Will

Robertson

Robertson was summoned to replace Tim Elko on Chicago’s active roster between games during Friday’s doubleheader. The 27-year-old outfielder was picked up earlier this week in a trade from the Blue Jays. He can be safely ignored in all fantasy formats.

Robertson was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays over the weekend to make room for an extra reliever. He’ll now head to another organization as the White Sox facilitated a trade to acquire the 27-year-old. Robertson hit .292/.403/.578 with 14 home runs in 62 games for Triple-A Buffalo this year, while appearing at all three outfield spots. There’s a chance he could eventually see regular playing time in Chicago, especially if they move on from one or more of Luis Robert Jr., Mike Tauchman, or Michael A. Taylor at the trade deadline.

Robertson has been removed from Toronto’s 40-man roster to make room for reliever Ryan Burr to rejoin the club’s relief mix.

Robertson had been up with the big league club for a couple of days to provide depth while Nathan Lukes (concussion) was shelved, but now he’ll return to an everyday role at the Triple-A level. The 27-year-old is 1-for-10 (.100) with an RBI and a 7/1 K/BB ratio in his limited action with the Jays this season.

Roden was set to start in left with Myles Straw (ankle) unavailable, but his own lower-extremity trouble will keep him out of Thursday’s lineup. Will Robertson will instead get the start and hit eighth against Ryne Nelson and the Diamondbacks’ bullpen.

Robertson will get a chance to make his MLB debut after spending six-plus seasons in the minors after being a fourth-round selection. The 27-year-old has played well in the minors this season, but fantasy managers should take a wait-and-see approach rather than committing a waiver-wire claim on Robertson.

The 27-year-old Robertson has hit .288/.408/.583 in 52 games at Triple-A with 12 home runs and 35 RBI. He has a 93.6 mph average exit velocity and nearly 54 percent hard-hit rate. He also has a 17 percent walk rate and a strikeout rate just under 24 percent, which is his lowest since 2019. Nathan Lukes had neck discomfort on Tuesday, so perhaps Robertson is being called up to take his place.

Neither of the two players were expected to compete for spots on the team’s Opening Day roster, so Saturday’s cuts don’t come as any sort of surprise. Robertson had success in his limited Grapefruit League action, hitting .313 (5-for-16) with a homer, five RBI and a stolen base in 11 games. Robertson spent the entire 2023 season at Double-A New Hampshire and it’s likely that he’ll open the 2024 campaign at Triple-A Buffalo, just a small step away from his big league debut.

Tiedemann — universally considered among the top pitching prospects in the game — should get a legitimate shot at cracking the Jays’ Opening Day rotation. Injuries limited him to just 44 innings over 15 minor league starts in 2023 before he concluded his season by taking home Pitcher of the Year honors in the Arizona Fall League. The 18 other players invited to major league spring training on Monday were RHP Andrew Bash, C Zach Britton, LHP Jimmy Burnette, C Phil Clarke, RHP Connor Cooke, RHP Chad Dallas, INF Luis De Los Santos, OF Cam Eden, LHP Brandon Eisert, LHP Mason Fluharty, RHP Devereaux Harrison, RHP Ryan Jennings, RHP Hayden Juenger, INF Damiano Palmegiani, OF Will Robertson, OF Alan Roden, C Brian Serven and Andres Sosa.