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Kevin Kiermaier placed on waivers by the Blue Jays due to performance struggles
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    Kevin Kiermaier placed on waivers by the Blue Jays due to performance struggles

    The Toronto Blue Jays appear ready to move on from Kevin Kiermaier.

    Toronto placed the struggling centre-fielder on waivers Thursday, Kiermaier told Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi and Arden Zwelling following the team’s win over the San Francisco Giants.

    “It’s the chance for a contending team to claim me if they want, from what I was just told,” he said. “I totally get it with where we’re at as a team.”

    Kiermaier, 34, owns just a .522 OPS through 71 games for the Blue Jays this season, the fifth-worst mark among all hitters with at least 180 plate appearances.

    He did pick up a pair of hits Thursday and made a diving catch in centre, helping the Blue Jays win their second straight series.

    While he has played an excellent centre field once again in 2024, recording seven defensive runs saved over 470.2 innings in the outfield, Toronto is giving the rest of the league a chance to claim him.

    If he were to be claimed, the Blue Jays would not be able to pull him back.

    He will travel with Toronto to Arizona and “keep plugging away and see what happens. This is different territory for me, but I’m going to do like (John Schneider) said, ‘I envision you being with us in AZ tomorrow,’ but you never know what might happen.”

    The four-time Gold Glove winner re-signed with the Blue Jays on a one-year, $10.5 million contract in the off-season. The remaining money on his salary — around $4.5 million — would transfer to any team that would claim him.

    Kiermaier will remain on the Blue Jays 40-man roster and can continue playing with the team while on waivers. If he clears waivers, Toronto can keep him on its roster, outright him to the minors or release him.

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    Kevin Kiermaier, the talented outfielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, has recently been placed on waivers by the team due to his struggles with performance on the field. This move comes as a surprise to many fans and analysts, as Kiermaier has been a key player for the Blue Jays in recent years.

    Kiermaier, known for his exceptional defensive skills and speed on the basepaths, has been a fan favorite since joining the Blue Jays in 2019. However, his offensive production has been lacking this season, with a batting average well below his career average and a decrease in power numbers.

    The decision to place Kiermaier on waivers is likely a strategic move by the Blue Jays to free up roster space and potentially make room for a new player who can provide more consistent offensive production. While Kiermaier’s defensive abilities are still highly valued, his struggles at the plate have made him expendable in the eyes of the team’s management.

    It remains to be seen whether Kiermaier will be claimed off waivers by another team or if he will remain with the Blue Jays for the remainder of the season. Regardless of what happens, it is clear that Kiermaier’s performance struggles have put his future with the team in jeopardy.

    Fans of the Blue Jays will be watching closely to see how this situation unfolds and whether Kiermaier can bounce back from his recent struggles to regain his place as a key contributor to the team’s success. In the meantime, the team will be looking to make the most of their roster moves in order to improve their chances of making a playoff run.