Former Toronto Blue Jays infielder elects free agency after being designated for assignment
Photo credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
As expected, former Toronto Blue Jays infielder Santiago Espinal rejected his outright assignment by the Cincinnati Reds and chose to become a free agent.
It was previously reported that Espinal was outrighted by Cincinnati, obviously he has bigger plans.
A day after the Reds announced they outrighted Santiago Espinal to AAA Louisville, he exercised his right to become a free agent.
Reds star Santiago Espinal stuns fans, elects free agency after shocking team move. It's official. Santiago Espinal is no longer a Cincinnati Red.
Espinal goes in free agency with declining numbers
Espinal wasn't going to be long for the roster anyway. His performance has been declining for a while now.
The infielder had some decent results with the Blue Jays a few years ago, even making the All-Star team in 2022, but he hasn't done much since then.
He has stepped to the plate 973 times in the past three years with a combined .245/.298/.325 line and 71 wRC+. That includes a .243/.292/.282 line and 58 wRC+ in 2025.
At his best, Espinal can play multiple positions while hitting lefties. As recently as last year, though his overall offense was poor, he slashed .289/.344/.491 for a 122 wRC+ against southpaws.
He was still better against lefties in 2025 but hit only .265/.317/.342 for a wRC+ of 81.
Espinal could get interest from clubs for a bench/utility role, either on a minor league pact or a modest big league deal. He has experience at all four infield spots as well as the outfield corners.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 1 | 658 ANSWERS Former Toronto Blue Jays infielder elects free agency after being designated for assignment Do you think that Santiago Espinal will get a major league contract for 2026? | ||
| Yes | 250 | 38 % |
| No | 214 | 32.5 % |
| Minor league contract | 194 | 29.5 % |
| List of polls | ||