Blue Jays assign Espinal, Pannone and Waguespack to triple-A

Left-hander Thomas Pannone was assigned to triple-A Buffalo by the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday. Photo: USA Today Sports

March 26, 2020

By Andrew Hendriks

Canadian Baseball Network

TORONTO -- The Toronto Blue Jays completed a series of roster transactions on Thursday, optioning infielder Santiago Espinal, right-hander Jacob Waguespack and southpaw Thomas Pannone to triple-A Buffalo.

Espinal, who slashed a respectable .287/.347/.393 with 12 stolen bases across 122 games split between double-A New Hampshire and triple-A Buffalo in 2019, had a share in the team lead for most hits (10) with Lourdes Gurriel Jr. this spring. When Grapefruit League action was halted on March 13, the 25-year-old product of Santo Domingo, D.R., was also in a three-way tie with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Montreal, Que.) and Randal Grichuk for the second-most home runs (3) and runs scored (8) on the club.

After making 13 starts for the Blue Jays in 2019, Waguespack appeared in four games this spring, striking out seven batters, walking six, and not allowing an earned run across 5 1/3 innings. With Toronto's front office focused on retooling their starting rotation over the offseason (acquiring Tanner Roark, Shun Yamaguchi, Chase Anderson, and Hyun-Jun Ryu), the 6'6" righty seemed destined to open the season with the Bisons.

Having appeared in 49 games with Toronto dating back to the 2018 campaign, Pannone came into camp fighting for a spot in the Blue Jays' bullpen. Through five appearances, the former ninth-round selection (2013) allowed one run on seven hits while striking out four across five innings this spring.

Both Waguespack and Pannone come with options remaining on their contracts, and given their big-league experience over other spot-start options such as T.J. Zeuch and Anthony Kay; they are likely to see some time at the MLB level in 2020.

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