TORONTO – A cardboard box, some cleats and a few dry-cleaned shirts were all that remained at Jason Grilli’s stall in the Toronto Blue Jays’ locker-room Tuesday afternoon.
The veteran reliever’s nameplate had been removed, replaced with a scribbled message that read “Stay in the fight!!!!”
The Blue Jays will continue their battle to get back to the playoffs without Grilli, who played a key role in Toronto’s run to the final four last year but struggled mightily this season.
He was designated for assignment before Toronto’s night game against the Baltimore Orioles, ending his 13-month run with the team.
“This will hopefully give him a fresh start somewhere else,” said Blue Jays manager John Gibbons. “Maybe he’ll go somewhere and do for somebody what he did for us last year.
“He really saved us last year.”
The Blue Jays acquired the six-foot-five right-hander in May 2016 from the Atlanta Braves and he took advantage of his opportunity. Grilli was effective in high-leverage situations and took over the setup role ahead of closer Roberto Osuna.
But the 40-year-old couldn’t duplicate that success this season. Ryan Tepera and Joe Smith were more effective bridging the gap to Osuna and Grilli essentially became a pitcher without a role.
When he did make high-leverage appearances in 2017, the results were often shaky. The final straw was likely a blown save last Friday in Kansas City, when Grilli gave up a two-run walkoff double to the lone batter he faced.
Grilli was 2-4 with a 6.97 earned-run average in 26 appearances this season. Last season, he had a 6-4 mark with the Blue Jays and a 3.64 ERA.
Opposing players were hitting at a .279 clip off him this season, well up from a .206 average in 2016. Grilli allowed eight homers over 42 innings in Toronto last year but gave up nine dingers in just 20 2/3 frames this year.
Gibbons said Grilli told him he understood the team’s decision.
“He said it wasn’t his first time,” Gibbons said. “But Grilli has done a lot for us. He’s one of the good guys and that always makes it doubly tough. But he plans to keep going. Maybe somebody will grab him.
“We’ll see what happens. But those kind (of moves) are always tough. Extra tough.”
The Blue Jays picked up the US$3-million option on Grilli’s contract in the off-season. Grilli wasn’t available for comment Tuesday but he did weigh in on Twitter.
“It’s only been about a year but there were so many incredible memories made in and with #Toronto,” he said in a tweet capped with a blue heart emoji.
A fan favourite, Grilli was a firebrand on the mound.
He entered home games with the guitar-loaded chunk of Pearl Jam’s “Whipping” blasting throughout Rogers Centre and that energy would carry over into his appearances. Grilli revelled in the charged atmosphere and emphatic fist pumps were the norm when he got the job done.
The Blue Jays were the ninth big-league team for the native of Royal Oak, Mich., who made his big-league debut with the Florida Marlins in 2000.
Grilli also had a long-standing connection to Toronto.
His father, Steve, played for the Blue Jays’ former triple-A affiliate in Syracuse and made one appearance for Toronto in 1979. They would make road trips from New York state to the Ontario capital in the early 1990s to watch the Blue Jays in their World Series glory days.
In addition to the Grilli move, the Blue Jays optioned outfielder Dwight Smith Jr. to triple-A Buffalo, recalled right-hander Chris Smith and reinstated outfielder Ezequiel Carrera from the disabled list.
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