WEDNESDAY: The Blue Jays have officially announced the signing. Wolf will be in minor-league camp.
MONDAY: The Blue Jays have agreed to a minor league deal with veteran lefty Randy Wolf, according to Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register (via Twitter), who cites big league umpire Jim Wolf (Randy’s brother) as the source of the news. Wolf showcased for the Jays recently, as Gideon Turk of BlueJaysPlus.com tweeted. Wolf would earn $800K on the big league roster and can opt out on June 1, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets.
Wolf, 38, tossed 25 2/3 innings last year for the Marlins, posting a 5.26 ERA with 6.7 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9. He also spent time in the Diamondbacks, Angels, and Orioles systems. Before all that happened, he turned down a chance to open the year as a member of the Mariners rotation because he refused to sign an advance-consent form late in the spring. (MLBTR’s Zach Links reported on the details of that situation here.)
For Toronto, the 15-year major leaguer represents another depth piece, joining Johan Santana and Jeff Francis as veteran southpaw options. One or more members of that grouping could conceivably provide some versatility at the MLB level by operating as a longman, LOOGY, and/or spot starter. With Marcus Stroman out for the year, the club is obviously looking to ensure it has arms lined up to last the season.