Word from Toronto this afternoon is that newly arriving pitcher Logan Verrett will suit up in No. 35, the same number worn for nearly five years by Dillon Gee, whose designation is so fresh they haven’t even had time to properly demote, release or trade him.

I confess to being one of those fans who’s been waiting for years for Gee to turn into a pumpkin and for all the pleasant surprises he’s given, moving on now was the right thing to do but this still comes off pretty harsh! Is there something wrong with 32? 46? 53? Ouch!

Technically, players are required to be assigned a number when they are added to the 40-man roster and technically, they lose a number when they leave it, so the assignment itself is technically, OK. But it brings to mind those instances where they’ve used the uniform number as a signal to make a point — like when young Danny Garcia took No. 12 on the heels of the Mets giving up on cranky old Roberto Alomar. Maybe there was more to Gee’s unhappiness than what came out. Maybe its just a case of inadvertent insensitivity. Maybe it’s a signal of an emerging bloodlessness that will be called on to make similar decisions on guys like Daniel Murphy and Jon Niese in the coming weeks. What do you think?

Meantime let’s wish Logan Verrett better luck than his predecessor at the back of the bullpen, Akeel Morris, who’s on his way down, and up, to Class AA after a painful debut. Verrett you might know has been around a bit for a rookie. He was Rule 5’ed from the Mets this winter by the Orioles, but snatched away from them by the Rangers just prior to opening day. He lasted for four games in Texas (wearing 41) before the Rangers tried farming him, and he was claimed back by the Mets.