The Los Angeles Angels have signed another former Toronto Blue Jay

The first breadcrumb came from Saucedo himself, who posted the news on Instagram, then it rippled onto Angels social timelines. The club has not posted an official transaction yet, so the exact terms still look pending.

Saucedo is 32, a lefty reliever originally drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 21st round back in 2015 out of Tennessee Wesleyan. He debuted in 2021 and has lived the up-and-down middle-relief life ever since.

In the majors, he owns a 4.36 ERA across 148 games and 128 innings, with 112 strikeouts. Last season in Seattle was rough, a 7.43 ERA in 13 1/3 innings, but the bigger body of work is still usable.

As a fan, I like these low-risk bullpen darts, which even the Blue Jays have done a great job of signing this off-season with pitchers like Nic Enright and Josh Winckowski.

What makes this one extra funny is the Toronto connection stacking up in Anaheim. The Angels already added former Blue Jays names like Alek Manoah and Jordan Romano, and they've been linked to Kirby Yates as well.

For Angels fans, Saucedo is the kind of arm who can soak up low-leverage innings and keep games from spiraling. If the fastball has life, he can steal outs and bridge to the late guys.

For Blue Jays fans, he's a familiar development story, a late-round find who climbed without hype and survived in the toughest job on the roster. Toronto gave him his first shot, and those reps still matter when teams scan for lefty depth.

The best version of Saucedo is simple and watchable. He pounds the zone, leans on sinkers and off-speed, and tries to turn at-bats into quick ground balls instead of long counts.

It's also fair to note he just showed a steadier stretch in 2024, when he ran a 3.49 ERA over 53 appearances and 38 2/3 innings. That's the recent track record the Angels are betting is still in there.

If this deal ends up being a minor-league look, the whole story becomes spring competition and usage. Either way, the next milestone is simple, see what he looks like once camp games start and the radar guns come out.

Source: MLB
Halos agree to deal with lefty reliever Saucedo (report)