Adam Cimber is (finally) on the road to recovery.
The Toronto Blue Jays reliever, who hasn’t pitched since June 18 due to a shoulder injury, will begin a rehab assignment with triple-A Buffalo on Saturday afternoon, manager John Schneider told reporters, including The Athletic’s Kaitlyn McGrath.
But considering he’s missed the last several months, the 33-year-old will likely require at least a few rehab outings before receiving the green light for a potential big-league return.
Cimber currently resides on the 60-day IL, which means the Blue Jays would have to clear a 40-man roster spot if he’s ready to return before the Bisons’ season ends on Sep. 24. One way to do that could be transferring Danny Jansen to the 60-day IL if it’s determined that his broken middle finger will sideline him throughout the post-season.
It will, however, likely be much tougher to find space for the veteran right-hander amongst Toronto’s fully stocked bullpen. Unless someone requires an IL stint, there probably won’t be room for him on the major league roster by the time his rehab assignment concludes.
While Cimber does possess all three minor-league options, he has accrued enough service time to block any demotion from the big leagues, although that’s unlikely to happen at this stage of the 2023 season. So, he’ll likely remain in Buffalo for the remainder of the year.
The sidearm hurler struggled mightily prior to landing on the IL in June, faltering to a 7.40 ERA and 7.47 FIP with a 5.3% K-BB rate difference across 20.2 innings in 22 relief appearances, worth minus-0.6 fWAR.
Cimber is scheduled to enter his final arbitration year in 2024 before gaining free-agent eligibility next winter. But given how poorly this season has gone, he could become a non-tender candidate this off-season.
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