The Toronto Blue Jays scratched infielder Eric Sogard from their starting lineup just before first pitch Sunday, and now we know why.
According to a report from Jeff Passan of ESPN, the Blue Jays have traded Sogard to the Tampa Bay Rays.
The official release from the team for both Sogard and Ian Gibaut is below:
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (Tampa Bay Rays Communications) — The Tampa Bay Rays have acquired infielder Eric Sogard from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for two players to be named. In addition, the Rays have traded right-handed pitcher Ian Gibaut to the Texas Rangers in exchange for a player to be named or cash considerations.
Sogard, 33, has enjoyed a breakout season with the Blue Jays after signing a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. He is batting .300/.363/.477 (86-for-287) with 17 doubles, two triples, 10 home runs, 30 RBI and six stolen bases, including .322/.355/.475 (19-for-59) in his last 13 games since July 12. Sogard entered play today six plate appearances shy of qualifying for leaderboards, but his .300 avg. would rank 10th in the American League if he qualified. His 10 home runs are a career high and are one shy of matching his total (11) from his first eight major league seasons combined.
He began the season with Triple-A Buffalo but spent less than two weeks there before being selected by the Blue Jays to the major league rosteron April 15.Since his selection, he has appeared in 73 games at five different positions: second base (43 games, 40 starts), right field (six games, five starts), third base (six games, four starts), shortstop (four games, three starts) and left field (one game/start). He has also started 15 games as the designated hitter.
Sogard has struck out only 47 times in 323 plate appearances this season. According to FanGraphs, he is making contact on 89.6 pct. of his swings, which ranks fifth in the majors among players with at least 300 plate appearances. The major league contact rate is 76.3 pct., its lowest since FanGraphs data is available (2002).
He was selected by the San Diego Padres in the second round of the 2007 June Draft out of Arizona State University. Over parts of nine seasons in the majors, he is batting .247/.317/.340 (456-for-1,843) with 21 home runs and 155 RBI in 657 games. His brother, Alex, played five seasons in the minors in the Houston Astros and Arizona Diamondbacks organizations and is currently the head coach at Wright State University. His cousin, Nick, was selected by the Rays in the 12th round of the 2019 June Draft out of Loyola Marymount University and is currently playing for Short-A Hudson Valley.
Gibaut, 25, was with the Rays from July 6-12 and made his major league debut on July 12 against the Baltimore Orioles, yielding two runs in two innings pitched. He was designated for assignment by the Rays on July 23. Over parts of five seasons in the minors, he is 17-8 with a 2.29 ERA (216-IP, 55-ER) and 35 saves in 155 appearances.