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According to BlueJays.com, the team has re-acquired right-handed reliever Trystan Magnuson from the Oakland Athletics for cash considerations.
 
Vancouver native Trystan Magnuson made his major league debut with the A's in 2011.

The Jays drafted Trystan Magnuson with the 56th pick of the 2007 amateur draft out of the University of Louisville.  The nephew of late Chicago Blackhawks defenceman Keith Magnuson, the 6-foot-7 210 pound righty endured a rough introduction to the minor leagues as he went 0-9 with a 5.40 earned run average with Lansing in 2008.  Things went much smoother in 2009.  Magnuson split the season in Dunedin and New Hampshire, going 4-1 with a 2.77 ERA with the D-Jays before adding ten more shutout innings and recording a win with New Hampshire.  In 2010, Magnuson remained undefeated in Double-A by posting a 4-0 record and a 2.58 ERA to go with five saves and a career low WHIP of 1.091.  However, Magnuson was dealt to Oakland with fellow reliever Danny Farquhar for outfielder Rajai Davis on November 7.  Fast forward nearly a year later, both Magnuson and Farquhar are back in the Blue Jays nest.

In 2011, Magnuson was called up to Oakland in May and made his big league debut on the 17th against the Los Angeles Angels.  He came into the game in the ninth with the A's clinging to a 14-0 lead.  He received a rude greeting from Angels catcher Jeff Mathis who singled on the first pitch Manguson threw.  However, the tall righty managed to overcome that hiccup by retiring the next three hitters, striking out Hank Conger to end the game.  Unfortunately, Magnuson was cuffed around for six runs in two innings by the Twins two days later.  His next appearance with Oakland did not come until June 30 but it was his best one as he spun 3 1/3 shutout innings against the Florida Marlins.  The Vancouver native did get to pitch on Canadian soil August 10 at the Dome in which he gave up a run on two hits courtesy of a Jose Bautista single and an Edwin Encarnacion RBI double.  He did record an inning-ending strikeout of Aaron Hill.

FanGraphs shows Magnuson relied mostly on a fastball-cutter combination with the A's along with a slider and an occasional changeup.  His fastball was around 92 MPH, his cutter clocked in at 87 and his slider was about 84.

Magnuson was 0-0 with a 6.14 ERA over nine appearances with Oakland.  He pitched 14 2/3 innings with a 11-5 K/BB total and a WHIP of 1.36.  At Triple-A Sacramento, Magnuson was 4-2 with a 2.98 ERA and five saves.  He struck out 46 batters in 45 1/3 innings to go along with a respectable WHIP of 1.169.  The 26 year-old hopes he can avoid another tour of duty in the Pacific Coast League in 2012 as he will try to be a piece of the puzzle called the Blue Jays bullpen in 2012.

Jays Try Again With Trystan Magnuson | 14 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.
Denoit - Friday, November 04 2011 @ 03:46 PM EDT (#246416) #
Low risk move, he can't be any worse than Jon Rauch can he?
TamRa - Friday, November 04 2011 @ 10:35 PM EDT (#246424) #
Take out that one bad outing v. the Twins and he had a 2.86 ERA over the rest of his appearances. I'm not sure where he stands in competition with guys like Beck (who hadn't been touched in the AFL last I checked) or Farquhar but he didn't embarrass himself.


Richard S.S. - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 05:33 AM EDT (#246426) #

His numbers in AAA are very promising, better than most Las Vegas pitchers, which is where he is needed.  If he can maintain those numbers?   He'll be called up.

 

Richard S.S. - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 09:26 AM EDT (#246428) #
TamRa - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 01:45 PM EDT (#246432) #
well he went right on the 40 man roster. I don't know if he (and Chavez for that matter) will be outrighted later when teams are setting their roster for the Rule 5 (I tend to suspect so) but yeah, the Vegas roster was pretty stripped down by free agency.

On the other hand, that was more the hitters than the pitchers. Without factoring in any promotions from AA, and going by the end of season roster, there are nine guys which project to fit the AAA roster (8 if you count on Drabek breaking with the Jays or NH)

Whereas among hitters, assuming Snider is with the Jays, there's just three guys - although I'm guessing they re-signed Howard with an idea towards him playing 3B in Vegas.

Looking over that list of free agents, it's a remarkably uninspiring bunch.

I could see trying to bring back Davies and Gaudin (who presumably will try to find jobs in the IL); Brandon Wood and Matt Antonelli are "name" guys for 3B though no one sane still holds much hope for Wood; You could pick up Josh Barfield for 2B in AAA just for the feel good vibe, or Kevin Frandsen for a guy with major league experience. Presumably they would be interested in bringing Nix back. Bringing Loewen back is something they will certainly do if he doesn't get a better path to the majors and it's not inconcievable they bring Lubanski back.

I wonder if they will bring Lane back and let him try pitching more seriously? that seems a shakey thing to try in Vegas and he's awfully old to drop down a couple of levels.

There's a kid who's listed as a major league free agent named Drew Sutton that came up through the Red sox system who had good minor league numbers and might be a good choice for 2B.

I wonder if Chavez (or Buddie) will return as the veteran option in Vegas, or if they will go with d'Arnaud/Jeroloman (given the latter is destined to be a backup anyway)

there's also Kevin Cash floating around out there for nostalgia's sake - and Robinson Diaz!

I could see re-signing Carlson, easy, if he doesn't get a better offer. Probably Henn too who did fine work for the 51's; Bring back Purcey? Eh, on a minor league deal why not? then you will have everything back that you gave up for Davis, lol.

Chacin? Nope, I don't think so. Ryan Roland-Smith might be an okay get. or Garret Olson.

