Blue Jays sign former Angels infielder to a minor league contract
The Toronto Blue Jays are in agreement on a minor league deal with former Angels infielder Michael Stefanic.
Stefanic's agent Nate Heisler of Klutch Sports relayed the news on X.
Stefanic himself took to to instagram to thank the Angels, their fans for his time with the team and showed his enthusiasm about his new club.
« I'm incredibly excited to say that I am signing with the Toronto Blue Jays!
As I begin this next chapter, I couldn't be more excited to compete for the Blue Jays organization. I'm ready to give it my all and look forward to what's ahead!»
Baseball America ranked Stefanic the #22 prospect in the Angels' system going into 2022 and he went on to make his major league debut that year.
Stefanic spent his entire professional career in the Los Angeles Angels' organization, until he was removed from their 40-man roster in October and granted free agency in November.
He made his MLB debut in 2022 and proceeded to appear in 90 games over the next three seasons.
He has been sent to the plate 264 times over the past three big league seasons, walking in 8.7% of those while striking out just 15.2% of the time.
But he hasn't yet hit a home run, leading to a fairly empty slash line of .232/.317/.275 and 72 wRC+.
He's found success in Triple-A in the past, as he slashed .334/.408/.505 with 16 home runs in 458 plate appearances in 2021 for a 130 wRC+ in 2021.
His best Triple-A season was in 2023, where he slashed .365/463/.467 with five home runs in 455 plate appearances for a 139 wRC+.
It remains to be seen if Stefanic will have a real shot at earning an MLB roster spot in Toronto, or if he was just brought in to provide organizational depth.
Will Wagner, Davis Schneider and Leo Jiménez are slated to split time at second base, while Ernie Clement is in line to return as the Blue Jays' everyday third baseman.
Top prospect Orelvis Mart�nez could also get time at second and third now that his PED suspension has run its course.
