Offseason Roster Thread 2025-26

[John_Havok]

7 minutes ago, Spanky__99 said:

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

Oops my bad he didn't...

 

 

The elbow cleanup surgery was Yimi. 

[Spanky__99]

1 minute ago, John_Havok said:

The elbow cleanup surgery was Yimi. 

So he might be a ticking time bomb, (I mean, all pitchers are) but, Sorrow could be right... Welp!

[glory]

Hopefully he is being genuine, and this is not just stalling until he teams up with Shohei. Even if he doesn't sign with the Jays, sign anywhere other than the Dodgers. My guess is the Giants would make the most sense for him given the West Coast, a team with money to spend, and wanting to beat the Dodgers, but hopefully Boss Atkins can work his magic. 

[Laika]

I really like Imai but can a team have too many splitters? 

If you face Gausman, Yesavage, Imai in a row do you get used to the pitch? 

Maybe the completely different arm action would help. He throws from such a low slot, like 20 degrees. And his slider does the SAME weird s*** as Yesavage's where it doesn't move glove side. But from the opposite end of the release point spectrum. 

I would love to see them in the same rotation just for Weird Baseball reasons. 

[Eat My Shatkins]

In a perfect world the Jays land Imai and he turns into a stud, Yesavage proves to be a legit, sustainable stud, and Ricky T comes back, lights up AAA and by mid season makes his way onto the MLB roster and is also a stud. Three headed SP monster for the next decade.

[BatFlip]

18 minutes ago, Eat My Shatkins said:

In a perfect world the Jays land Imai and he turns into a stud, Yesavage proves to be a legit, sustainable stud, and Ricky T comes back, lights up AAA and by mid season makes his way onto the MLB roster and is also a stud. Three headed SP monster for the next decade.

Stop getting me all worked up.  

It would be absolutely sensational if Ricky T. can push his way to the MLB and be another low-cost high-stuff guy in the rotation.  Now imagine if Johnny King develops a decent change-up and starts rising through the minors.  True prospect porn.

[jaysblue]

5 hours ago, Brownie19 said:

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.

He had a good season in San Fran. Kind of under the radar. 

Made 29 starts, pitched 152 innings, 8.11 K/9, 3.85 ERA, 3.85 FIP and 2.2 WAR. 

The baseball fan in me would love to see another future Hall of Famer pitch in a Jays uniform for one season. What a treat that would be! 

[Laika]

I don't think the Blue Jays front office is looking to re-roll on the Max Scherzer experience 

I mean the signing was an unmitigated disaster and complete waste of $15M until he made two extremely lucky miracle playoff starts, lol 

[glory]

I'm not sure what Imai will look like at the big league level, but I think with Bieber back in the fold, the Jays can afford to take a chance on upside now. The "grizzled vets who eat up innings over 162" have value, but as we saw with Yesavage in the playoffs, you really need to add impact where you can. If they feel Imai has that potential, then go for it. The added benefit is that it won't cost a pick like Cease, Suarez, Valdez, and King.

Of course, the Jays adding an impact player from Japan is something I'd actually have to see to believe. Maybe the World Series run (which got a lot of viewers in Japan too) created some awareness with the Japanese market. 

[jaysblue]

7 hours ago, John_Havok said:

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

As a baseball fan, wouldn't you love to see another Hall of Famer like Verlander for one season in a Jays uniform? 

Plus, Kate Upton watching games at the Rogers Centre! 

[Vancouverite]

To the folks following minor leagues more closely. What's the book on Bloss right now?

Im hoping Ricky T becomes an option for us this year ... workload will be a concern

Gage Stanifer finished at AA and if he continues to strike guys out at a ridiculous 14k/9 IP pace maybe he becomes a late season option like Yesavage

Hoping Francis can rebound too and be a dependable #6 guy, long arm

We have some potential in the wings!

[Brownie19]

1 hour ago, BatFlip said:

Stop getting me all worked up.  

