Tyler Heineman gets brutally honest on Blue Jays departure

The Toronto Blue Jays have been up and down recently, currently sitting at 43-49 on the season after a recent blowout road win over the San Francisco Giants. Still, it’s overall been a disappointing season for Toronto on the heels of their trip to the World Series last year, where they lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven excruciating games.

Recently, the Blue Jays made a big roster move by designating veteran catcher Tyler Heineman for assignment, which resulted in him being traded to the Los Angeles Angels last month.

Now, Heineman is getting one hundred percent honest on the struggles he endured, coupled with the emergence of Brandon Valanzuela, which ultimately led to his departure from the Blue Jays.

“[Brandon] Valenzuela came up and did very well. I’m happy for him. That’s how you get established in the big leagues…He outperformed me significantly [and] the writing was on the wall,” said Heineman, per Sportsnet 590 The FAN on X, formerly Twitter.

It’s certainly a classy response from Heineman, who had been a member of the Blue Jays organization since September of the 2024 season, when the team claimed him off waivers following his departure from the Boston Red Sox. The veteran has spent time with several teams around the MLB, also including the Blue Jays earlier in his career, as well as the Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, and others.

He will look to carve out a more consistent role for himself on a struggling Angels team that doesn’t have as much competition at the catcher position.

Meanwhile, the Blue Jays will hope that the upcoming MLB All-Star break provides the team with the reset it needs to turn around what has been a frustrating 2026 season up to this point.