Ohlman, who was called up to fill the shoes of Russell Martin (shoulder) on Monday, received praise from manager John Gibbons upon arriving in Toronto, Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun reports.
Over eight-plus minor-league seasons, the 26-year-old hit .260/.348/.395 while never seeing big-league action during that time. Through 23 games this year with Triple-A Buffalo, Ohlman hit seven homers en route to a career-best .594 slugging percentage. "I like the way he caught the ball [in Buffalo] and I really liked the way he swung the bat," Gibbons said. "He's a big dude, a big strong guy who looks like he can hit." This opportunity might be Ohlman's one and only chance at sticking in the big leagues. "Here's his break," added Gibbons. "You sign guys as minor-league free agent and you don't always anticipate they're going to get a shot. But you give a guy an opportunity and who knows what happens?" Although Martin isn't expected to be out terribly long, the backup to him is far from a sure thing -- Luke Maile currently owns the gig after Jarrod Saltamacchia was cut loose last week. If Ohlman can put forth an impressive effort during the next week or so, then he could certainly steal the reserve role from Maile.