Sanchez earns final spot in Blue Jays' rotation

Aaron Sanchez's wish has been granted.

The Toronto Blue Jays announced Monday that the right-hander will start the season in the rotation, with Gavin Floyd moving into the bullpen.

Sanchez has been adamant this spring about his desire to be a starter following a strong sophomore season in which he spent the final three months of the year as a reliever.

"The suspense is finally over," Sanchez told reporters. "It's good news and I'm ready to get the show on the road."

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Manager John Gibbons said that Sanchez will be under an undisclosed innings limit, and the team could move him to the bullpen later this season.

"We'll keep an eye on that and there's a good chance he'll be in that rotation the whole year," Gibbons told reporters. "We won't lay out what the actual plan is, but we've got to be smart. You increase it too much, it's probably harmful, and in the end if we need to put him down there in the bullpen, we're that much stronger down there, too."

2015 Season

The 23-year-old opened last season in the rotation, but was bumped back to the bullpen in July after a seven-week stint on the disabled list. While he battled inconsistency as a starter, Sanchez fashioned a 3.55 ERA in 11 starts, and was effective in his last four outings before hurting his shoulder.

Sanchez, who threw a career-high 133 1/3 innings across the majors and minors in 2014, has put together an impressive spring. Through five appearances, he owns a 1.35 ERA and 0.90 WHIP, while striking out 19 in 20 innings.

The Blue Jays also optioned starter Drew Hutchison to Triple-A Buffalo. The right-hander has gone 24-18 with a 4.97 ERA across 62 appearances (60 starts) over the last two seasons. Hutchison started Opening Day for Toronto last season.