Right-handed reliever Justin Topa agreed to a minor-league deal with the Toronto Blue Jays and will report to Triple-A Buffalo, according to the MiLB.com transaction log. The Twins had designated Topa for assignment and released him late last month.
Topa was a key piece of the Jorge Polanco trade in 2024. Along with Topa, the Seattle Mariners sent the Twins outfield prospect Gabriel González, right-handed starter Anthony DeSclafani and pitching prospect Darren Bowen in exchange for Polanco. Topa is arguably the only player from the deal who has positively impacted the Twins in any way, with González, MLB Pipeline's No. 7 overall Twins prospect, being the last hope of the deal.
After making just three appearances in 2024 due to left patellar tendinitis, Topa had an inconsistent but overall solid 2025 season, posting a 3.90 ERA and a 3.04 FIP with an 18.3% strikeout rate and a 6.7% walk rate in 60 innings. The Twins counted on Topa much more than before after trading nearly their entire bullpen, including Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax and Louis Varland, as part of last summer's fire sale. Entering the 2026 season, Topa was one of Minnesota's more experienced and promising relievers.
Unfortunately, Topa posted an abysmal 8.05 ERA and a 6.46 FIP with a 13.0% strikeout rate, a 12.0% walk rate and a .338 opponent batting average across 19 innings this year before being released. His sinker velocity is notably down, dropping from an average of 95.2 mph as recently as 2023 to 93.2 mph thus far in 2026. Even though Minnesota's bullpen is full of questions, the team decided Topa couldn't be an answer.
Blue Jays hope to revive Topa's career
Topa, who complements his sinker with a low-90s cutter, a low-80s sweeper and a mid-to-high-80s changeup, has joined fellow former Twins reliever Matt Bowman in the Blue Jays organization. Bowman had exercised his opt-out clause last month after posting a 1.69 ERA in 21 1/3 innings with Triple-A St. Paul, then signed a minor-league deal with Toronto.
The Blue Jays hope to revive the 2023 version of Topa, who posted a 2.61 ERA with a 21.9% strikeout rate and a 6.5% walk rate. While that seems unlikely, it's never a bad idea for a team to stack its minor-league system with relievers who have had success in the majors. If the Blue Jays suffer multiple bullpen injuries, Topa will likely get another chance in the big leagues.
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