Jays call-up comes at expense of Team Canada
The Blue Jays' gain is Team Canada's loss.
Pitcher Scott Richmond of North Vancouver, B.C., was called up Monday by the Jays to start later this week, a move that is likely to take him out of the Beijing Olympics.
Richmond, 28, was scratched from his start for triple-A Syracuse on Sunday. The six-foot-five right-hander is expected to take the mound Wednesday in Toronto against the Tampa Bay Rays.
"I'm going to miss going [to Beijing]," Richmond, who will become the 14th Canadian to play for the Jays, told Sun Media. "But this is what I've always wanted."
The Jays also announced that left-hander Brian Tallet will be placed on the 15-day disabled list with a non-displaced spiral fracture of his small right toe. To make room on the 40-man roster, second baseman Aaron Hill — still battling post-concussion syndrome after a collision with teammate David Eckstein on May 28 — will be transferred to the 60-day DL.
Orr not going to Beijing
Richmond's call-up marks the second time in as many weeks that Canada's baseball team has lost a player to major-league commitments.
On Wednesday, infielder Pete Orr confirmed he had decided to remain with the Washington Nationals rather than join the Canadian squad.
Players on the active roster of a big-league club aren't eligible to play in the Olympic tournament, which begins Aug. 13. Richmond is likely to remain with the Jays beyond his Wednesday start, which would rule him out for the Summer Games.
Baseball Canada didn't immediately name a replacement for Richmond, who was projected to start for Terry Puhl's team.
Richmond has pitched superbly for Syracuse since being elevated from double-A New Hampshire earlier this season. In five games — all starts — he sports a 2.53 earned-run average with 25 hits allowed, 31 strikeouts and six walks over 32 innings, though some tough luck has left him with an 0-2 record.
Over the last three years with the Edmonton Cracker-Cats of the independent Northern League, Richmond went 14-19 with a 4.37 ERA.