Blue Jays call up Chad Dallas after Buffalo stint, option Hayden Juenger

Chad Dallas’ climb out of Buffalo came with immediate major-league consequences for the Blue Jays’ pitching depth. Toronto selected the 25-year-old right-hander on June 4, activated him for the night’s game in Atlanta, optioned Hayden Juenger to Triple-A Buffalo and designated Tanner Andrews for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot.

The move was bigger than a simple call-up. Dallas, a fourth-round pick in the 2021 draft out of Tennessee and a native of Orange, Texas, had spent the first part of 2026 rebuilding his case in Buffalo after missing the entire 2025 season following Tommy John surgery in September 2024. He arrived with 36 innings for the Bisons, a 4.50 ERA, a 24.1 percent strikeout rate, an 8.2 percent walk rate and a 41.7 percent ground-ball rate, enough to convince Toronto he could help now.

He delivered in his debut. Facing the Braves at Truist Park, Dallas allowed one run on two hits over 3 2/3 innings, walked two and struck out two in Toronto’s 7-2 win. It was his first big-league appearance, and it doubled as a timely stop on a night when the Blue Jays snapped a four-game losing streak and avoided a sweep. Dallas was on the mound by the second inning, a quick reminder that Toronto did not bring him up for a ceremonial look.

The timing carried extra weight. The promotion came on Lou Gehrig Day, and Dallas has spoken about his father, Tony, who died from ALS about a year ago. Dallas called the moment a “little God wink,” a personal note that layered emotion onto a roster decision driven by need.

Juenger’s return to Buffalo is the other half of the story. The 25-year-old right-hander, Toronto’s sixth-round pick in 2021 out of Missouri State, made his MLB debut on May 31 and has been viewed as one of the system’s better arms in recent years. He now heads back to Triple-A with a clear task: turn a brief major-league look into sustained domination in Buffalo and show Toronto that his stuff can translate over a longer stretch, not just in a short cameo.

Andrews’ DFA is the urgency marker. Toronto did not create room with a minor shuffle around the edges. It made a 40-man decision that sent one arm to Buffalo, one off the roster entirely and one straight into a debut that may have shifted the bullpen conversation for the next turn through the pitching staff.