Valenzuela Blue Jays weigh Brandon Valenzuela after Kirk return

The valenzuela blue jays left Tropicana Field with a sweep and a roster question. Brandon Valenzuela has 3 home runs in 50 at-bats, and that run at the plate has made him the easier catcher to keep around while Alejandro Kirk works back from a fractured thumb.

Toronto scored four runs in the three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays and fell to 16-21, tied for last place in the AL East with the Boston Red Sox. That puts the catching picture under a brighter spotlight, because Kirk could return by the end of the month and the club will have to decide who stays active.

Brandon Valenzuela Toronto

Valenzuela has options, which gives the Blue Jays roster flexibility when Kirk is ready. He has also played elite defense behind the plate, and that combination is why he is the easy demotion candidate once Toronto needs to trim the group.

Tyler Heineman is the pressure point in the middle of that decision. He was hitting.170/.214/.170 in 21 games this season, with a wRC+ of 9, no extra-base hits in 59 plate appearances, two RBI and two pitching appearances.

Tyler Heineman Blue Jays

If Heineman does not start hitting, Toronto may keep Valenzuela as the backup catcher when Kirk returns. That would leave Heineman as the most likely candidate to be traded or designated for assignment, while Valenzuela stays in place because his bat has given the club more in limited time.

The Blue Jays were swept this week and have not played like a team set on standing pat, even if it is too early to label them deadline sellers. Kirk’s return and Valenzuela’s production now sit on the same line, and Toronto will have to decide whether the catching pair changes before the trade deadline arrives in early August.