Blue Jays sign George Springer to a 6 year, $150M deal

[saskjayfan]

No they are not. SS and 2B are locked down, Groshans and Martin are on the way to fill 3B, Tellez and Vlad can play 1B, the team has 69 catchers, and maybe skinny Vlad can even pass at 3B for one year.

 

The team needs a stop-gap infielder at the most. It can be someone who plays any of SS/2B/3B because Bo and Biggio can move around. There's not a dire need for anything. Worst case Ontario just give Brad Miller or Jake Lamb or someone like that a few million bucks to cover 3B in 2021.

 

I'm my fantasy dream world, we let Vlad play 3rd for a year and we sign Springer and Bauer. Then Cleveland sucks and with all the prospect capital we horded we empty the farm next to acquire Bieber and Ramirez when they have 3 and 2 years of control left. Cleveland will realize they need a reset and we will have a super team.

[Abomination]

There will be all sorts of "OK" options that don't break the bank. LaStella would be great. Sign Wong and move Biggy to 3rd (I don't really understand people who have concluded he can't play 3rd). If we signed Springer, there's a great chance that Martin is our starting 3rd basemen in 2022, if not sooner. There's a chance he's Bregman or Rendon there too.

 

People need to temper the enthusiasm on Martin. Even Bregman played most of 2 minor league seasons before coming up. The minor league season this year is already delayed, and it might be for some time. Martin won't have played in a real game for over a year, and has never played in a professional game. Expecting him for anything other than a cup of coffee before 2023 is likely going to lead to a lot of disappointment.

[Laika]

I'd argue that third base is possibly the biggest hole on the team. Look back at the last two seasons at the Jays third base production and you'll see that they've received approximately 0.1 WAR from the position combined. Unless you think Martin is going to be up in 2021 (not outside the realm of possibility) who does the team have available to effectively man the position while not simultaneously creating a black hole on offence? I don't see the Vlad 3rd base experiment lasting more than a handful of games, Biggio doesn't seem to have the requisite arm strength to play an effective third base either. I'm fine with a short term signing to fill the position, whether it's Turner, La Stella etc. that helps to fill the position until Groshans or Martin is ready to take over.

 

https://www.fangraphs.com/depthcharts.aspx?position=Team

 

I'm not saying they don't need to sign an infielder but I just don't think they need to go crazy to land someone impactful. It's not a dire need to me because of positional flexibility and Skinny Vlad. CF, SP, RP are bigger issues IMO.

 

I very much disagree with this idea that Biggio can't play 3B because his arm is weak. He'd be absolutely fine there.

[DigitalRock]

That can't be true. Talk about setting unrealistic expectations.

 

disagree, don't care what you thing bro.

[Ray]

That would be awesome but I can't help but think spreading the available dollars around a little more would be prudent. The team is in dire need of infield help as well as in the starting rotation and bullpen, signing both of these guys leaves a hole in the infield and does nothing to address the bullpen. If Rogers says go nuts and allows payroll to increase sufficiently to address all the holes in the roster while signing two elite free agents that would be amazing but I won't hold my breath.

 

Sometimes it makes sense to go with the biggest impact. Bauer and Springer would instantly make the Jays the 3rd best team in the league according to Depths Charts. At that point, you could have Santiago Espinal or Joe Panik man 3B for all I care.

 

Not like we couldn't afford it either. If we sign Bauer to $30M AAV and Springer to a $25M AAV, that would only put us at $140M payroll for next year. This team has run payrolls of near $170M during it's competitive cycles, so we'd theoretically still have room.

 

Just saying, nows technically the best time to add as many high priced players as you can before the main guys like Vlad and Bo start getting expensive in arbitration and you have to start thinking of their extensions. Bauers/Springers contracts would just be expiring by the time other get real expensive, and 5 year deals don’t have as much potential to be albatrosses as 10 year deals do.

[saskjayfan]

Sometimes it makes sense to go with the biggest impact. Bauer and Springer would instantly make the Jays the 3rd best team in the league according to Depths Charts. At that point, you could have Santiago Espinal or Joe Panik man 3B for all I care.

 

Not like we couldn't afford it either. If we sign Bauer to $30M AAV and Springer to a $25M AAV, that would only put us at $140M payroll for next year. This team has run payrolls of near $170M during it's competitive cycles, so we'd theoretically still have room.

 

Just saying, nows technically the best time to add as many high priced players as you can before the main guys like Vlad and Bo start getting expensive in arbitration and you have to start thinking of their extensions. Bauers/Springers contracts would just be expiring by the time other get real expensive, and 5 year deals don’t have as much potential to be albatrosses as 10 year deals do.

 

We have a lot of payroll coming off at the end of the year. Next year we have 35 mil committed. Arb players aren't all that expensive add another 12 to 15. 55 mil for springer and Bauer would have us sitting at 102 to 105 committed plus league min spots. We would still be able to add next year with Bauer and Springer signed. Grichuk would only have 2 years left at 10.3 per year left too.

