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The Jays signed Ryan Shealy to a minor league deal, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America (on Twitter). The 31-year-old appeared in five games for the Red Sox last year after spending the 2009 season in the minors. Shealy posted a .231/.345/.472 line at Triple-A for the Red Sox and Rays last year.

The Blue Jays signed former Rockies, Royals, and Red Sox first baseman Ryan Shealy today. It looks like a nondescript move: a 31-year-old with 25 MLB games since 2008 signing for a team most have pegged for fourth place.

But could this turn into something more interesting?

The Blue Jays have a semi-uncertain first base situation. Nobody on the roster (or even the 40-man) is a first baseman by trade, and they’re thinking of moving outfielder/DH Adam Lind and/or third baseman/DH Edwin Encarnacion over there for this year. Minor league 1Bs David Cooper and Mike McDade are in camp, but McDade has yet to play in Double-A, and Cooper wasn’t exactly great in Double-A last year, so neither is at all likely to make the team.

Enter Shealy, a career .268/.331/.424 hitter in 169 big-league games. Shealy hit .330/.413/.473 in 2005 with the Rockies and .301/.354/.603 in 2008 with the Royals, in 36 and 20 games, respectively. Obviously, he’s had some low points as well, notably a .221/.286/.308 line in 52 games with Kansas City in 2007. Still, he’s a solid defender at first (18 UZR/150 career) who hasn’t embarrassed himself at the plate in a 169-game sample.

Furthermore, Shealy has proven himself to be an excellent Triple-A hitter. In 416 games at the level, he’s hit .287/.373/.527. He’s proven that he has better contact skills than a standard-issue Triple-A slugger, striking out well under once per game in both Triple-A and the majors.