Report: "Mutual Interest" Between Brandon Lowe and Blue Jays

[Leo Morgenstern]

Reporting from the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas, Sportsnet's Shi Davidi and Ben Nicholson-Smith suggest there is "a little mutual interest" between the Toronto Blue Jays and Brandon Lowe. However, they note that any talks between the two sides are "still in their initial stages."

The second baseman makes a lot of sense as a target for Toronto. His 35 home runs, 96 RBI, 121 wRC+, and 4.9 fWAR would have led all Blue Jays hitters in 2026. Even better, he hits from the left-hand side, while the team's top three projected hitters for 2027 (Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Alejandro Kirk, and Kazuma Okamoto) all bat righty. Defensively speaking, the Jays have room at the keystone. Ernie Clement started at second this past season, but he is best-suited for a utility role. 

The downside when it comes to Lowe is that he received a qualifying offer from the Pirates. The Blue Jays will likely sign one QO free agent this winter, but it's harder to imagine they'd sign two. That means adding Lowe could prevent them from pursuing any of the other seven players who received qualifying offers.

View full rumor

[Eat My Shatkins]

He and Suzuki are my top two hopeful position player signings for the Jays.

Hopefully they can come to an agreement and this isn't just another big bat FA driving up his price on the market.

[jaysblue]

I would be worried about Lowe repeating his 2026 performance. Seems like a guy who can go back to being a 2-3 WAR guy. Has never been a consistent 4-WAR player. 

Jazz without a QO attached is a no-brainer IMO. Younger, and offers a nice power/speed combo. Even after his worst offensive season, was still worth 3.5 fWAR. I think there is more upside with Jazz than a player like Lowe. Only downside with Jazz is his personality and questions on whether he would be a problem in the clubhouse. 

[Super Jays]

I'd prefer Suzuki if they're only going to sign one QO free agent, unless they're thinking Sato can play corner outfield.  Suzuki still seems like the safer choice.