Leo Morgenstern

According to ESPN's Alden González, the Blue Jays have agreed to a two-year minor league contract with reliever Nic Enright. Enright, 28, finally made it to the majors in 2025, after cancer treatment derailed his career from 2022-24. The right-hander threw 31 innings for the Guardians in his rookie campaign, pitching to a 2.03 ERA and 3.75 xERA. He collected his first MLB win, hold, and save, while striking out 30 and limiting opponents to a .618 OPS. Unfortunately, Enright hit the injured list in September and underwent Tommy John surgery in October, ending his 2026 season before it could begin. Hence, the two-year minor league contract: He'll spend next season rehabbing in the Blue Jays organization, and, hopefully, he'll be ready to compete for a role with the team in 2027. Featured image courtesy of Jerome Miron-Imagn Images. View full rumor

Blue Jays star George Springer was among the MLB players included on Team Puerto Rico's 35-man preliminary roster for the upcoming World Baseball Classic. However, Antolín Maldonado Ríos of Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Día reports that Springer will not play in the tournament after all. According to the report, "Springer atribuyó su decisión a una lesión." ("Springer attributed his decision to an injury.") Presumably (read: hopefully), this is not a new injury issue, and Springer simply wants as much time as possible to fully recover from the various ailments that he played through this past year. Springer is eligible to play for Puerto Rico, the United States, and Panama in the World Baseball Classic, but he has never participated in the tournament. Featured image courtesy of Nick Turchiaro, Imagn Images. View full rumor