It would be absolutely sensational if Ricky T. can push his way to the MLB and be another low-cost high-stuff guy in the rotation.  Now imagine if Johnny King develops a decent change-up and starts rising through the minors.  True prospect porn.

 

16 minutes ago, Vancouverite said:

To the folks following minor leagues more closely. What's the book on Bloss right now?

Im hoping Ricky T becomes an option for us this year ... workload will be a concern

Gage Stanifer finished at AA and if he continues to strike guys out at a ridiculous 14k/9 IP pace maybe he becomes a late season option like Yesavage

Hoping Francis can rebound too and be a dependable #6 guy, long arm

We have some potential in the wings!

I believe the correct term is "waves of talent"

[Brownie19]

56 minutes ago, Laika said:

I don't think the Blue Jays front office is looking to re-roll on the Max Scherzer experience 

I mean the signing was an unmitigated disaster and complete waste of $15M until he made two extremely lucky miracle playoff starts, lol 

There was that stretch in August that was incredible fun to watch.  My brain agrees with you, but my heart absolutely LOVED watching him pitch for the Jays this year.  This year was so f'ing incredible for so many different reasons.

[Brownie19]

50 minutes ago, jaysblue said:

As a baseball fan, wouldn't you love to see another Hall of Famer like Verlander for one season in a Jays uniform? 

Plus, Kate Upton watching games at the Rogers Centre! 

I would yes, but I don't see it happening.  Actually, it probably makes a lot of sense that he ends up back in Detroit to finish his career off.  That one kind of seems like fate (once you get past the fact that you're in Detroit).

The young emerging Tigers could use a vet like Verlander.

[Spanky__99]

1 hour ago, BatFlip said:

Stop getting me all worked up.  

It would be absolutely sensational if Ricky T. can push his way to the MLB and be another low-cost high-stuff guy in the rotation.  Now imagine if Johnny King develops a decent change-up and starts rising through the minors.  True prospect porn.

Dare to dream fellas... 

[Spanky__99]

1 hour ago, glory said:

I'm not sure what Imai will look like at the big league level, but I think with Bieber back in the fold, the Jays can afford to take a chance on upside now. The "grizzled vets who eat up innings over 162" have value, but as we saw with Yesavage in the playoffs, you really need to add impact where you can. If they feel Imai has that potential, then go for it. The added benefit is that it won't cost a pick like Cease, Suarez, Valdez, and King.

Of course, the Jays adding an impact player from Japan is something I'd actually have to see to believe. Maybe the World Series run (which got a lot of viewers in Japan too) created some awareness with the Japanese market. 

Kikuchi would have done that, heck, even Muni, lol.

[Pendleton]

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/munetaka-murakami-landing-spots-mlb-free-agency-npb/

 

They list us as the fourth most likely landing spot for Murakami, for whatever it's worth 

[Stangstag]

2 hours ago, Laika said:

I don't think the Blue Jays front office is looking to re-roll on the Max Scherzer experience 

I mean the signing was an unmitigated disaster and complete waste of $15M until he made two extremely lucky miracle playoff starts, lol 

That’s kinda exactly what he was signed for though? I’ll admit he looked toast after that Royals start, but he pulled it together and had a couple key starts for us in the playoffs… including holding the Dodgers to 2 runs in game 7 of the WS which is crazy when looking back.

I think most of us expected somewhere in the 100 innings range plus a few playoff starts. We got slightly less than what we wanted from him but it was enough.

[Stangstag]

3 minutes ago, Pendleton said:

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/munetaka-murakami-landing-spots-mlb-free-agency-npb/

 

They list us as the fourth most likely landing spot for Murakami, for whatever it's worth 

I don’t see it.

[Stangstag]

2 hours ago, jaysblue said:

As a baseball fan, wouldn't you love to see another Hall of Famer like Verlander for one season in a Jays uniform? 

Plus, Kate Upton watching games at the Rogers Centre! 

No, the Scherzer experience was enough for me lol. I don’t like the idea of “owing it to the vet” to let him play if he sucks.

