Blue Jays designate Simeon Woods Richardson for assignment, recall Adam Macko

What happened

The Toronto Blue Jays announced the designation for assignment of right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson and the corresponding recall of left-hander Adam Macko, per MLB Trade Rumors. The move drops Toronto's 40-man roster to 39, though the club reportedly plans to select infielder Sean Keys as soon as tomorrow — meaning that open slot may have a very short shelf life.

Under general league rules, a player who has been designated for assignment must be traded, released, or placed on outright waivers within seven days. Woods Richardson, who is 25, now enters that window.

Why it matters

This is the second time in a matter of weeks that Woods Richardson has found himself in DFA territory. Minnesota designated him for assignment earlier this month, and Toronto subsequently acquired him — a transaction that carried a certain sentimental geometry, given that he was originally a Blue Jays prospect. Toronto selected him from the Mets in the 2019 Marcus Stroman trade, then sent him to Minnesota as part of the 2021 José Berríos deal. He spent his developmental years in the Twins organization, never quite breaking through as a rotation piece, exhausted his options, and eventually found himself squeezed back toward the club where his professional story began.

The Jays deployed him in long relief, and on the surface the results were striking: ten scoreless innings across three outings. That kind of line tends to generate goodwill in any bullpen conversation. Per MLB Trade Rumors, however, the underlying picture was more complicated — the reporting flags concerns beyond the raw zeros without detailing them further. The club has now moved on regardless, making this a brief Toronto homecoming that ends the same way it began: with a DFA.

For Macko, the recall is the headline on the other side of the ledger. The left-hander returns to the active roster as Toronto looks to reshape its pitching staff heading into a weekend series.

The Woods Richardson arc

It is worth pausing on the particular shape of this career trajectory, because it touches three franchises and two trades that Blue Jays fans remember well. Woods Richardson arrived in Toronto via the Mets in the 2019 Marcus Stroman deal, was considered a prospect of note at the time, and was then included in the package that brought José Berríos from Minnesota in 2021. He developed — or tried to — in the Twins system, never fully establishing himself as a viable rotation candidate. When Minnesota designated him for assignment earlier this month, Toronto brought him back, per MLB Trade Rumors, in what the outlet described as something of a homecoming.

The Jays used him in long relief. Ten scoreless innings over three outings is the kind of number that makes a front office pause before making another move. And yet here we are. MLB Trade Rumors notes that his surface-level results were great but indicates the fuller picture was more complicated. The specific nature of those complications is not detailed in the reporting, but the outcome is clear enough: a second DFA in the span of a few weeks, this time from the organization that originally drafted him into professional relevance.

The numbers

The only statistical footprint Woods Richardson accumulated in Toronto, per the reporting, is ten scoreless innings across three outings — a surface line that makes the move look stranger the longer you stare at it. MLB Trade Rumors acknowledges the tension directly, noting the results were strong at face value while flagging that the underlying picture told a different story.

On the organizational side, the Blue Jays carry a record of 79-83 (.488) into this weekend. That number shapes the context for every roster decision being made right now in ways that a contending club's decisions simply are not shaped.

Where the club stands

Toronto is 79-83 (.488), sitting fifth in the AL East, 19 games back in the division, and eliminated from both the division race and the Wild Card race. Their Wild Card ranking sits at 6, with a 5.0 gap relative to the cut line. They carry a one-game winning streak into the weekend.

The upcoming schedule brings the Texas Rangers to Rogers Centre for three games. On Friday, Patrick Corbin is the probable starter for Toronto against Nathan Eovaldi. Saturday has Dylan Cease lined up opposite Cal Quantrill. Sunday closes the series with Shane Bieber facing Kumar Rocker.

With the club already eliminated from postseason contention, the roster decisions being made now are less about October positioning and more about evaluating what the organization has — and what it doesn't. A DFA of a pitcher who just threw ten scoreless innings, followed by a recall and a reportedly imminent selection of an infielder, reads as a front office actively sorting through its inventory rather than standing pat.

What we don't know yet

MLB Trade Rumors notes that Woods Richardson's surface numbers were strong but flags that the fuller picture was more complicated — the specific nature of those concerns is not detailed in the reporting. Whether he clears waivers, draws a trade claim, or is released within the seven-day window is unknown. Given that he was claimed from Minnesota just weeks ago, there is at least some demonstrated market interest in him, and another club could put in a claim.

The Sean Keys selection is described as reportedly planned for tomorrow, but it has not been announced as of this report. That move, if it happens, would bring the 40-man roster back to 40.

Adam Macko's role with the active club — starter, reliever, long man — is not specified in the reporting.

What to watch

The seven-day DFA clock on Woods Richardson is the most immediate item on the ledger. If he clears waivers, Toronto would face the choice of an outright assignment or a release. If he doesn't, a third organization enters the picture.

The reportedly imminent selection of Sean Keys is worth monitoring as a separate transaction — it would represent a 40-man addition and carry its own roster implications, though the details of that move remain unannounced as of this report.

Beyond the immediate paperwork, Macko's usage over the Rangers series will offer the first look at how the Blue Jays intend to deploy him in this stretch of the season. With Cease, Bieber, and Corbin all scheduled to pitch this weekend, the bullpen picture around those starters — and where a freshly recalled left-hander fits into it — is the operational question that follows naturally from Thursday's announcement.

For a club playing out the string at 79-83, none of this reshapes a pennant race. But the Blue Jays are still playing baseball, still making decisions, and still, apparently, finding new ways to bring Simeon Woods Richardson back into the conversation — even if only briefly.