Earlier in the week, the Toronto Blue Jays added pitchers Brady Dragmire and Blake McFarland to their 40-man roster to protect them ahead of the Rule 5 Draft on December 10th. With 35 names then on the 40-man, it seemed the Blue Jays would slide one or two more minor leaguers up the ladder ahead of Friday’s deadline. That wasn’t the case, and it’s left Dwight Smith Jr., Andy Burns and several others exposed.
The lefty-hitting Smith Jr., who spent the 2015 campaign with the AA New Hampshire FisherCats, is close enough to being MLB-ready that his athleticism could appeal him to a team in need of depth outfielders.