring him back on a minor league contract. He received an invitation to the Jays’ MLB spring training camp, per a team announcement.

Mantiply is 11-13 with a 4.54 ERA in parts of eight major league seasons with the Detroit Tigers (2016), New York Yankees (2019), and Arizona Diamondbacks (2020-25). He has three career saves, but none since 2024.

Last year, Mantiply pitched exclusively at Triple-A Buffalo after being traded from Arizona to Toronto. He was 0-1 with a 15.83 ERA in 10 major league games with the Dbacks prior to the trade. He was 2-1 with a 3.45 ERA for the Blue Jays’ top farm team.

Now he’ll get a chance to get back to the big leagues with the defending pennant winners.

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