Blue Jays claim Preston Guilmet from Pirates

In an entirely predictable move, the Blue Jays claimed reliever Preston Guilmet, who the Pirates designated for assignment when they signed Corey Hart. This isn't the first time the waiver-happy Blue Jays and Pirates have engaged in dueling waiver claims -- perhaps Brian Jeroloman should call Guilmet sometime and let him know he understands.

Anyway, if you have no idea who Preston Guilmet or Brian Jeroloman are, don't worry. Guilmet is a very good Triple-A closer who's never gotten much of a chance at the big-league level because his fastball can't break a paper bag. His stats actually suggest he might be useful in the majors, but no one who employs him ever seems to think so. Maybe the Pirates have lost out on a decent middle reliever here, but probably not.

The Jays claiming Guilmet might seem like a cruel reminder of the crushing banality of everyday life, but I assure you it is not. Somewhere, to someone, this means something. Somewhere, yet another ballplayer is looking up information about visas, or the Canadian tax system, or bacon, or whether he'll have to learn French. Or whether he'll just end up outrighted to Triple-A Buffalo when all is said and done anyway. Goodbye, Preston Guilmet. We hardly knew ye. In fact, we didn't know ye.