TORONTO -- The Blue Jays designated reliever Neil Ramirez for assignment ahead of Tuesday night's game against the Indians to make room for starting pitcher Mike Bolsinger, the team announced.
Ramirez was claimed off waivers from the Giants on May 4 and was added to the Major League roster the next day. The 27-year-old right-hander did not make an appearance in his four games on the active roster. Prior to joining the Blue Jays, Ramirez held an 8.71 ERA with 18 strikeouts over 10 1/3 innings for San Francisco.
"We'd love to keep him," said manager John Gibbons. "I know he wants to be in the big leagues, but from a selfish standpoint, we hope he gets through and we'll see what we have."
Bolsinger will be Toronto's ninth starter of the season as their rotation continues to deal with injuries to Aaron Sanchez and J.A. Happ. The right-hander was involved in Toronto's bullpen competition entering the season with the Triple-A Buffalo.
"We liked a lot of things we saw in Spring Training," said Gibbons. "He's got a good breaking ball, that's the key. Everything really revolves around his curveball. He's got a good one."
With the Bisons this season, Bolsinger has pitched 12 1/3 innings with an ERA of 1.46, striking out 18. The right-hander made 37 Major League appearances (36 starts) with the D-backs and Dodgers from 2014-16, posting an 8-16 record with a 4.61 ERA.