My DiamondCentric colleague Greggory Masterson has written some excellent articles about trade trees over at Twins Daily. Most recently, he drew a line linking Michael Cuddyer, Minnesota’s first-round pick in 1997, to a couple of current Twins, Austin Martin and Simeon Woods Richardson. Inspired by his writing, I wanted to trace the lineage of some recent Blue Jays trades. However, I was less concerned with the more broad-ranging concept of the “trade tree” and more interested in what I’m calling “trade strings.” The term “trade tree” is often used to describe, in the words of Harold Hutchison at Brewer Fanatic, “the future transactions stemming from any given trade.” In other words, as long as the tree starts with a trade, it can include transactions beyond just trades. For instance, I could draw you a line from Marco Scutaro to present-day Paxton Schultz. The Blue Jays traded for Scutaro in 2007 and later drafted Aaron Sanchez as a compensation pick for losing Scutaro to free agency. In 2019, the Jays traded Sanchez, Joe Biagini, and Cal Stevenson to the Astros for Derek Fisher, and in 2021, the Jays and Brewers swapped Fisher and Schultz. On the other hand, a trade string, as the name implies, needs to be a string of trades – and only trades. Sixteen players on Toronto's 40-man roster became Blue Jays via trade. I've listed them all below, in the order in which they joined the organization: Paxton Schultz Bowden Francis José Berríos Adam Macko Daulton Varsho Braydon Fisher Jonatan Clase Jake Bloss Joey Loperfido Tommy Nance Andrés Giménez Myles Straw Shane Bieber Louis Varland Brandon Valenzuela Chase Lee Most of these players aren't part of a trade string at all, meaning that no one they were traded for also joined the Blue Jays via trade. Take a look: Bowden Francis Blue Jays career: 62 games, 0.4 fWAR (2022-present) The Blue Jays acquired Bowden Francis and Trevor Richards from the Brewers in exchange for Rowdy Tellez. The Blue Jays selected Rowdy Tellez in the 2013 MLB Draft. Daulton Varsho Blue Jays career: 365 games, 7.3 fWAR (2023-present) The Blue Jays acquired Daulton Varsho from the Diamondbacks in exchange for Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Gabriel Moreno. The Blue Jays signed Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Gabriel Moreno as international free agents in 2016. Braydon Fisher Blue Jays career: 52 games, 0.8 fWAR (2025-present) The Blue Jays acquired Braydon Fisher from the Dodgers in exchange for Cavan Biggio. The Blue Jays selected Cavan Biggio in the 2016 MLB Draft. Jonatan Clase Blue Jays career: 41 games, 0.0 fWAR (2024-present) The Blue Jays acquired Jonatan Clase and Jacob Sharp from the Mariners for Yimi García. The Blue Jays signed Yimi García as a free agent in 2021. Tommy Nance Blue Jays career: 50 games, 0.8 (2024-present) The Blue Jays acquired Tommy Nance from the Padres in exchange for cash considerations. The Blue Jays acquired cash considerations from ticket sales, TV revenue, loonie dog nights, etc. Andrés Giménez Blue Jays career: 101 games, 1.0 fWAR (2025-present) The Blue Jays acquired Andrés Giménez and Nick Sandlin from the Guardians in exchange for Spencer Horwitz and Nick Mitchell. The Blue Jays selected Spencer Horwitz in the 2019 MLB Draft and Nick Mitchell in the 2024 MLB Draft. Shane Bieber Blue Jays career: 7 games, 0.3 fWAR (2025-present) The Blue Jays acquired Shane Bieber from the Guardians for Khal Stephen. The Blue Jays selected Khal Stephen in the 2024 MLB Draft. Louis Varland Blue Jays career: 23 games, 0.2 fWAR (2025-present) The Blue Jays acquired Louis Varland and Ty France from the Twins in exchange for Kendry Rojas and Alan Roden. The Blue Jays selected Alan Roden in the 2022 MLB Draft and signed Kendry Rojas as an international free agent in 2020. Chase Lee Blue Jays career: N/A The Blue Jays acquired Chase Lee in exchange for Johan Simon. The Blue Jays signed Johan Simon as an international free agent in 2020. However, the Blue Jays aren't without any active trade strings. Here's what we've got: Two-Trade Strings The following three Blue Jays were all acquired via trades, and at least one of the players the Blue Jays traded to acquire them was also acquired via trade. Paxton Schultz Blue Jays career: 13 games, 0.1 fWAR (2025-present) The Blue Jays acquired Paxton Schultz from the Brewers as the player to be named later in exchange for Derek Fisher. The Blue Jays acquired Derek Fisher from the Astros in exchange for Aaron Sanchez, Joe Biagini, and Cal Stevenson. The Blue Jays selected Aaron Sanchez in the 2010 MLB Draft, Joe Biagini in the 2015 Rule 5 draft, and Cal Stevenson in the 2018 MLB Draft. José Berríos Blue Jays career: 139 games, 8.0 fWAR (2021-present) The Blue Jays acquired José Berríos from the Twins in exchange for Austin Martin and Simeon Woods Richardson. The Blue Jays acquired Simeon Woods Richardson and Anthony Kay from the Mets in exchange for Marcus Stroman and cash. (The Blue Jays selected Austin Martin in the 2020 MLB Draft) The Blue Jays selected Marcus Stroman in the 2012 MLB Draft. Brandon Valenzuela (feat. Jake Bloss & Joey Loperfido) Valenzuela's Blue Jays career: N/A Bloss's Blue Jays career: N/A Loperfido's Blue Jays career: 84 games, 0.4 fWAR (2024-present) The Blue Jays acquired Brandon Valenzuela from the Padres in exchange for Will Wagner. The Blue Jays acquired Jake Bloss, Joey Loperfido, and Will Wagner from the Astros in exchange for Yusei Kikuchi. The Blue Jays signed Yusei Kikuchi as a free agent in 2022. The Three-Trade String The following Blue Jay was acquired via trade, and the player the Blue Jays traded to acquire him was acquired via trade, and the player the Blue Jays traded to acquire the player the Blue Jays traded to acquire him was also acquired via trade. Adam Macko Blue Jays career: N/A The Blue Jays acquired Adam Macko and Erik Swanson from the Mariners in exchange for Teoscar Hernández. The Blue Jays acquired Teoscar Hernández and Nori Aoki from the Astros in exchange for Francisco Liriano. The Blue Jays acquired Francisco Liriano, Reese McGuire, and Harold Ramírez from the Pirates in exchange for Drew Hutchison. The Blue Jays selected Drew Hutchison in the 2009 MLB Draft. At the head of the longest active Blue Jays trade string is Adam Macko, who has been on the 40-man roster for two years, although he's yet to make his MLB debut. The 24-year-old left-hander has outlasted Erik Swanson in the organization; Swanson was released in June. Macko and Swanson came to Toronto in the trade that sent long-time fan favourite Teoscar Hernández to Seattle. Hernández played parts of six seasons with the Jays, hitting 129 home runs in 609 games. He was an All-Star and a two-time Silver Slugger winner, even earning a handful of down-ballot MVP votes. To bring in Hernández, the Blue Jays parted with veteran Francisco Liriano. The southpaw pitched well for Toronto down the stretch in 2016 (49.1 IP, 2.92 ERA, 3.55 xERA) but struggled the following season (82.2 IP, 5.88 ERA, 5.07 xERA) before he was flipped to Houston. It all starts with Drew Hutchison, a low-round draft pick out of high school in 2009. He debuted for the Jays in 2012 and made 76 appearances (73 starts) for the club before they dealt him to the Pirates to knock over the first domino of the Adam Macko trade string. The TBD Trade String An eagle-eyed observer might have noticed one trade-acquired Blue Jay missing from my breakdown. Let me explain... Myles Straw Blue Jays career: 137 games, 1.8 fWAR (2025-present) The Blue Jays acquired Myles Straw, international bonus pool space, and cash considerations from the Guardians in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. The Guardians dealt Myles Straw to the Blue Jays for salary relief. Still, they were also supposed to (maybe) receive a PTBNL in the deal. If the Blue Jays are indeed sending anyone back to the Guardians (or if they already have?), we don't know who it is. So, it's possible (though unlikely) that there's another trade string waiting to materialize here. View full article

