Jays acquire Wilkerson, Mench to boost offense
Wilkerson, recently cut by the Seattle Mariners, was signed as a free agent and Mench was acquired for cash from the Texas Rangers.
Mench, an outfielder who was with the Rangers' Triple-A affiliate in Oklahoma, hit .267 with eight homers and 37 RBIs last season for the Brewers.
"They are two guys we've always liked," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "We've been looking for a right-handed bat to complement (Matt) Stairs at DH. We've also been looking for a left-handed hitter. To be able to get both is like a bonus."
The 30-year-old Mench has spent the season with Triple-A Oklahoma after failing to make the Rangers as a non-roster invitee in spring training. He was hitting .282 with three home runs and 18 RBIs in 29 games for Oklahoma.
Mench was drafted by the Rangers in 1999 and hit at least 25 home runs in consecutive seasons in 2004-05 before getting traded to Milwaukee in a deadline deal for Carlos Lee in 2006. Earlier that year, he became the fifth player in major league history to homer in seven consecutive games.
The Rangers already had a crowded outfield before Brandon Boggs was brought up from Oklahoma and hit .343 in his first 10 games.
Wilkerson was hitting .232 with no homers and 5 RBIs before being released by Seattle. In 887 career games, Wilkerson has a .249 average with 118 home runs and 376 RBIs.
To make room on its 25-man roster, Toronto optioned infielder Joe Inglett to Triple-A Syracuse. To clear space on their 40-man roster, the Blue Jays designated for assignment infielder Sergio Santos and left-hander Gustavo Chacin.
In 13 games with the Blue Jays this year, Inglett batted .303 (13-for-33) with four RBIs.
Chacin, who went 25-15 in 58 starts over the past four seasons for Toronto, was 0-4 with a 7.00 ERA with Class A Dunedin of the Florida State League this year.
Santos hit .193 (17-for-93) with four RBIs in 26 games at Triple-A Syracuse this season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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