Blue Jays Discussion Thread (2026)

[SpencerBateman]

On 9/25/2026 at 4:37 PM, Stangstag said:

Plus he looks exactly like the type our front office would create as a custom player in MLB the Show

He almost hit .400 one time. That’s the type of player you give 12/500m to.  12/600m even because it’s Toronto and taxes. We need .400 hitters.  Hispanic.  Perennial all star.   Good body.  Fast.  Puts fans in the seats.  They will pay for themselves.  

[Brownie19]

Toronto Blue Jays (@bluejays) • Instagram reel

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31K likes, 152 comments - bluejays on September 27, 2026: "The cutest water dump yet 🥹🤍 #BlueJays50".

This is the only acceptable water dump I will support.

[Jays24]

Cant wait to disagree with everyone with what this team will need to become good again lol.  

[Sorrow]

As others have said I think an upgrade at 2B is necessary but a bench of Smith and Clement backing up the IF and one of the corners isn’t bad. I do think Suzuki is someone the front office should push for in a corner, and Arraez or Lowe at 2B would be a nice upgrade.

 

its going to be an interesting off season.

[John_Havok]

8 hours ago, Jays24 said:

Cant wait to disagree with everyone with what this team will need to become good again lol.  

I know right?

More defense, more contact hitters, less reliance on HRs and a few more guys in the pen like Little is clearly the way to go.

[Brownie19]

3 hours ago, Sorrow said:

As others have said I think an upgrade at 2B is necessary but a bench of Smith and Clement backing up the IF and one of the corners isn’t bad. I do think Suzuki is someone the front office should push for in a corner, and Arraez or Lowe at 2B would be a nice upgrade.

 

its going to be an interesting off season.

If Smith and Clement become utility bench players, we're in a fantastic position.  I'm actually find if those 2 platoon at 2nd, while providing depth at SS, 3rd and LF - but only if we add impact bats elsewhere.

[Carlos Danger]

It was probably discussed here, but I was out of pocket yesterday. I noticed Vlad wasn't in the line -up for the last game. Was that to spare him from boos etc after the 0-4 game Saturday (even though they would never admit that) or "rest" or legit injury??

 

Thanks

[Laika]

So 2027 payroll looks to be around $239m or so, before any additions. 

I think they will explore the SP market for depth but land back with Bieber on a much cheaper pillow deal, maybe $8m or so. That's your SP5 behind Ponce. 

Cease, Soriano, Yesavage, Ponce, Bieber.... Miles (swing)... Arrighetti (AAA), Berrios (IL for 1 months), Bloss, Bowden, Tiedemann, Stanifer, King, Perry.

I don't think the pen requires a big investment. 

That does leave a good amount of money to try and improve the bats. 

[Brownie19]

Teruaki Sato?

[Carlos Danger]

38 minutes ago, Brownie19 said:

Teruaki Sato?

No thanks, I'm driving.

[Terminator]

I'm down for bringing Bieber back on a cheap deal but he is so unreliable that if we do sign him, I think we need to bring in another SP on top of it. Cease, Trey, and Ponce ended the year hurt and Soriano wasn't looking so hot either. Adding Bieber to that mix might not be enough.

Maybe Bieber and Gausman? But that would probably add close to 30M AAV to next year's payroll and we still need to add 2 or 3 bats. 

[Carlos Danger]

Wondering if the Jays could pry Michael Massey away from the Royals for an efficient cost to play 2b?

I have read some speculation that the Royals might trade him with arb year coming up and FA in two years.

[Terminator]

I wonder if the Jays will kick the tires on one of the Japanese pitchers. Seems like there are two main options: Hiromi Itoh and Kaima Taira.

Itoh is 5'9", 180 pounds and sits 92–94 with a deep arsenal, including a splitter, which is always enough to get Pete Walker to raise a glass.

Taira is more interesting. He's 5'8", 220 pounds, which makes the mound visits with Kirk reason enough to sign him. Apparently he's very analytically inclined and really into pitch data and biomechanics. He can touch 99 and throws something like eight different pitches. He'd be a fun guy to get.

 

[glory]

Latest from Mitch Bannon:

Quote

 

This offseason, said a league source who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss offseason plans, the Jays are expected to pursue Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki. His 26 homers would’ve ranked second on the Jays this year and his .841 OPS would’ve led all qualified Jays by nearly 80 points.

 

Quote

Toronto will also certainly check in with Teruaki Sato, a powerful left-handed third baseman/outfielder expected to be posted by Nippon Professional Baseball’s Hanshin Tigers this offseason. Signing either Sato or Suzuki would bring power to a corner spot for Toronto, while also making the Jays truly relevant in the Japanese market.

 

Quote

The Jays, said a team source who spoke on condition on anonymity to describe the club’s inner workings, discussed a move for a significant middle infielder at this year’s trade deadline. 

 

Quote

The Jays, said a league source who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide insight, have a real shot to bring Bieber back. The starter and his family loved Toronto and he’ll likely be amenable to a pillow contract to rebuild his value after back-to-back injury-riddled seasons.

 

Quote

There’s also Kevin Gausman, who was traded by the Jays at the deadline and will enter free agency after the postseason. Like Springer and Scherzer, it’s unclear if Gausman’s playing days are over. If he returns, a reunion with Toronto seems likely.

 

[Laika]

53 minutes ago, Terminator said:

I'm down for bringing Bieber back on a cheap deal but he is so unreliable that if we do sign him, I think we need to bring in another SP on top of it. Cease, Trey, and Ponce ended the year hurt and Soriano wasn't looking so hot either. Adding Bieber to that mix might not be enough.

