The Toronto Blue Jays missed out on Juan Soto this winter and Shohei Ohtani last offseason. However, they could still land a two-way star this offseason, even if he’s not quite Ohtani.
FanSided’s Edward Eng urged the team to sign Kansas City Royals pitcher Michael Lorenzen. His agent, Ryan Hamill, is trying to make his ability at the plate a selling point in his free agency, hoping to make him a two-way player, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.
“Hamill, according to sources briefed on his conversations, is talking with (non-contenders) about signing Lorenzen, getting him the necessary plate appearances to qualify for two-way status and then flipping him to a contender that would benefit from carrying him as a 14th pitcher,” wrote Rosenthal.
The rule is that a team has a 13-pitcher limit on their roster. However, players who qualify for two-way status, pitching at least 20 innings and playing 20 games as a position player or DH, with at least three plate appearances in each game, do not count as one of the 13 players. The Blue Jays might be wise to wait for Lorenzen to sign and reach two-way status then trade for him. However, the evidence for his ability at the plate is already there.
In seven seasons with the Cincinnati Reds, he had a .233 batting average with a .282 OBP. While his numbers are nowhere near those of Ohtani. However, his sample size is limited to just 147 plate appearances, consistent time at the dish could improve his stats. The signing would be low-risk as at the least, the Blue Jays would be getting a solid pitcher.
He had a 3.81 ERA last season but in six starts after joining the Royals he had a 1.57 ERA with 22 strikeouts. Spotrac projects him to sign a two-year, $15 million deal in free agency.