Add another name to the list of infielders the Toronto Blue Jays have checked in on this winter: Yoán Moncada. According to reporter Francys Romero, the Blue Jays have shown "early interest" in the 30-year-old third baseman, as have the Angels, Pirates, and White Sox. Moncada briefly debuted with the Red Sox in 2016 before he was traded to the White Sox as part of the package for Chris Sale. He spent the next eight years of his career with the South Siders. For one shining season in 2019, he looked like the generational superstar the White Sox thought they were trading for, but for the most part, he struggled with injuries and underperformance. Injuries (thumb and knee) continued to plague Moncada in 2025 with the Angels, but when he was on the field, he played reasonably well, hitting 12 home runs in 84 games, with a .783 OPS and 117 wRC+. Although he's a switch-hitter, Moncada has always been worse against left-handed pitching, and the Angels largely shielded him from southpaws. However, he was a legitimately productive hitter facing righties from the left-hand side. For what it's worth, the Blue Jays would reportedly like to add a lefty bat. That said, it's worth wondering if the Blue Jays really have enough at-bats to offer a player like Moncada. GM Ross Atkins might be just doing his due diligence on the infield market. After all, the Jays already have a much more promising lefty-batting third baseman in Addison Barger. The big-name infielders the Blue Jays have checked in on include Bo Bichette, Alex Bregman (link), Ketel Marte (link), and Kazuma Okamoto (link). Each of those players would be a substantial upgrade for Toronto's offense. As for Moncada, it's not a given that he would be enough of an upgrade to be worth his taking playing time away from the likes of Barger, Ernie Clement, Andrés Giménez, and Davis Schneider, Toronto's current infield alignment. So, what do Blue Jays fans think? Is this nothing more than smoke, or would you like to see Toronto make a serious offer to Yoán Moncada? Share your thoughts in our comments section below. Featured image courtesy of Gary A. Vasquez, Imagn Images. View full rumor

On Friday, the Associated Press reported that nine teams, including the Toronto Blue Jays, will pay the competitive balance tax for the 2025 MLB season. Toronto's bill came in at $13,609,719 on a $286,135,551 CBT payroll. The Blue Jays avoided paying the luxury tax in 2024, so they were able to reset their penalties. That means that, unlike the Dodgers, Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Astros, and Rangers, the Blue Jays did not face a higher charge for having exceeded the CBT threshold in consecutive seasons. However, they will still pay the fifth-highest luxury tax bill in the league, and their top pick in next year's draft will be moved back 10 spots because their payroll exceeded the third threshold of $281 million. In 2026, the third threshold will rise to $284 million, but the Blue Jays are already well past that number, according to RosterResource. With an estimated CBT payroll of around $294 million, there is a very good chance that Toronto will be over the fourth (and highest) luxury tax threshold by the end of next season. Featured image courtesy of Nick Turchiaro, Imagn Images. View full rumor

According to Sportsnet's Shi Davidi, the Toronto Blue Jays were awarded 24% of the $128.2 million postseason revenue player pool. That works out to approximately $30.8 million. A full share of the pool was set at $354,118, and Davidi notes the Blue Jays gave out 70 full shares. That adds up to $24.8 million, suggesting the Jays gave out an additional $6 million in partial shares and/or special awards. Covering the news for The Athletic, Dodgers beat writer Fabian Ardaya explains that most team staff members, "such as team media relations directors, grounds crew members, traveling secretaries and others," cannot receive shares, but the players can vote to give them cash awards instead. Team executives are not eligible for any payments from the postseason revenue pool. Featured image courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images. View full rumor

