Toronto Blue Jays Acquire Veteran Reliever in Trade With Baltimore Orioles

Seranthony Domínguez is going from one AL East club to another, joining the Toronto Blue Jays while the Baltimore Orioles take back pitching prospect Juaron Watts-Brown.
Arlington, Texas, USA; Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Seranthony Dominguez (56) comes off the field after pitching against the Texas Rangers during the seventh inning at Globe Life Field.
Arlington, Texas, USA; Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Seranthony Dominguez (56) comes off the field after pitching against the Texas Rangers during the seventh inning at Globe Life Field. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles have traded relief pitcher Seranthony Domínguez to the Toronto Blue Jays, Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith was first to report Tuesday afternoon.

The trade was publicized between games one and two of a doubleheader between the two teams at Camden Yards. Baltimore won the first two games of the series by a combined score of 27-8.

The Blue Jays are sending 23-year-old starting pitcher Juaron Watts-Brown back to Baltimore as part of the exchange. Watts-Brown was ranked as the No. 10 prospect in Toronto's farm system, behind six other pitchers.

The Orioles also sent cash considerations to the Blue Jays to cover some of the remaining portion of Domínguez's $8 million salary. The 30-year-old righty is set to hit free agency this fall.

Domínguez was 2-3 with a 3.24 ERA, 1.344 WHIP, 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings and a 0.4 WAR through 43 appearances in Baltimore this season, leading the team with 41.2 innings out of the bullpen.

Baltimore acquired Domínguez from the Philadelphia Phillies ahead of last summer's trade deadline, getting him back as part of the return for former All-Star outfielder Austin Hays.

Dating back to his time with the Phillies, Domínguez is 21-22 with a 3.54 ERA, 1.218 WHIP, 10.6 strikeouts per nine innings and a 4.4 WAR in his MLB career. He has made 217 appearances since the start of the 2022 campaign.

Beyond closer Jeff Hoffman, the Blue Jays have primarily relied on Yariel Rodríguez, Brendon Little, Chad Green, Mason Fluharty and Brayden Fisher out of the bullpen this season. Hoffman and Green were the only ones with more than two years of MLB service time, meaning Domínguez's veteran presence could be valuable as the American League playoff race continues.

There is still time for the Blue Jays and Orioles to make more moves, with the trade deadline set for 6 p.m. ET on Thursday.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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