Other guys who are major league free agents that you might well get on minor league deals that might fit what you'd want to fill in Vegas:

Dontrelle Willis (has looked done for years, but pitched well enough in AAA - if he could ever get his control back)
Jeremy Accardo (I know, right?)
Dave Bush (more nostalgia!)
Felix Pie
Wily Mo Pena!
Andy LaRoche
Jorge Cantu
greenfrog - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 02:18 PM EDT (#246435) #
A second tryst with Trystan?
cybercavalier - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 05:03 PM EDT (#246437) #
Re TamRa:

how about more Canadians to minor league deals:

C Max. St. Pierre and/or C Cole Armstrong to replace Ryan Budde. 1B Scott Thurman to replace Ryan Shealy. 3B Shawn Bowman to play 3B. On pitching, how about Shawn Hill ?

Was your whole comment supposed to show sarcasm ?

greenfrog - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 06:03 PM EDT (#246439) #
AFL Rising Stars Game is on mlb.tv and MLB Network tonight (8:10 pm) ET, if anyone is interested, per BA. Gose and Etheridge are on one of the rosters.
TamRa - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 07:43 PM EDT (#246440) #
"Was your whole comment supposed to show sarcasm ?"

No, just rambling. if there was a point it was only that there were darned slim pickings in that crop, but how good do the have to be to fill out minor league rosters anyway?

I actually wouldn't be shocked to see Bowman back, since they had him before.
MrPurple - Saturday, November 05 2011 @ 11:33 PM EDT (#246443) #
How about Bobby Kielty!
Richard S.S. - Sunday, November 06 2011 @ 09:45 AM EST (#246447) #
Checking Trystan's stats, I can see why A.A. reacquired him.   He's made good and consistent progress since drafted.   Chances are good he's going to be considered for the 2012 Bullpen.   After his taste of the Majors, our Coaching Staff and all the right stuff, he just might make it.  Or be a good trade piece, again.
John Northey - Sunday, November 06 2011 @ 10:00 AM EST (#246448) #
Good minor league free agent signings can help a lot with depth for the Jays in 2012. These guys may not account for a lot, but can add or subtract 1 or 2 games in the standings easily. Especially the pitchers who could win a bullpen slot (it has happened before) or guys in a position where depth doesn't exist (middle infield).

Trystan is a good guy for AAA. I suspect the Jays will be looking for another backup catcher or two who could become a surprise as a solid backup. Of course, some key pieces could even show up in spring. Gregg Zaun, for example, was released by the Expos in spring 2004 then came over here and had a 96 OPS+ over 392 PA (1.4 WAR) and would stick here for a total of 5 solid seasons. John Buck came here as a free agent and was paid the least of his arbitration/free agent years. Molina took a massive pay cut (from over $2 mil to sub-$1 mil) to come here. The Jays have done well with catchers recently from the scrap heap and I suspect will do so again this winter to help JPA.

Pitchers are a tough group. I suspect we'll see quite a few signed after the Rule 5 draft (December 8th iirc) to AAA deals then see a lot released during the spring as the Jays see what they have. Kind of like taking a bowl of spaghetti and throwing it onto the wall to see what sticks.

Interesting names...
Nick Johnson: was in AA/AAA last year, hit 201/326/328 over 225 PA at age 32. I'd say he is done even though in 4 of his last 5 ML seasons he had a 120+ OPS+.

Billy Buckner, not related to Bill: RHP 2nd round pick in 2004, ERA over 6 each of the past 2 years in AAA - done like dinner.

Jorge Cantu: once a promising middle infielder, now hit 778 OPS in AAA Colorado Springs (think Vegas for translation) while at 1B/3B/DH. Done.

David Purcey: we all remember him, now a minor league free agent. Ouch.

Scott Thorman: iirc first Canadian drafted in the first round, went to the same high school as me (but many years later than me). 70 OPS+ in majors at 1B, just a 663 OPS in AAA last year. Sigh.

J.R. Towles: Once looked like the catcher of the future for the Astros with a killer bat (OPS of 936 in A, 954 in AA, 831 in AAA) has hit just for a 57 OPS+ in the majors, never getting 200 PA in any season. Lots of injury issues, entering age 28 season - worth a flier as he still hits well in AAA when healthy.

Koby Clemens: yes, son of Roger. 1B with a 756 OPS in AAA, 816 in AA. Entering age 25 season.

Bear Bay: love the name. 2.4 BB/9 lifetime in minors, 7.4 K/9. 3 years in Winnipeg before signing with the Angels last year, gave up a 5.19 ERA in the PCL with 2.3 BB/9 and 5.4 K/9. Doubt there is anything there but the name.

Cole Armstrong: Canadian catcher who hit 874 OPS in AAA (PCL) last year but just 736 OPS lifetime - probably nothing, but always take note of Canadians.

Boof Bonser: another case of love the name. 83 ERA+ in majors, 2.9 BB/9 7.2 K/9. Entering age 30 season off injuries.

More guys out there but gotta go.
cybercavalier - Sunday, November 06 2011 @ 10:50 AM EST (#246450) #
If the Jays are to sign as many Canadian AAA or veteran major league ballplayers as accessible, the rosters in Toronto would include Erik Bedard, Jeff Francis and Rich Harden. In Vegas, Thorman and Armstrong and/or St. Pierre, Shawn Hill in AAA.

cybercavalier - Sunday, November 06 2011 @ 11:03 AM EST (#246451) #
Also, John Suomi in Phillies AAA and James Adduci in Cubs AAA Iowa. The aged-26 Adduci is the more interesting of the two because he is younger and steal base successfully at an "Okay" percentage (135 bases out of 177 tries, 76%). At age 25-26 in 2011 AAA season, his .809 OPS was his best in a single season during his minor league career. Looks like a minor league filer.
Jays Try Again With Trystan Magnuson | 14 comments | Create New Account
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