[Stangstag]

1 hour ago, Spanky__99 said:

Kikuchi would have done that, heck, even Muni, lol.

Sign Imai, trade for Kikuchi. Be the anti-Dodgers

[jmomcc]

3 hours ago, Vancouverite said:

To the folks following minor leagues more closely. What's the book on Bloss right now?

Im hoping Ricky T becomes an option for us this year ... workload will be a concern

Gage Stanifer finished at AA and if he continues to strike guys out at a ridiculous 14k/9 IP pace maybe he becomes a late season option like Yesavage

Hoping Francis can rebound too and be a dependable #6 guy, long arm

We have some potential in the wings!

Before he got injured fangraphs had him as a high probability back end starter who would debut last summer. 

I'd be really happy if two of yesavage, ricky and stanifer became starters long term. They all have some reliever risk. 

[Spanky__99]

4 hours ago, Vancouverite said:

To the folks following minor leagues more closely. What's the book on Bloss right now?

Im hoping Ricky T becomes an option for us this year ... workload will be a concern

Gage Stanifer finished at AA and if he continues to strike guys out at a ridiculous 14k/9 IP pace maybe he becomes a late season option like Yesavage

Hoping Francis can rebound too and be a dependable #6 guy, long arm

We have some potential in the wings!

Bloss was as high as #66 on the top 100 list last February and obviously since the injury he has dropped out, this is the latest on Bloss before he was injured so this is basically your go to in concern of Jake, here's his latest blurb...

 

5. Jake Bloss

RHP

Ht: 6'3" | Wt: 205 | B-T: R-R

Age: 23

BA Grade/Risk: 50/Medium.

Track Record: Bloss spent three seasons at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, then transferred to Georgetown in 2023. He broke out with a 2.58 ERA and 96 strikeouts in 76.2 innings to win Big East Conference pitcher of the year honors and was drafted by the Astros in the third round. Bloss bullied minor league competition out of the gate in 2024, earning a promotion to Double-A after just four starts. Houston called him up directly from Corpus Christi on June 21. Bloss exited his MLB debut with shoulder discomfort but returned in early July to make two starts. The Astros traded him to the Blue Jays as a part of the Yusei Kikuchi deadline deal.

Scouting Report: Bloss has a prototype pitcher’s build, standing 6-foot-3 with a strong, athletic build. He uses a semi-windup with a high leg lift before moving into his drop-and-drive mechanics. Bloss does a good job getting downhill, creating well-above-average extension that helps the release from his high, three-quarters arm slot play up. He mixes five pitch shapes: a four-seam fastball, cutter, slider, curveball and changeup. Bloss’ four-seam fastball is an above-average four-seamer that sits 93-95 mph and touches 98 with above-average ride and cut. His cutter is his primary secondary and sits 86-88 with a cutter-slider hybrid shape. His slider is designated by some as a sweeper and sits 81-83 with 11-12 inches of horizontal break. Both his slider and cutter show average-or-better command and the ability to miss bats. Against lefthanded hitters, Bloss mixes in a steady diet of his upper-80s changeup and upper-80s two-plane curveball. He lands all of his pitches at an average-or-better rate.

The Future: Bloss looks like a quality No. 5 starter ready to contribute in 2025.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 50. CH: 45. CUT: 55 | Control: 50.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Cutter: 55 | Control: 50.

[max silver]

4 hours ago, Spanky__99 said:

Bloss was as high as #66 on the top 100 list last February and obviously since the injury he has dropped out, this is the latest on Bloss before he was injured so this is basically your go to in concern of Jake, here's his latest blurb...

 

5. Jake Bloss

RHP

 

Ht: 6'3" | Wt: 205 | B-T: R-R

Age: 23

BA Grade/Risk: 50/Medium.

