Blue Jays Sign Joe Smith To One Year Deal

The Blue Jays have signed right-handed reliever Joe Smith to a one-year contract, tweets Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports. Smith, 32, split time with the Angels and Cubs last season, and boasts an impressive 2.93 ERA over his career. He receives a major league contract from the Jays, and we can pencil him in for a role in the bullpen.

Smith pitched to a respectable 3.46 ERA last season, but was less impressive in terms of stats such as Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP). He gave up far more home runs than usual last season, but is usually quite good at keeping the ball in the park.

Smith uses a fastball-slider combination, and will occasionally mix in the odd change-up. Although he's never been overpowering, an unusual arm slot helps him to give hitters a different look. Righties have hit just .212 against Smith over his career, so John Gibbons could use him as a right-handed specialist.

With Smith in the fold, Toronto's bullpen looks to be just about set. Roberto Osuna, Joe Biagini, Jason Grilli, J.P. Howell, and Joe Smith are locks, and the final two spots should be decided this spring. Mark Shapiro is certainly familiar with Smith from his days in Cleveland, and will hope for a bounce-back season. At this time, the monetary value of the deal has not been reported.

Source: #BlueJays in agreement with free-agent reliever Joe Smith on one-year, major-league contract.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) February 5, 2017