Offseason Roster Thread 2025-26

[jaysblue]

29 minutes ago, jmomcc said:

Their long term plan should be too be bad for at least the next three years and draft well. And figure out what succeeds in their park. 

They signed him to a team-friendly extension through 2030 worth only $63.5M with a club option for 2031. Rockies aren't parting with Tovar until 2028 at the earliest. Also, not going to trade him in order to dump Bryant's contract lol. 

[jmomcc]

13 minutes ago, jaysblue said:

They signed him to a team-friendly extension through 2030 worth only $63.5M with a club option for 2031. Rockies aren't parting with Tovar until 2028 at the earliest. Also, not going to trade him in order to dump Bryant's contract lol. 

If i was them i would because there is no point in having payroll at all right now. I just want draft picks and leave roster spots open to try to find guys. 

[jaysblue]

3 minutes ago, jmomcc said:

If i was them i would because there is no point in having payroll at all right now. I just want draft picks and leave roster spots open to try to find guys. 

Somewhat agreed, but Tovar is still only 24. He's one of those guys they would be looking to find. If he was 28-29, understandable. 

[leaffie]

3 hours ago, Omar said:

You know we laugh but his story has tragic arc.  First round pick, to rookie sensation, all-star game selection and then opening day starter.  All that and then a steep decline that no one saw coming. I hope he manages to find a roster spot with somebody but it doesn't look good. Sad.

Tragic is the right word.  I find it incredibly sad for a young man to have  such a promising future, and it all goes so wrong so quickly.  I really hope he can turn it around, get healthy and live his dream.

[Jays24]

21 hours ago, Jonn said:

I don’t know if I am ready to accept Berrios is completely useless yet. Like not even good enough to be the 5th Starter.

He'll be fine as long as the rumours of him being butthurt about being pulled from the rotation and then left off the playoff rosters are false.  Ill always trust a guy with proven track record like his. 

Now while I didnt expect Springer to be as good as he was last year, I still didnt think he was totally washed and a DFA candidate like some.  I have the same belief in Berrios still being a good starter.  

[jaysblue]

What are your thoughts on Justin Verlander as another starter? Seems more durable than Scherzer and had more success in 2025. He would definitely benefit pitching in front of this Jays defense and would have a chance at another ring in Toronto. He's had some of his most memorable starts in Toronto and is familiar with the city. Would slide in nicely as the No. 4/5 starter behind Gausman, Bieber and Yesavage. 

Would rather sign him to a deal around $15M for one-year over Scherzer or signing Bassitt to a 2-3 year deal. 

[jaysblue]

47 minutes ago, Jays24 said:

He'll be fine as long as the rumours of him being butthurt about being pulled from the rotation and then left off the playoff rosters are false.  Ill always trust a guy with proven track record like his. 

Now while I didnt expect Springer to be as good as he was last year, I still didnt think he was totally washed and a DFA candidate like some.  I have the same belief in Berrios still being a good starter.  

Yeah as a 5th starter, you can definitely do a lot worse. Only thing is the contract sucks and will continue to suck unless he returns to being a 2-3 WAR pitcher. 

If he is sour on the organization now by being pulled from the rotation and it becomes a clubhouse issue, definitely gotta dump him. Hopefully that isn't the case. 

[Stangstag]

1 hour ago, jaysblue said:

What are your thoughts on Justin Verlander as another starter? Seems more durable than Scherzer and had more success in 2025. He would definitely benefit pitching in front of this Jays defense and would have a chance at another ring in Toronto. He's had some of his most memorable starts in Toronto and is familiar with the city. Would slide in nicely as the No. 4/5 starter behind Gausman, Bieber and Yesavage. 

Would rather sign him to a deal around $15M for one-year over Scherzer or signing Bassitt to a 2-3 year deal. 

I’d rather not sign any of those guys. 

[Laika]

2 hours ago, jaysblue said:

What are your thoughts on Justin Verlander as another starter? Seems more durable than Scherzer and had more success in 2025. He would definitely benefit pitching in front of this Jays defense and would have a chance at another ring in Toronto. He's had some of his most memorable starts in Toronto and is familiar with the city. Would slide in nicely as the No. 4/5 starter behind Gausman, Bieber and Yesavage. 

Would rather sign him to a deal around $15M for one-year over Scherzer or signing Bassitt to a 2-3 year deal. 

Set sights higher 

Verlander is a last resort guy for me. End of the off-season and missed out on others... fine.

[bronson44]

Would Ramon Urias be a good idea for a backup infielder spot? He was non tendered.

[Stangstag]

1 hour ago, bronson44 said:

Would Ramon Urias be a good idea for a backup infielder spot? He was non tendered.

Maybe… but do we need a backup IF? If Bo is retained we have 3 guys that can play SS and 2B, and 2 guys that can handle 3B. And probably someone in the minors that could be a bench guy.

I suppose he’s better than IKF

[abola2121]

2 hours ago, bronson44 said:

Would Ramon Urias be a good idea for a backup infielder spot? He was non tendered.