[Brownie19]

disagree, don't care what you thing bro.

 

I don't care what you thing either - but you're setting yourself up for disappointment if signing the top 2021 FA is the only thing that will make you satisfied as a fan.

[Jays24]

Springer or Bauer and this offseason will be a success. I'm confident we will get a couple of 2nd/3rd tier players.

[RobinThicc]

Im confident they'll get Springer tbh

 

Probably 135 ish range.

[Ray]

We have a lot of payroll coming off at the end of the year. Next year we have 35 mil committed. Arb players aren't all that expensive add another 12 to 15. 55 mil for springer and Bauer would have us sitting at 102 to 105 committed plus league min spots. We would still be able to add next year with Bauer and Springer signed. Grichuk would only have 2 years left at 10.3 per year left too.

 

It's an interesting market where the traditional spenders are either rebuilding (Giants, Cubs, Red Sox), hesitant to spend (Phillies, Yankees), or generally just content with their roster since it's mostly complete (Dodgers).

 

If Shapiro/Atkins play it right, they have a chance to set this team up incredibly well for the next 4-5 years. There's a good chance we get one of the top guys. I'd say there's a ~20% we get two of them. The more other teams spend on other places, the higher that number will go. I think the Mets are a Brad Hand signing away from potentially being completely out on Springer. The Angels may be a Tanaka signing away from being out on Bauer.

[Spanky99]

disagree, don't care what you thing bro.

 

[Laika]

 

hmmmm

 

Blue Jays making push in pursuit of outfielder George Springer

 

TORONTO – The Toronto Blue Jays continue to show serious interest in star free agent George Springer and are believed to be making a push for the outfielder, according to industry sources.

 

Springer, 31, is thought to be the top free agent target for a Blue Jays team intent on improving this winter. The sides were expected to re-connect early this week and may have already done so, industry sources said.

 

Earlier in the off-season, the Blue Jays are believed to have presented Springer with a framework for a substantial offer -- a five-year proposal for more than $100 million, reported Jim Duquette, the former Mets GM who now works for SNY. Now, the Blue Jays have a chance to present Springer with an improved offer, or at least to continue selling him on the franchise.

 

Springer has been reported to prefer the Mets because of their proximity to his home state of Connecticut, but his interest in the Blue Jays is believed to be genuine, with Toronto posing little or no obstacle.

 

Of course the Mets can’t be ruled out, even if landing Springer would require some creativity now that they’ve acquired Francisco Lindor.

 

Team president Sandy Alderson has called the $210 million competitive balance tax a “significant demarcation,” suggesting trades would be required to add a player of Springer’s calibre, or perhaps a creative contract structure. D.J. LeMahieu, another Blue Jays target, helped the New York Yankees in that way by stretching his $90 million guaranteed salary over six years.

 

There's always the possibility of an unknown bidder entering the mix for Springer when a player of his calibre is available.

 

Beyond Springer, the Blue Jays also have interest in Trevor Bauer, the top pitcher on the open market, and J.T. Realmuto, arguably the best catcher in the sport. Both free agents have heard pitches from the Blue Jays in recent months.

 

If they don’t land Springer, Jackie Bradley Jr., is believed to be among their considerations for an outfield addition. They also intend to add an infielder, and the market is stacked with options, from Gold Glove calibre second baseman Kolten Wong, to shortstops Didi Gregorius and Marcus Semien, and third basemen Justin Turner and trade candidate Kris Bryant.

 

To this point, lefty Robbie Ray is the only add of significance made by the Blue Jays, who aside from unsuccessfully pursuing LeMahieu, also missed out on Lindor, Liam Hendriks, Corey Kluber, Ha-seong Kim, Tomoyuki Sugano and Kevin Gausman.

 

Joe Musgrove, whom they discussed with the Pittsburgh Pirates prior to last summer’s trade deadline in a deal that would have been centred around catcher Alejandro Kirk, was reportedly dealt Monday, pending physicals, to the San Diego Padres as part of a three-team deal that also included the Mets.

[Spanky99]

 

hmmmm

 

C'mon George sign er up!

[RobinThicc]

Sign him up!

[Jays24]

I will cry if we are used as leverage again in this scenario lol

[saskjayfan]

I will cry if we are used as leverage again in this scenario lol

 

The Mets GM just got busted for sending dick picks to a reporter. The time is now. Go sign Springer!

 

[Jays24]

The Mets GM just got busted for sending dick picks to a reporter. The time is now. Go sign Springer!

 

Pics or it's not true.

 

I joke lol.

[Abomination]

The Mets GM just got busted for sending dick picks to a reporter. The time is now. Go sign Springer!

