Blue Jays claim former Tigers reliever off waivers after top prospect promotions

When the Tigers claimed lefty reliever Easton Lucas off of waivers in mid-May, it was immediately pretty clear that he wouldn't be staying in the majors for long. He pitched just under seven innings for the Athletics in 2023 and gave up six earned runs on 10 hits during that time, and he was DFA'd by the A's after pitching 3 3/2 innings and giving up seven runs on eight hits in 2024.

After joining Detroit on May 18, he stayed in Triple-A until late June, when he was called up for all of one day and didn't make his Tigers debut before being sent down again. He was recalled for the second time on July 21 and pitched 3 1/3 innings and allowed two earned runs on three hits and two walks. He was optioned again, and then finally DFA'd for a second time this season as part of the roster-clearing effort to make room for Jace Jung and Trey Sweeney.

A year from now, we probably won't remember that Lucas was a Tiger. However, he was picked up off of waivers by the Blue Jays on Monday and was promptly reassigned to their Triple-A team.

Tigers waiver claim Easton Lucas picked up by Blue Jays after DFA to make room for Jace Jung, Trey Sweeney

Gio Urshela, who was also DFA'ed for Jung and Sweeney, cleared waivers and was unconditionally released, but as a veteran with a healthy resumé behind him, he was picked up by the Braves on a major league contract as Atlanta sought to fill their Austin Riley gap (Riley's season just ended with a fractured hand).

Lucas seems destined for the life of a Quadruple-A'er, but we guess you never know. The Tigers are set to face the Blue Jays twice next year, once as part of MLB's Rivalry Weekend in May and then again for a four-game series in July. If Lucas can improve within the Blue Jays' organization (he had a 3.51 ERA in Triple-A with the Tigers), they could see him again.

We're not exactly holding out for that, though. Happy trails to Lucas, but he just made sense as an easy choice for a DFA when trying to make room for top young players.