Toronto

Blue Jays

Eisert gets booted from the active roster prior to the start of the second half of the season. The southpaw will be up-and-down throughout the 2024 campaign. A corresponding transaction will likely be announced Friday.

Yesavage was outstanding for the Pirates in 2024 with a 2.03 ERA and 145/32 K/BB over his 93 1/3 innings. The right-hander has some of the best fastball data in the class thanks to its spin and the ability to get the pitch into the high 90 mph range. On top of that he shows a plus splitter and a slider, and he’ll mix in a solid curveball to keep hitters honest. He throws all four pitches for strikes, but there is some effort to his arm action. Yesavage did battle a partially-collapsed lung, but assuming good health, he has the upside to be a frontline starter with a floor of backend arm that can still help a fantasy roster.

The two sides traded seven-run rallies in the fourth and fifth inning on Sunday, then Guerrero Jr. swung the game back in the Jays’ direction with a 438-foot (109.9 mph EV) go-ahead solo shot off of Kevin Ginkel in the seventh. He also singled and doubled in the ballgame, finishing the day 3-for-5 with a pair of runs scored. On the season, the 25-year-old slugger is now hitting .288/.359/.456 with 14 long balls and 55 RBI.

Kiermaier, who was passed through waivers unclaimed earlier in the week, capped off a seven-run rally against Zac Gallen with a 395-foot (97.4 mph EV) grand slam on a first-pitch cutter. That would be his only hit in four at-bats on the day, but it played a critical role in the Jays’ victory. On the season, the defensive specialist is slashing .189/.234/.306 with four homers and 18 RBI.

In a wild game where the Jays blew a seven-run advantage before re-taking the lead late, Green made sure there were no additional fireworks in the ninth. He did allow a two-out single to Christian Walker to put the tying run on base, but he rallied to get Corbin Carroll on a fly ball to center field to end it. The 33-year-old right-hander has been spectacular this season, posting a 2.08 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and a 24/9 K/BB ratio over 25 2/3 innings.

Kikuchi cruised into the fifth inning on Sunday with a comfortable 7-0 lead, but things got much tighter after Kikuchi allowed a single, two walks and then a one-out grand slam to Ketel Marte. Jays’ manager John Schneider stuck with him, as he allowed a walk to Gabriel Moreno and a single to Lourdes Gurriel Jr. before punching out Christian Walker for the second out. He then allowed an RBI single to Randal Grichuk and plunked Jake McCarthy before mercifully being removed — and both inherited runners went on to score. Kikuchi heads into the All-Star break with a 4-8 record, 4.42 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and a 117/26 K/BB ratio over 106 innings through his first 20 starts. He looked like a much better trade chip prior to Sunday’s disastrous fifth inning.

While the 26-year-old shortstop showed improvement over the weekend, the Jays’ thought it made more sense to keep him out of action and give him the extended rest with the All-Star break coming up. Once again, Leo Jimenez will start in his place at shortstop and he’ll bat seventh against Zac Gallen and the Diamondbacks on Sunday.

Eisert will join the Jays’ bullpen mix in the final game before the All-Star break. The 26-year-old tossed two scoreless innings in his major league debut last month.

Francis threw 40 pitches over two scoreless innings on Saturday and will be sent out for a fresh arm. Brandon Eisert will join the big club.

The Cubs have gotten very little production from the catching position, and while they do have a Top 100 prospect currently in Triple-A in Moises Ballesteros, they likely would prefer not to rely on a 21-year-old to help get the team into the postseason. The Blue Jays are going to be the subject of plenty of trade rumors over the next two-plus weeks, and Jansen — who will be a free agent at the end of the year — makes sense for anyone who needs a boost behind the plate.