From his debut in 2019 until his triumphant return for the 2025 World Series, Bo Bichette had never played anywhere other than shortstop in his major league career. However, after he played a handful of games at second base in the Fall Classic, it seems there might be more of the keystone in his future. Earlier today, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported that Bichette has informed teams that he is, in Feinsand's words, "ready, willing and able" to make the move to second full-time. Defense has never been Bichette's strong suit, and it doesn't come as any surprise that some (or perhaps even most) of his potential suitors would prefer that he change positions. What's more noteworthy is that Bichette is prepared to make that change. Ross Atkins suggested earlier this winter that, if playing shortstop were a sticking point for Bichette, it would not deter the Blue Jays from re-signing him. Still, this is a significant development for Toronto. On the one hand, Bichette's preparedness to switch positions can only drive up his price. On the other hand, it might be good news for the Jays if they were hoping to play Andrés Giménez at shortstop full-time in 2026 and beyond. Featured image courtesy of Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images. View full rumor

The Toronto Blue Jays confirmed their signing of reliever Tyler Rogers this evening. As reported, the contract is a three-year pact with a vesting option for 2029. The right-hander will earn a guaranteed $37 million over the course of the deal, including a $1 million buyout on the $12 million vesting option. To make room for Rogers on the 40-man roster, the Blue Jays designated fellow reliever Justin Bruihl for assignment. The southpaw appeared in 15 games for Toronto this past season, allowing 10 runs (eight earned) in 13.2 innings. He struck out 18 but walked seven. Bruihl also gave up two runs (one earned) in his lone postseason appearance. Given his poor performance in 2025, this DFA hardly comes as a surprise. However, losing Bruihl would be a hit to Toronto's left-handed relief depth. If Bruihl passes through waivers, he will most likely elect free agency. If that happens, the Blue Jays could attempt to re-sign him on a minor league deal. Featured image courtesy of Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images. View full rumor

Editor’s Note: This is the first Jays Centre article by five-time MLB All-Star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. We’re always looking for eager new writers to join our staff, whether you’re a Home Run Derby champion or just the reigning ALCS MVP. If you’d like to learn more, please click here, fill out the form, and someone will reply with more information. LeBron James? Are you kidding me? Earlier this week, Sports Reference published year-in-review website trend data for the 2025 MLB season. You know, the season where I made my fifth consecutive All-Star team and led the Blue Jays on their deepest postseason run of my lifetime. No big deal. I was honoured to have the most-viewed baseball player page throughout the country, despite Showboat Ohtani’s best efforts. In 2023 and ‘24, that World Series-stealing free agent tease had the most-viewed Baseball Reference player page across most of the Great White North. In 2025, Canadians finally made the right call (even if Jordan Baker, home plate umpire in Game 7 of the World Series, did not). In every province and territory, no Baseball Reference player page got more hits than my own. per Baseball Reference (2023, '24, '25) I wish I could say the same across all the Sports Reference platforms. Instead, I was shocked, appalled, and frankly hurt to see a different name plastered from sea to sea to sea. A name we’ve all seen plastered everywhere for the last two decades. LeBron James had the most-viewed Sports Reference page in most of the country. LeBron James! It would be one thing if it were Auston Matthews or Scottie Barnes. Heck, I’m not mad to see Hamilton's own Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on there. You do you, Yukon. But you’re telling me that while I was bringing our home and native land together with earth-shattering grand slams (and my award-winning personality), y’all were looking up LeBron’s plus/minus? While almost half the country was tuning in to watch me dominate in the World Series, the other half just needed to know LeBron’s field goal percentage? All I can say is thank god for Prince Edward Island. You guys are real ones. If I could take my talents to Charlottetown, believe me, I would. per Baseball Reference I don’t do it for the recognition. I don’t do it for the fame. But LeBron?? Come on, Ontario. Come on, Canada. What happened to elbows up? What happened to Canada first? I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed. View full article

The Blue Jays already have the kind of rotation depth most teams can only dream of, with Dylan Cease, Kevin Gausman, Shane Bieber, Trey Yesavage, Cody Ponce, José Berríos, and Eric Lauer on their starting pitching depth chart. Yet, Sportnet's Shi Davidi and Ben Nicholson-Smith suggest they might not be finished bolstering that group. According to Davidi and Nicholson-Smith, the Jays are "open to adding further pitching capable of starting." One name they're interested in – who should be 'capable of starting' – is Brad Keller. The right-hander pitched out of the Cubs' bullpen in 2025, making 68 appearances with a 2.07 ERA and 2.93 FIP. However, he was primarily a starter for the first several years of his career. Pitching for the Royals from 2018-23, Keller started 114 games with a 4.28 ERA and 4.35 FIP. He averaged 5.2 IP per start. Last month, Joel Sherman of The New York Post reported that Keller was generating interest "as both a starter and reliever." It's not hard to see why. He revitalized his career as a full-time reliever last year. It's tantalizing to think about him maintaining some of that newfound dominance while taking on a starter's workload. For the Blue Jays, Keller would only transition back to the rotation as a last resort. In a best-case scenario, he would take on a high-leverage bullpen role and repeat his success from 2025. He would only need to stretch out if multiple names ahead of him on the depth chart suffered injuries. Still, the fact that he could stretch out in such a way would make him a nice insurance policy. If Keller is looking for a team that's going to give him a guaranteed opportunity to start again, the Blue Jays are out of luck. But if he's willing to start the year in the bullpen while staying prepared to stretch out if needed, he could be just the pickup this pitching staff needs. Featured image courtesy of Matt Marton, Imagn Images. View full rumor

