Lopez added to Blue Jays' 40-man roster
November 20, 2020
Official Toronto Blue Jays News Release
The Toronto Blue Jays announce the following players have been selected to the Major League roster:
-C Riley Adams from Double-A New Hampshire
-INF Otto Lopez from Class-A Lansing
-C Gabriel Moreno from Class-A Lansing
-OF Josh Palacios from Triple-A Buffalo
-RHP Ty Tice from Double-A New Hampshire
Toronto’s 40-man roster now stands at 40.
Adams, 24, was selected by the Blue Jays in the third round of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft. The native of Encinitas, Calif., batted .273 during Spring Training and spent the 2020 season at the club’s alternate training site. Over the course of three Minor League seasons, the 6-foo-4, 235-pound catcher has hit .265 with 60 doubles, four triples, 21 home runs, and 129 RBI while throwing out 39.2% of attempted stolen bases.
Lopez, 22, who played his first organized baseball in Montreal, Que., took part in three games during Spring Training where he recorded a pair of doubles in six at-bats. The 5-foot-10, 160-pound right-handed batter spent his 2019 campaign with class-A Lansing and slashed .324/.371/.425 across 108 contests while stealing 20 bases. The Dominican infielder signed with Toronto as an international free agent in 2016 and holds a .310 batting average with 61 extra-base hits over three minor league seasons.
Moreno, 20, spent the 2020 season at Toronto’s alternate training site in Rochester, N.Y. The catcher from Barquisimeto, Venezuela, signed with the Blue Jays in 2016 and batted .280 with an .823 OPS for class-A Lansing in 2019. The 5-foot-11, 160-pound right-handed hitter boasts a .294 batting average with 38 doubles, eight triples, 16 home runs, and 105 RBI while posting a 34.4% caught-stealing rate over the course of 154 Minor League games.
Palacios, 25, was selected by the Blue Jays in the fourth round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft. The Auburn University product played in 13 Spring Training games and spent his summer at the club’s alternate training site. The outfielder from Brooklyn hit .266 with double-A New Hampshire in 2019 and has posted a .288/.366/.403 line while recording 79 doubles, 13 triples, 17 home runs, and 173 RBI over four Minor League campaigns.
Tice, 24, posted a 3.86 ERA in five games during Spring Training and spent the summer at the club’s alternate training site in Rochester, N.Y. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound right-handed reliever split the 2019 season between double-A New Hampshire and triple-A Buffalo, combining for a 2.34 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. The University of Central Arkansas product was selected by Toronto in the 16th round of the of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft and has gone 11-12 with a 2.09 ERA across 113 Minor League appearances.