Maybe Bieber and Gausman? But that would probably add close to 30M AAV to next year's payroll and we still need to add 2 or 3 bats. 

Toronto can play the three old friends off of each other 

• Gausman - best durability and quality on a one year deal
• Bassitt - durability but performance questions (no real "upside") 
• Bieber - guarantees nothing but should be the cheapest, and does have "upside" theoretically 

If Bassitt is $12M and Bieber is $9M who do you want? I feel like Toronto would want the innings more. 

[Omar]

2027 Bold Predictions thread preview:

Okamoto and Suzuki combine for 400 strike outs in 2027!

[Omar]

1 hour ago, Laika said:

Toronto can play the three old friends off of each other 

• Gausman - best durability and quality on a one year deal
• Bassitt - durability but performance questions (no real "upside") 
• Bieber - guarantees nothing but should be the cheapest, and does have "upside" theoretically 

If Bassitt is $12M and Bieber is $9M who do you want? I feel like Toronto would want the innings more. 

I dont want a 45 year old Bassitt pitching for the Jays.

Gasman has two more years left in him so a reunion would make sense.

 

[Laika]

Realistically I don't want any of them

Toronto will do their usual thing and consider literally everybody 

Probably someone like Boyd/Flaherty/Eflin 

[Terminator]

While we are talking Jays retreads, I don't think there is any chance in hell Bo opts out but what about trading for him? Jays get Bo and 10M a year to pay for some of his contract and the Mets get a 40FV?

[Laika]

Just now, Terminator said:

While we are talking Jays retreads, I don't think there is any chance in hell Bo opts out but what about trading for him? Jays get Bo and 10M a year to pay for some of his contract and the Mets get a 40FV?

I thought about this yesterday

I do think the Mets would pay it down slightly to get out of it 

[PitaBaby]

3 hours ago, Brownie19 said:

Teruaki Sato?

Sato is an absolute monster. I'd take him in a heartbeat. And he's only 27.

[bluejaysinternNo5]

I'll take one Michael King with a side of Sato, please.

[43211234]

I like targeting Sato but he had a 66.9% contact rate in NPB this year. He's going to strikeout over 30% of the time in MLB and never walked as much as Murakami.

 

Pretty risky profile I think. How the Blue Jays evaluate his OF defence is a wildcard too.

 

His isolated slugging has been over .300 in each of the last two years. The power is real.

[jaysblue]

6 hours ago, Carlos Danger said:

It was probably discussed here, but I was out of pocket yesterday. I noticed Vlad wasn't in the line -up for the last game. Was that to spare him from boos etc after the 0-4 game Saturday (even though they would never admit that) or "rest" or legit injury??

 

Thanks

Most likely. They love to baby him and are afraid to hurt his feelings. 

If Vlad continues to struggle next season, they better move him down in the lineup. 

[jaysblue]

Some other interesting ex-MLB arms who had success in Japan and who could potentially come back to the MLB:

• Forrest Whitley 
• Anderson Espinoza
• Pedro Avila
• Spencer Howard

 

 

[jaysblue]

I think they need an upgrade at 2B, whether that means going after Jazz, bringing Bo back if he opts out, trying to work out a trade with the Mets, or looking at someone like Lowe or Arraez. Clement should go back to being more of a super-utility guy who gets around 300–400 ABs rather than being counted on as the everyday second baseman.

In left field, I’d love Suzuki, but I could also see them putting together a solid platoon with Lukes and another right-handed bat. Hell, bring back Randal Grichuk haha.

As for the rotation, I definitely think they add another arm. Maybe it’s a reunion with Gausman, bringing Bieber back on a pillow contract, or signing someone like Boyd, Eflin or Flaherty, as others have mentioned in this thread.

Ideally, though, I think they could still use another elite arm to pair with Dylan Cease. I’m just not sure how realistic that is.

Over 162 games, a healthy rotation of Cease, Soriano, Yesavage, Gausman or Bieber, and Ponce should be good enough to get you through a season. But in a short playoff series, I’d still feel a little uncomfortable with the options after Cease. Right now, they don’t really have that true 1A or strong No. 2 behind him.

Maybe Yesavage becomes that guy. We’ll see.

 

 

[jaysblue]

Spanky, you can send me that e-transfer anytime for our Clement bet. No rush though. 

[glory]

I wonder who the "significant middle infielder" the Jays were allegedly discussing at the deadline was. Aside from the FA class (Lowe, Chisholm, Arraez), there should be a few big money infielders potentially available in trades like Seager, Lindor, Bo, and possibly Marte. 

[Terminator]

17 minutes ago, jaysblue said:

In left field, I’d love Suzuki, but I could also see them putting together a solid platoon with Lukes and another right-handed bat. Hell, bring back Randal Grichuk haha.

Lukes is criminally underrated. Seems like everyone wants to roll with Barger in one corner OF spot and a FA signing in the other, but I'm not sure why Barger is being penciled in over Lukes.

I guess Lukes is old so maybe if you think his skillset will age poorly I could see wanting to move on, but Barger hasn't exactly established himself.

As for the right handed hitter to pair with Lukes, that guy could simply be Santander. Not sure I have enough faith in him for anything other than a short side platoon right now anyway (i.e. I would not pencil Santander in as my DH to start the year).

[Terminator]

15 minutes ago, glory said:

I wonder who the "significant middle infielder" the Jays were allegedly discussing at the deadline was. Aside from the FA class (Lowe, Chisholm, Arraez), there should be a few big money infielders potentially available in trades like Seager, Lindor, Bo, and possibly Marte. 

Seems like CJ Abrams' name keeps getting floated out there too