Track Record: Bloss spent three seasons at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, then transferred to Georgetown in 2023. He broke out with a 2.58 ERA and 96 strikeouts in 76.2 innings to win Big East Conference pitcher of the year honors and was drafted by the Astros in the third round. Bloss bullied minor league competition out of the gate in 2024, earning a promotion to Double-A after just four starts. Houston called him up directly from Corpus Christi on June 21. Bloss exited his MLB debut with shoulder discomfort but returned in early July to make two starts. The Astros traded him to the Blue Jays as a part of the Yusei Kikuchi deadline deal.

Scouting Report: Bloss has a prototype pitcher’s build, standing 6-foot-3 with a strong, athletic build. He uses a semi-windup with a high leg lift before moving into his drop-and-drive mechanics. Bloss does a good job getting downhill, creating well-above-average extension that helps the release from his high, three-quarters arm slot play up. He mixes five pitch shapes: a four-seam fastball, cutter, slider, curveball and changeup. Bloss’ four-seam fastball is an above-average four-seamer that sits 93-95 mph and touches 98 with above-average ride and cut. His cutter is his primary secondary and sits 86-88 with a cutter-slider hybrid shape. His slider is designated by some as a sweeper and sits 81-83 with 11-12 inches of horizontal break. Both his slider and cutter show average-or-better command and the ability to miss bats. Against lefthanded hitters, Bloss mixes in a steady diet of his upper-80s changeup and upper-80s two-plane curveball. He lands all of his pitches at an average-or-better rate.

The Future: Bloss looks like a quality No. 5 starter ready to contribute in 2025.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 50. CH: 45. CUT: 55 | Control: 50.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Cutter: 55 | Control: 50.

Hopefully Bloss is one of those guys who comes back from Tommy John with increased velocity and isn't a shadow of his former self ala Alek Manoah. I was excited to watch some of his starts during spring training when he had his good stuff and was sitting mid to upper 90's with the heater, but he looked awfully ordinary on the days where he was sitting in the low 90's.

[Joltin Joe]

12 hours ago, jaysblue said:

As a baseball fan, wouldn't you love to see another Hall of Famer like Verlander for one season in a Jays uniform? 

Plus, Kate Upton watching games at the Rogers Centre! 

Possible yes, a one year 15 million contract?

[jaysblue]

11 hours ago, Stangstag said:

No, the Scherzer experience was enough for me lol. I don’t like the idea of “owing it to the vet” to let him play if he sucks.

Haha.

Verlander was good last season though, so he would be an upgrade over Scherzer, but yeah he's going to be 43 and you might get a relapse to 2023, which would suck. 

Might be a January signing if the Jays strikeout on Cease, Imai, Suarez or anyone else. 

[jaysblue]

1 hour ago, Joltin Joe said:

Possible yes, a one year 15 million contract?

Yeah that's fair. Though maybe it's something the Jays look at in January once all the other top FA arms are off the market, not right now. 

I would be open to Verlander as the #4/5 starter at that price. 

[Jimcanuck]

2 hours ago, jaysblue said:

Haha.

Verlander was good last season though, so he would be an upgrade over Scherzer, but yeah he's going to be 43 and you might get a relapse to 2023, which would suck. 

Might be a January signing if the Jays strikeout on Cease, Imai, Suarez or anyone else. 

Dead cat bounces happen once only.

[L54]

I would rather give Devin Williams 3/45 than JV 1/15

[Laika]

14 hours ago, Stangstag said:

That’s kinda exactly what he was signed for though? I’ll admit he looked toast after that Royals start, but he pulled it together and had a couple key starts for us in the playoffs… including holding the Dodgers to 2 runs in game 7 of the WS which is crazy when looking back.

I think most of us expected somewhere in the 100 innings range plus a few playoff starts. We got slightly less than what we wanted from him but it was enough.

They projected as a fringe playoff team and he gave them 0.4 WAR, I think they were hoping to get 2 WAR and he might be a standings difference maker. That he ended up providing two good playoff starts is random dumb luck but yes it had value so in a sense it kind of worked out. 

And every other SP in the bucket last offseason other than JV was a total flop. Morton, Cobb, Buehler... Sugano... just looking at the 1 year geezers who got around $15M.