Blue Jays trade infielder Santiago Espinal to Reds

The Toronto Blue Jays have traded infielder Santiago Espinal of Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic to the Cincinnati Reds for minor league right handed relief pitcher Chris McElvain of Columbia, Tennessee on Wednesday according to Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors. Espinal is joining his second Major League Baseball team as he played four seasons from 2020 to 2023 with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Espinal in 2023

This past season in Toronto, Espinal batted .248 with two home runs and 25 runs batted in. During 93 games, 230 at bats and 254 plate appearances, Espinal scored 30 runs and had 57 hits, 14 doubles, two stolen bases, 18 walks, 77 total bases, two sacrifice bunts, one sacrifice fly, an on base percentage of .310 and a slugging percentage of .333. Espinal’s sacrifice fly came in a Blue Jays win. It came on August 26 in an 8-3 Blue Jays victory over the Cleveland Guardians.

All-Star in 2022

Espinal was one of six all-stars on the Toronto Blue Jays representing the American League in 2022, joining catcher Alejandro Kirk of Tijuana, Mexico, first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, outfielder George Springer of New Britain, Connecticut, starting pitcher Alek Manoah of Homestead, Florida and closer Jordan Romano of Markham, Ontario, Canada. Espinal batted .267 with seven home runs and 51 runs batted in. During 135 games, 449 at bats, and 491 plate appearances, Espinal scored 51 runs, and had 120 hits, 25 doubles, six stolen bases, 36 walks, 166 total bases, one sacrifice bunt, three sacrifice flies, an on base percentage of .322 and a slugging percentage of .370. Espinal’s sacrifice bunt came in a 5-3 Blue Jays win over the Detroit Tigers.

Versatile Defensively

Espinal can play multiple defensive positions. He has played 167 Major League Baseball games at second base, 120 games at third base, and 48 games at shortstop.

Chris McElvain

McElvain was the Reds’s eighth round pick in the 2022 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. Last season he played for the Drayton Dragons of the Midwest League (A+), and the Daytona Tortugas of the Florida State League (A Ball). McElvain had a record of five wins and five losses with an earned run average of 3.75.