Blue Jays activate Sparkman, send down Smith

Photo Credit: Logan Bowles, USA Today Sports

By Andrew Hendriks

Canadian Baseball Network

TORONTO - With his 30-day rehab stint now complete, RHP Glenn Sparkman will join the Blue Jays in advance of their weekend set against the Boston Red Sox on Friday.

Fellow righty Chris Smith has been optioned to triple-A Buffalo to make room for the now healthy Rule 5 pick.

"We made roster moves," said Blue Jays manager John Gibbons following his team's 2-0 loss to the Orioles on Thursday. "Smith will go down, and Sparkman will be here tomorrow."

Sparkman, 25, has pitched in seven minor-league contests since being cleared to play after sustaining a thumb fracture during spring training. With stops in Dunedin, New Hampshire, and Buffalo, the 6-foot-2 hurler pitched to an ERA of 2.25 with 12 strikeouts over 20 frames.

Looking to uncover the next Joe Biagini, Toronto selected Sparkman in the 2016 Rule 5 draft and will need to keep him on the active 25-man roster for the duration of this season should they wish to keep him within the fold beyond this call-up.

“It was clear that he was the guy that we’d like to select if he was still available,” explained Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins following December's draft. “We feel like there might be some upside to the stuff as well.”

Through 76 minor league games since being selected by the Kansas City Royals in the 20th round of the 2013 MLB draft, Sparkman has posted an overall ERA of 2.65 with 262 punchouts and a WHIP of 1.089 across 258 innings. Forty-two of those 76 appearances have come as a starter.

After making his MLB debut on Tuesday, Smith heads back to Buffalo having faced only four big league batters in a scoreless frame in the Blue Jays' 3-1 loss to the Orioles. 

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