Blue Jays acquire right-hander Berrios from Twins for pair of top prospects
In need of pitching as the trade deadline approached, the Toronto Blue Jays significantly upgraded their starting rotation by acquiring right-handed Jose Berrios from the Minnesota Twins on Friday.
The two-time all-star has a 7-5 record with a 3.48 earned-run average and 126 strikeouts over 20 starts with the Twins this season.
Berrios's services did not come cheap. Toronto parted with two top prospects -- infielder Austin Martin and right-handed Simeon Woods Richardson -- to land the 27-year-old.
The six-foot, 205-pound Berrios was selected by Minnesota in the first round (32nd overall) of the 2012 first-year player draft.
He was named an American League all-star in both 2018 and 2019.
Berrios has a 55-43 record with a 4.08 ERA over six seasons.
Martin, 22, was selected by the Blue Jays fifth overall in the 2020 first-year draft. He was ranked the No. 2 prospect in the Blue Jays organization behind pitcher Nate Pearson.
Woods Richardson, 20, was 2-4 with a 5.76 ERA over 11 starts for Double-A New Hampshire this season. He was ranked the No. 4 prospect in Toronto's system.
The trade was confirmed a couple of hours before baseball's Friday afternoon trade deadline, and on the same day the Blue Jays were set to play their first game at Rogers Centre in almost two years.
The Jays had been based in the United States for the entire 2020 season and the first four months of the 2021 season due to COVID-19 restrictions at the Canada-U.S. border.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 30, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.