Toronto Blue Jays catcher Tyler Heineman proving to be a star in backup role

When Blue Jays claimed Tyler Heineman off of waivers on September 16 2024, it wasn't the first time.

If you follow the Blue Jays closely, you might be aware of the team's pattern of acquiring Heineman multiple times, but this was the last one.

The team had shipped Danny Jansen away at the trade deadline and wasn't getting much from Brian Serven in a backup role.

Considering the 2024 Blue Jays were going nowhere, that wasn't an issue that desperately needed to be addressed.

However, the organization had traditionally acquired Heineman when the opportunity arose, and this was no exception.

At the time of the claim, Heineman looked like an ideal third catcher for an MLB team.

His bat didn't project to be playable over the long term, but his defensive skills were solid enough for him to play a limited role in the majors when the need arose.

Heineman seemed like a fine choice to spell Alejandro Kirk in the final weeks of 2024.

It was somewhat surprising that the Blue Jays didn't sign a veteran catcher to back up Kirk before 2025, especially with the concerns that existed about his durability in a full-time role.

Kirk had always had Jansen to share the load, and Heineman's perceived offensive limitations had him looking underqualified for the task ahead.

Any pre-season concerns were quickly put to rest as Kirk had no issues catching full-time, and Heineman exploded out of the gate offensively when called upon.

The backup cooled down as 2025 wore on, but his 2.1 fWAR ranked 17th among all catchers, despite ranking 50th in plate appearances.

Heineman was a star in his role, and if he produced like a more typical backup catcher, a level that seemed like an optimistic projection before 2025 - the Blue Jays wouldn't have won the American League East.