The Toronto Blue Jays have traded right-handed reliever Jeff Hoffman.
Toronto continued its active trade deadline by dealing right-handed reliever Jeff Hoffman to the Minnesota Twins.
“The Minnesota Twins are acquiring reliever Jeff Hoffman in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays, sources tell ESPN,” Passan wrote on X.
Hoffman signed a three-year, $33 million deal with the Blue Jays ahead of the 2025 MLB season. He was the team’s closer and allowed a game-tying run in the bottom of the ninth in Game 7 of the World Series.
Hoffman is 6-7 with a 3.94 ERA in 51 games for the Blue Jays this season. However, he did lose the closer’s role to Louis Varland, and a fresh start after last year’s heartbreak made sense.
What Did The Blue Jays Get For Hoffman?
The Blue Jays acquired a solid package for Hoffman. According to Ben Nicholson-Smith, Toronto acquired left-handed pitcher Dasan Hill, right-handed pitcher John Klein, second baseman Dameury Pena and $250,000 in international cap space.
Hill was selected 69th overall in the 2024 MLB Draft. The 6-foot-5 right-hander is 1-8 with a 5.80 ERA in 16 starts in High-A this season. He’s the team’s seventh-ranked prospect.
Klein, meanwhile, is Minnesota’s 17th-ranked prospect and has appeared in 3 MLB games this season. The 24-year-old can pitch in the Blue Jays bullpen this season, as he’s 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA with the Twins.
Pena, meanwhile, is 20-years-old and is in High-A. The infielder is hitting .300 with 1 home run and 47 RBIs. He signed as an International Free Agent in 2023.
Hoffman Didn’t Want to be Traded
Although Toronto was clear sellers ahead of the deadline, Hoffman was hopeful to stay in Toronto.
Hoffman had pitched much better as of late, and he had another year on his contract, so he was hopeful to remain with the Blue Jays.
“I want to be here and win with this group here,” Hoffman said to Sportsnet. “I don’t think any of us in this room have given up on this year. We’ve obviously dealt with adversity through the year that’s made it hard for us to get going and stay hot. It seems like every time we win one, we have a stinker right after. That makes it tough to get on a roll and to really start feeling good about yourself. But the rest of the league is in a lull as well.
“So I think a lot of us are just staying the course and trusting what we have here and thinking that eventually we’re going to get something going. There’s no reason why we can’t do something like Boston just got done doing and win a bunch of games in a row and then all of a sudden you’re right back in the thick of it.”
This is the second time the Blue Jays have traded Hoffman. Toronto dealt him in 2015 when he was a top prospect in a package for Troy Tulowitzki and LaTroy Hawkins.
TRADE: Blue Jays Deal Jeff Hoffman to Twins