According to Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic, the Blue Jays are considering trading one of their surplus outfielders for a reliever. Rosenthal and Sammon named Nathan Lukes, Myles Straw, and Joey Loperfido as the most likely trade chips. Addison Barger, Davis Schneider, or even Daulton Varsho would bring back a stronger return, but that's precisely why the Jays would be less inclined to trade them. Varsho will be the everyday center fielder in 2026, while Barger and Schneider are promising bats with the flexibility to play both the infield and the outfield. Rosenthal and Sammon's report shouldn't come as a surprise. The Jays have a bit of a logjam as it is on their outfield depth chart, and they're likely to add at least one more bat before the offseason is done. Speaking to reporters, including our own John Bonnes, at the Winter Meetings, manager John Schneider said he'd like the team to add "a bat of some sort." Schneider also identified the arm barn as an area of need. He said that adding a "high-leverage bullpen arm" is a priority. So, it stands to reason that the team would look to solve two problems at once. GM Ross Atkins could clear up the outfield logjam and bolster the bullpen in one transaction. Of course, that doesn't mean the Blue Jays will be eager to part with any of their outfielders. Lukes and Straw were key contributors to last year's squad. They would be missed on the field and in the clubhouse. Trading Loperfido would mean selling low on a former top prospect. What's more, if Atkins is really hoping to land a high-leverage reliever, he would need to throw one or more prospects into a potential deal as well. So, what do Jays fans think of this rumour? Will the team trade an outfielder this winter, and if so, which one? Share your thoughts in the comments. Featured image courtesy of Kevin Sousa, Imagn Images. View full rumor

Shoulder and back injuries kept Anthony Santander out for most of the 2025 season and playoffs. It was a disappointing start to his Blue Jays tenure. From 2022-24, the man known lovingly as Tony Taters hit 105 home runs for the Orioles, posting a 123 wRC+ and 8.1 FanGraphs WAR. In his first year with Toronto, the switch-hitter swatted just six homers in 54 games, with a 61 wRC+ and -0.9 fWAR. However, the Jays are hoping a healthy Santander can look more like the Silver Slugger they signed to a five-year, $92.5 million contract last winter. Manager John Schneider addressed reporters on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings. DiamondCentric's John Bonnes was on hand for the event. "Tony is going to be huge for us," said Schneider. "He's a big part of what we're doing." The skipper continued, "I've told him this: 'I don't want you to think you have to do anything you don't do well. You don't have to come back and hit .300 with 50 homers to make up for last year.' We need Tony to fit in the way we know he can when we signed him." As for the shoulder subluxation that forced Santander to the injured list in May and the back tightness that forced him off the ALCS roster in October, Scheider doesn't seem to be concerned. "Shoulder is good. Back is good. He's just feeling normal," the manager explained. He went on to express hope that Santander will have a regular spring training. Schneider acknowledged that the veteran is a "notorious slow starter," but seemed optimistic that he can "hit the ground running" in 2026. Featured image courtesy of Dan Hamilton, Imagn Images. View full rumor

Earlier this afternoon, Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters at the Winter Meetings (including our own John Bonnes) that his coaching staff for 2026 has been finalized. "We have filled [the] assistant hitting coaching job," he said. "We have kind of backfilled [former bench coach Don Mattingly's] spot in a variety of ways. I'm giving those guys time to finalize with the teams they were with, and you'll have that full list really soon. One is internal, and two from outside." Sportnet's Shi Davidi reports that former White Sox catching coach Drew Butera is one of the two external additions. The other is former Rangers minor league hitting director Cody Atkinson, according to Mitch Bannon of The Athletic. Bannon also notes that Eric Duncan was promoted to the major league coaching staff from within the organization. He was previously Toronto's director of position player development. Presumably, Atkinson is the new assistant hitting coach, but it is not yet official what roles any of the Blue Jays' new coaches will be taking on. View full rumor