Veteran right-hander Gavin Floyd has found a home for 2016, as the Toronto Blue Jays announced they signed him to a one-year, $1 million contract.
Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish initially announced the news.
It’s likely a minor league deal, according to Max Wildstein of Scout.com.
The 12-year veteran Floyd hasn’t been a full-time starter since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2012 but has been throwing off a mound the last two weeks and appears fully healthy, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com.
Should he reach the majors, Floyd will likely be eased into a reliever role and join a bullpen that last year held hitters to a .231 batting average, third-best in the majors.
Floyd was expected to land nothing more than a minor league deal, but the interest figured to come from the Baltimore Orioles, per Kubatko.
The fourth overall pick in the 2001 draft, Floyd debuted in 2004 with the Philadelphia Phillies then was traded to the Chicago White Sox in 2006, where he burgeoned into an everyday starter from 2008-2012 before undergoing elbow surgery.
After recovering, Floyd signed with the Atlanta Braves in 2014 then with the Cleveland Indians last March. But he suffered another elbow injury that kept him out until rosters expanded in September.
In a generous seven appearances, he allowed 11 hits and four earned runs in 13.1 innings.
While he is an injury risk, bringing in Floyd at a reduced rate doesn’t present much of an opportunity cost—particularly given the Blue Jays have a slew of impending free agents to address next offseason, headlined by sluggers Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. And if the 33-year-old can rekindle some of his old form, even in the bullpen, he’ll be a cost-effective contributor.
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