Blue Jays acquire Bradley Zimmer from Guardians

The Blue Jays made a trade late Thursday, acquiring outfielder Bradley Zimmer from the Guardians for reliever Anthony Castro.

Zimmer adds to Toronto’s outfield depth ahead of the club’s Opening Day game on Friday, bringing another left-handed bat into the organization as the Blue Jays work to balance out a righty-heavy lineup. Castro, on the other hand, was left on the outside looking in at the Blue Jays’ bullpen picture as they broke camp. 

The 29-year-old Zimmer, a 2014 first-round Draft pick (21st overall) by Cleveland, is a familiar name to the Blue Jays’ front office. He came up as one of the top outfield prospects in the game, too, peaking as the No. 22 prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline prior to the 2017 season.