The Toronto Blue Jays made it clear that they were not afraid to shuffle a World Series roster shortly after their season ended last year.
In the wake of their disappointing Fall Classic loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Blue Jays added several players, including Dylan Cease, Kazuma Okamoto, Tyler Rogers and Cody Ponce. And they said goodbye to long-term shortstop Bo Bichette, among other changes
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But the Blue Jays’ roster did not last very long into the season as first constructed. Within the first dozen games, the team has seen several key players go down with significant injuries, and the pitching staff has been particularly hard hit.
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On Monday, in a rematch against the Dodgers, starter Max Scherzer was pulled after just two innings in a development the team could hardly afford.
“Something seemed to bother him in both innings, as cameras caught him telling the Blue Jays dugout, ‘I’m OK’ on multiple occasions,” Gabe Lacques wrote for USA Today. “Just two weeks into the season, Jose Berrios, Trey Yesavage, Shane Bieber, Cody Ponce and Bowden Francis are all on the injured list, most of them coming back from off-season maladies or out for extended periods.”
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Following the game, Scherzer indicated that he’d be able to make his next start. But after removing him, the Blue Jays had to insert veteran Josh Fleming, who had been called up to the big-league roster earlier that day.
Fleming gave up four earned runs in three innings against the Dodgers, giving him a 12.00 ERA in a brutal season debut, and then he was subsequently designated for assignment so the Blue Jays could make room for replacement starter Patrick Corbin.
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Now, after clearing waivers, Fleming has elected free agency rather than accept a minor-league assignment, per Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.
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Fleming will now assess any potential contract offers that await him, but he might return to the Blue Jays in a minor-league role if nothing more enticing comes up.
Despite his rough outing against the Dodgers as Scherzer’s replacement, he has had some success in the major leagues. In 2024, he maintained a 4.02 ERA in 25 total games for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
“Fleming has thrown 257 2/3 innings in 81 games, including 25 starts,” Darragh McDonald wrote for MLB Trade Rumors. “He has a 4.86 ERA, 14.4% strikeout rate, 7.6% walk rate and 58.5% ground ball rate.”
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
