Robbie Ray Re-Signs With the Toronto Blue Jays

The first major league signing of the offseason has taken place with left-handed pitcher, Robbie Ray, re-signing with the Toronto Blue Jays for a 1 year, 8 million dollar contract.

Ray was traded to the Blue Jays from the Arizona Diamondbacks during the 2020 trade deadline in exchange for pitching prospect, Travis Bergen, after having been on the trade block for nearly all of his career.

Ray found his stride with the Diamondbacks where he had the best years of his career including 2017 when he finished 7th in the Cy Young voting. Ray had some struggles with Toronto, going 1-1 in 4 starts with a 4.79 ERA in the 20.2 innings he pitched. Ray’s biggest issue in 2020 was his lack of control. Although he saw an increase in pitch velocity, he was giving up a lot of walks to batters. During his tenure with Arizona for the first half of 2020, Ray led all of baseball with 31 walks. Ray had also given up 27 runs in 31 innings and was averaging nearly 8 runs given up per game.

Ray was able to improve during his brief time in Toronto and will look to return to his past form. Ray adds to a rotation full of potential with Hyun-Jin Ryu, Tanner Roark, and top prospect, Nate Pearson. The Blue Jays finished in third place in the AL East and were swept in the wild card round of the playoffs by the Tampa Bay Rays.