Ex-Angels SP Matt Shoemaker, Blue Jays Reportedly Agree to 1-Year Contract

The Toronto Blue Jays and starting pitcher Matt Shoemaker reportedly agreed on a one-year contract Friday, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.

Shoemaker, 32, spent each of his first six MLB seasons with the Los Angeles Angels.

The veteran righty made just seven starts last season because of a forearm injury that kept him out for most of 2018.

He went 2-2 with a 4.94 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 33 strikeouts in 31 innings. Per Baseball Reference, Shoemaker also had a 3.35 FIP, which suggests he pitched better than his surface numbers indicate.

In 101 career appearances (93 starts), he owns a 40-32 record with a 3.93 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 8.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

Injuries have limited him to just over 100 innings in the past two seasons combined, and he has never thrown more than 160 innings in a season.

His best performance came in 2014 when he went 16-4 with a 3.04 ERA and finished second in the American League Rookie of the Year voting.

Although Shoemaker is a few years removed from his last productive season, his career numbers are solid, and he could prove to be a sleeper signing for the Blue Jays.

Toronto has some question marks in its starting rotation behind Marcus Stroman and Aaron Sanchez, and Shoemaker should fit in nicely as a third or fourth starter.

The Jays finished fourth in the American League East last season, and improving upon that will be difficult considering how strong the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays look on paper.

Even if Toronto struggles in 2019, signing Shoemaker is a smart move since he could potentially be flipped to a contender for some assets prior to the trade deadline.