Hopeful that he could make a full recovery from the shoulder capsule strain that sidelined him for the final three months of the 2016 season, Gavin Floyd signed a minor-league deal with the Toronto Blue Jays in January. The right-hander’s comeback bid never progressed to the point that he could pitch in Grapefruit League games, though, and the club has now released him, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America.
Floyd posted a 4.06 ERA with 30 strikeouts in 31 relief innings for the Blue Jays in 2016, stabilizing the team’s bullpen. But lat and shoulder issues soon surfaced for Floyd, and he didn’t pitch at the MLB level after June 25.
Floyd has been on the disabled list seven times since 2012, mostly because of elbow injuries that cost him much of the 2013-15 seasons. The 34-year-old has pitched well when healthy, with a 4.37 ERA in 1,250 career innings spanning 13 MLB seasons.
The 2017 Blue Jays weren’t counting on anything from Floyd, who was one of many pitchers in camp on a minor-league deal. Given that he didn’t pitch in any spring training games, his release doesn’t come as a surprise.
The Blue Jays opened the season with a bullpen of Joe Biagini, Jason Grilli, J.P. Howell, Dominic Leone, Aaron Loup, Joe Smith and Ryan Tepera.
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