Forget it.

He's another baserunning liability who's never had more than 3 stolen bases in a single season.

[Pendleton]

MLBTR posted an article indicating that teams were showing interest in converting Helsley to starting. Part of their explanation was that the starting pitching market is weak this off season. Immediately made me wonder if that makes a Berrios trade more possible, than it perhaps would have been in a more typical pitching market. 

 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/tigers-among-teams-interested-in-ryan-helsley-as-starting-pitcher.html

[John_Havok]

21 hours ago, jaysblue said:

What are your thoughts on Justin Verlander as another starter? Seems more durable than Scherzer and had more success in 2025. He would definitely benefit pitching in front of this Jays defense and would have a chance at another ring in Toronto. He's had some of his most memorable starts in Toronto and is familiar with the city. Would slide in nicely as the No. 4/5 starter behind Gausman, Bieber and Yesavage. 

Would rather sign him to a deal around $15M for one-year over Scherzer or signing Bassitt to a 2-3 year deal. 

Gausman, Bieber, Yesavage, Verlander, Berrios.... would that be markedly better than Gausman, Bieber Yesavage, Lauer, Berrios? 

[Laika]

1 hour ago, Pendleton said:

MLBTR posted an article indicating that teams were showing interest in converting Helsley to starting. Part of their explanation was that the starting pitching market is weak this off season. Immediately made me wonder if that makes a Berrios trade more possible, than it perhaps would have been in a more typical pitching market. 

 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/tigers-among-teams-interested-in-ryan-helsley-as-starting-pitcher.html

The Nimmo for Semien swap makes me think a Berrios trade could be possible 

3/$68.1 is gross for Berrios 

Benintendi? 
Tyler O'Neill? 
Yoshida? 
Javy Baez (2/$48M)?
Rendon? Kikuchi? Soler? 
Sean Manaea?
Bryan Reynolds?
Yu Darvish? Jake Cronenworth?
Arenado?

Most of these make no sense. Just rattling off some bad contracts. If some other team values Berrios' innings and thinks he's a 1.5 WAR pitcher there might be some fit. But the Blue Jays may have floored any possibility of a deal with the phantom IL stint. 
 

[John_Havok]

26 minutes ago, Laika said:

The Nimmo for Semien swap makes me think a Berrios trade could be possible 

3/$68.1 is gross for Berrios 

Benintendi? 
Tyler O'Neill? 
Yoshida? 
Javy Baez (2/$48M)?
Rendon? Kikuchi? Soler? 
Sean Manaea?
Bryan Reynolds?
Yu Darvish? Jake Cronenworth?
Arenado?

Most of these make no sense. Just rattling off some bad contracts. If some other team values Berrios' innings and thinks he's a 1.5 WAR pitcher there might be some fit. But the Blue Jays may have floored any possibility of a deal with the phantom IL stint. 
 

Keep in mind, while the actual dollar amount for Berrios is gross... his CBT hit is 18.7. It's not as gross as it seems. 

[Brownie19]

On 11/22/2025 at 1:57 PM, jaysblue said:

I don't see the Rockies wanting to trade Tovar to clear Bryant's contract. Tovar is part of their long term plans. 

The Rockies have a plan?  Are you sure?

[Brownie19]

23 hours ago, jaysblue said:

What are your thoughts on Justin Verlander as another starter? Seems more durable than Scherzer and had more success in 2025. He would definitely benefit pitching in front of this Jays defense and would have a chance at another ring in Toronto. He's had some of his most memorable starts in Toronto and is familiar with the city. Would slide in nicely as the No. 4/5 starter behind Gausman, Bieber and Yesavage. 

Would rather sign him to a deal around $15M for one-year over Scherzer or signing Bassitt to a 2-3 year deal. 

It's wild that Verlander will be 43 next year.  What a beast.  His age 39 season is still mindboggling.  18-4, 1.75 ERA, 6.1 fWAR.

He's one of the greats.

[Laika]

1 hour ago, John_Havok said:

Keep in mind, while the actual dollar amount for Berrios is gross... his CBT hit is 18.7. It's not as gross as it seems. 

Recalculated after a trade apparently. I have never heard this before but it was in the Nimmo/Semien MLBTR article. 

 

" Since luxury tax figures are re-calculated to account for just remaining money owed in the wake of trades, Semien’s tax number is $24MM, and Nimmo has a $19.25MM figure (when factoring in the $5MM Texas is getting from New York)."

[Spanky__99]

21 hours ago, Laika said:

Set sights higher 

Verlander is a last resort guy for me. End of the off-season and missed out on others... fine.

Exactly, did we sign Bo and Cease in this scenario or Tucker and Ranger???

[John_Havok]

Food for thought on the Verlander thing...

Last season he was basically Berrios with .5 HRs less per 9 innings. I think his days of being an ace are firmly in the rearview. Much like Scherzer last year he's probably a guy to hold down the back of a rotation, but... Berrios is already there. 

If Verlander is coming in, Berrios probably has to be gone... or hurt. 

