Phillippe Aumont denies returning to the Blue Jays organization

Just yesterday (Tuesday), we learned that the Blue Jays will have to do without Anthony Santander for at least five months, that Bowden Francis will not be pitching in 2025, and that Shane Bieber will not be ready in time for the start of next season.

Following these announcements, the Blue Jays appeared to have signed québécois pitcher Philippe Aumont, bringing him out of retirement to add some much-needed depth to their pitching staff.

But according to the player himself, that won't be the case, at least for now. This is despite the fact that the trade does appear on the league's website.

So it's technicalities of MLB and the World Baseball Classic that mean Aumont is only making a return to the pros on paper. Perhaps the fact that the transaction listed on the Jays' website does not mention that he has been invited to spring training could have given us a clue that this was just an administrative maneuver.

Selected eleventh overall in the 2007 MLB draft by the Seattle Mariners, Aumont was one of three players traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in a deal involving former Cy Young Award winner Cliff Lee in 2009. From 2012 to 2015, Aumont played in the City of Brotherly Love, totaling 43 2/3 innings pitched with an earned run average of 6.80.

Now 37 years old, it's unclear exactly how much Aumont has left in the tank. But his upcoming stint with Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic should give the Blue Jays and other Major League Baseball teams a better idea of how he might perform in a competitive setting.

Because he has clearly not closed the door on a return to professional baseball.

This content was created with the help of AI.