On January 23, the Blue Jays confirmed a list of 16 players coming to camp as non-roster invites. Among the group are a former Gold Glove winner and several prospects acquired last summer, including infielder Charles McAdoo.
Several of Toronto’s top prospects are already on the 40-man roster. Thus, none of the “big” names are among the non-roster invites. Arguably the two best pitchers in their farm system, Trey Yesavage and Ricky Tiedemann (UCL reconstruction surgery) won’t be in big league camp, either.
Infielder Charles McAdoo will be, however, and is arguably the best prospect among the group of 16 players. McAdoo showcased significant pop last year in the Minors, cracking 17 home runs and 50 extra-base hits last season between High-A and Double-A.
Toronto acquired McAdoo from the Pirates in the Isiah Kiner-Falefa trade.
Aside from McAdoo, several other midseason pickups from 2024 will also be in camp. Infielder Eddinson Paulino, acquired in the Danny Jansen trade, was invited. Paulino only played 79 games last season, mostly in Double-A.
Catcher Jacob Sharp, acquired in the Yimi Garcia, was also an invitee.
Former third-round pick Alan Roden will also be in big league camp. The ex-Creighton star has done nothing but hit over the last two seasons, much like what he did in the Big East. Last year, the Blue Jays outfielder slashed .293/.391/.475 (.866) with 16 home runs and 14 stolen bases.
Roden hit .314 (.916 OPS) over 71 games with Buffalo (AAA) last year.
Additionally, the Blue Jays invited prospects Hayden Juenger, Riley Tirotta, RJ Schreck, Braydon Fisher, Rainer Nunez, Josh Kasevich, Phil Clarke, Lazaro Estrada, Mason Fluharty, Andres Sosa, and Ryan Jennings.
However, arguably the most notable name among the non-roster invites is Myles Straw. Straw was acquired in a salary dump last week from the Guardians, in the Blue Jays’ last-ditch effort to acquire Roki Sasaki. The ex-Guardian outfielder is not on the Jays’ 40-man roster.
Straw is a former Gold Glove winner with plus speed and defensive prowess in the outfielder. However, the new Blue Jay didn’t hit with Cleveland, posting sub-.600 OPS numbers from 2022-24.
The Blue Jays will brunt the rest of Straw’s five-year, $25MM deal, signed in 2022. Straw has two years left, plus two club options that will likely be turned down. Cleveland will eat $1MM in 2025 and 2026. However, Straw will still be owed approximately $11MM in cash, per Spotrac.
Toronto joins the likes of the Nationals and Athletics, as teams that’ve announced their Spring Training invites with days before the start of camp.