The Blue Jays have announced that they’ve signed outfielder Chris Coghlan to a minor-league deal. Coghlan will report to Triple-A Buffalo.
The Phillies released Coghlan earlier this week after he reportedly declined to sign a 45-day advance consent form that would have allowed the team to cut or option him within the first 45 days of the season. He posted a .231/.319/.282 line in camp, carrying over his struggles from last season, when he batted a combined .188/.290/.318 with the Athletics and Cubs. (To be fair, Coghlan mostly just struggled in the early part of the season with the A’s, batting .252/.391/.388 in 128 plate appearances after he was traded to Chicago in June.)
The 31-year-old Coghlan is, however, just two years removed from a .250/.341/.443 season that produced a full 3.0 fWAR with the Cubs. He’s also reasonably versatile — he can play either corner outfield position, and has also played a bit at second, third and first in recent years. The Blue Jays’ plans for him are unclear, but it wouldn’t be impossible to see him eventually taking at-bats in Toronto’s left field should fellow lefty swinger Ezequiel Carrera falter.
Good AAA depth. He’s hit righties pretty decently over his career, so he’d make a better platoon partner with Upton/Carrera if he eventually gets called up. After a rough last two years though, he needs to show well for a while in Buffalo before we consider him on the Jays. Seeing his numbers pick up after being traded to Chicago in June though is encouraging. Obviously not the long-term answer we need in LF, but if used in a platoon he might could eventually make the LF situation a little better in the short-term.
Do you work for the jays?
No, but I watch them. Do you?
I don’t understand this.
“Hey Chris you made the team but can you sign this thing that says we MIGHT send you down?”
“F THIS I AM OUTTA HERE.”
“Hey Chris it’s the Blue Jays can you sign this thing that says you’ll definitely be in the minor leagues?”
“Sure thing – best decision of my life!”
If he had signed that he would’ve been the first to go if he struggled in any way and he would’ve had no control. Now he controls his future. Idk why that is hard to understand
He doesn’t control anything on a minor league deal.
How does he control his future better by playing in the minor leagues instead of MLB?
By beating out BJ Upton and Ezequiel Carrera. Not a daunting task.
But he had already beat out the guys he was competing with on the Phillies.
He’s made nearly 10M$ in his career, he views it as a lack of respect – more so than anything.
You are correct, he’d certainly been better off to be on someone’s 40 man and optioned to AAA rather than being off the 40 man and being on someone else’s AAA club.
Didn’t work in Oakland… Maybe this time around…
See you back in Chicago some time in May, Chris!
July or August.
Agreed. The issue is that a player with his amount of service time can elect to decline a demotion to the minors and become a free agent. So Philly essentially was asking him to forego a right he had earned. It also would have meant that no matter how well he had played in Philly, he was probably going to be the first guy sent down. I don’t blame Coghlan one bit.
When either Nick Williams or Roman Quinn are called up (which likely won’t take long) he’s going down to the minors. With Toronto he is in competition with two mediocre LF’s
Cogs is a good pick up. Plays lots of positions, good lefty bat off bench
Upton has been released, nothing to “beat out” there. Carrera….really? He’s never going to be more than a AAA player or platoon player. He can’t hack full time at the big league.
His competition is himself. Just get back to his old form of 2/3 years ago. The Jays need improvement in left & on first if we want to contend.