 

 

That might legitimately be the difference in signing him. Seriously, how hard is it for people to NOT send nude pictures to random people?

[RobinThicc]

That might legitimately be the difference in signing him. Seriously, how hard is it for people to NOT send nude pictures to random people?

I doubt Springer would actually give a s*** about this.

 

Gross thing to do though. And weird as f*** considering he pretty much talking to himself lol

[RobinThicc]

Pics or it's not true.

 

I joke lol.

The pics of the texts are im the article.

 

Dude is weirdo/loser. He looks the part too.

[Spanky99]

The pics of the texts are im the article.

 

Dude is weirdo/loser. He looks the part too.

 

He's f***ed, and a cretin. He's fired today.

[Ehjays]

Latest On George Springer, Blue Jays

By Steve Adams | January 19, 2021 at 10:58am CDT

 

The Blue Jays are believed to be “making a push” to bring free-agent outfielder George Springer into the fold, Ben Nicholson-Smith and Shi Davidi of Sportsnet report. The two sides were expected to reconnect early this week, per the report. In a related note, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweeted yesterday that Springer “could” make a decision by the end of the week. While that’s certainly not the most concrete phrasing, its juxtaposition with the Sportsnet update seems to suggest that Springer’s market is heating up with under a month until Spring Training is set to begin.

 

Earlier this month, SNY’s Jim Duquette said in a television segment that the Jays had offered Springer a five-year deal that checked in south of his $150MM asking price. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman pegged the offer in the $115MM range yesterday (video link), noting that the Mets’ best offer has been believed to be in that same ballpark.

 

The Springer market has been characterized as a two-horse race for weeks now, and Toronto’s primary competition in Queens has already spent aggressively to acquire Francisco Lindor, Carlos Carrasco, James McCann and Trevor May (in addition to retaining Marcus Stroman via qualifying offer). Whether the Mets would cross the luxury-tax barrier in order to sign Springer remains to be seen. Multiple reports over the past few weeks have suggested that Springer’s preference is to play close to his home in New Britain, Conn., but Davidi and Nicholson-Smith write that Springer’s interest in the Jays is “genuine,” with geography posing a minimal obstacle.

 

In terms of payroll capacity, the Jays have a relatively clean slate moving forward. Toronto has just shy of $68MM committed to 10 players for the 2021 season, and they’ll of course need to round out their roster with pre-arbitration players earning somewhere in the vicinity of the league minimum. The club has just $35MM in guaranteed contracts on the books in 2022 and $36MM in 2023, with zero dollars in guarantees beginning in 2024.

 

The Blue Jays’ front office has spoken openly about its desire to add top-tier talent this winter as the organization continues a shift from a rebuilding mode to a win-now mindset. Last year’s signing of Hyun Jin Ryu set a precedent for acquiring high-end talent, and the Jays are known to have had interest in virtually every top free agent and trade candidate on this year’s market.

 

Thus far, that hasn’t resulted in much actual talent acquisition. Toronto has signed rebound candidates Robbie Ray and Tyler Chatwood, and they’re reportedly meeting with right-hander Kirby Yates today as the two sides inch closer to a potential agreement. But the Jays have also finished as a runner-up on several notable targets, including DJ LeMahieu and Lindor.

 

At this point, Springer appears to be the team’s priority among the market’s remaining big fish, though if he spurns their interest and lands with the Mets or an unexpected suitor, the Jays could intensify their pursuit of J.T. Realmuto and/or Trevor Bauer.

[Jays24]

Just f***ing sign already. Sick of these updates lol.

[G-Snarls]

Outbid the Mets right now by 10-15 million dollars while they're dealing with their PR disaster

[Jays24]

Outbid the Mets right now by 10-15 million dollars while they're deling with their PR disaster

 

Or they try to close the deal to cover up their PR disaster lol

[G-Snarls]

Or they try to close the deal to cover up their PR disaster lol

 

Springer's agent was apparently very tight with Porter. Whatever that is worth now IDK. I mean, Porter wasn't even the GM when the Mets started negotiating with Springer.

[Laika]

Springer's agent was apparently very tight with Porter. Whatever that is worth now IDK. I mean, Porter wasn't even the GM when the Mets started negotiating with Springer.

 

Porter said the dick pick wasn't his dick. Maybe it was Springer's agent's dick!

[wilko]

Porter said the dick pick wasn't his dick. Maybe it was Springer's agent's dick!

 

We need to get to the bottom of this dick fiasco. They will have to do a dick lineup and compare dicks to the sent texts.

[Laika]

We need to get to the bottom of this dick fiasco. They will have to do a dick lineup and compare dicks to the sent texts.

 

Dick Fiasco is a great name.

[Virgil_Hiltz]

Dick Fiasco is a great name.

 

Went to school with a guy whos last name phonically sound like "squeeze" and his first name was Richard but naturally we all called him dick!