[Spanky__99]

20 hours ago, Stangstag said:

Maybe… but do we need a backup IF? If Bo is retained we have 3 guys that can play SS and 2B, and 2 guys that can handle 3B. And probably someone in the minors that could be a bench guy.

I suppose he’s better than IKF

That was a joke, friendo? lol

[Spanky__99]

13 minutes ago, John_Havok said:

Food for thought on the Verlander thing...

Last season he was basically Berrios with .5 HRs less per 9 innings. I think his days of being an ace are firmly in the rearview. Much like Scherzer last year he's probably a guy to hold down the back of a rotation, but... Berrios is already there. 

If Verlander is coming in, Berrios probably has to be gone... or hurt. 

I don't think so, his velo didn't drop until the 2nd half the numbers were the same, I think it's just a case of injury to be honest. Or I hope, we'll see this upcoming season. 

[Jays24]

Tucker could be the better overall player but Im prioritizing Bo at 2B.  Please comeback... the vibes wont be the same.

Just dont take the demotion to 2B to heart, practically every MLB team sees you there lol. 

[Sorrow]

I wouldn’t be shocked if we see Berrios go down for TJS early in 2026. He had a decrease in stuff, decrease in command, elbows don’t typically cause problems and get better.

[Pendleton]

2 hours ago, Laika said:

The Nimmo for Semien swap makes me think a Berrios trade could be possible 

3/$68.1 is gross for Berrios 

Benintendi? 
Tyler O'Neill? 
Yoshida? 
Javy Baez (2/$48M)?
Rendon? Kikuchi? Soler? 
Sean Manaea?
Bryan Reynolds?
Yu Darvish? Jake Cronenworth?
Arenado?

Most of these make no sense. Just rattling off some bad contracts. If some other team values Berrios' innings and thinks he's a 1.5 WAR pitcher there might be some fit. But the Blue Jays may have floored any possibility of a deal with the phantom IL stint. 
 

I was just looking at Luis Severino, I wonder if that makes some sense for both sides. Same age, very similar projections to Berrios but slightly better, only costs 2M more this season. The kicker for us would be the lesser commitment. Both can opt out after 2026 but Berrios ($48M/2) would be walking away from much more than Severino (1 year $22M) and seems far less likely to do so. From our end I think we stand a good chance of getting the better starter in 2026 but also of having the payroll flexibility a year sooner. 

 

From the A's perspective, Severino publicly stated his dissatisfaction with their home park situation. They signed him to fill a particular innings eater role and likely will have trouble adding any good arms in FA to replace him, especially in this market. A straight up swap for another veteran SP seems to make some sense. 

[glory]

1 hour ago, Laika said:

Recalculated after a trade apparently. I have never heard this before but it was in the Nimmo/Semien MLBTR article. 

 

" Since luxury tax figures are re-calculated to account for just remaining money owed in the wake of trades, Semien’s tax number is $24MM, and Nimmo has a $19.25MM figure (when factoring in the $5MM Texas is getting from New York)."

Yeah I think I read Gimenez has a $19M tax hit (give or take) for the Jays even though he made $10M last season and will be $15M this coming season due to the CBT hit being recalculated after a trade. I'm guessing Berrios if traded will go to a $22M CBT hit (18-24-24) but not sure how it works when it comes to player options. The only guaranteed year he has left is 2026 for $18M so maybe that's all it goes off. He doesn't have a buyout so that's not going to be factored in.

Maybe Berrios + something for Severino would make some sense but I doubt the A's would want to take on an extra year at $24M. Hard to find something that makes sense for both sides, but if Berrios is tradeable even in a Nimmo/Semien sort of way (contract swap) then I think they should go for it.

 

[John_Havok]

1 hour ago, Spanky__99 said:

I don't think so, his velo didn't drop until the 2nd half the numbers were the same, I think it's just a case of injury to be honest. Or I hope, we'll see this upcoming season. 

Possibly. I was just comparing results as opposed to anything under the hood. 

They both project at 1.6 fWAR for 2026.

[Spanky__99]

39 minutes ago, John_Havok said:

Possibly. I was just comparing results as opposed to anything under the hood. 

They both project at 1.6 fWAR for 2026.

Oh yeah, I understand, his RA9 WAR was right on track with his career numbers at the half way point last season, I was surprised to see the total late in the year, it plummeted. Another reason, I believe he was legit hurt.

[Spanky__99]

1 hour ago, Sorrow said:

I wouldn’t be shocked if we see Berrios go down for TJS early in 2026. He had a decrease in stuff, decrease in command, elbows don’t typically cause problems and get better.

Didn't he have minor surgery to clean the elbow? I think he did.

Oops my bad he didn't...

 

Quote

No recent surgery has been reported for José Berrios; he was placed on the injured list in late September 2025 with right elbow inflammation, but an MRI revealed no structural damage. He was done for the season and did not participate in the World Series, although he has since resumed throwing. There are no reports of him having any recent or upcoming surgery, despite the initial concern about his elbow injury.