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  • Toronto Blue Jays Free Agent & Trade Rumors, Notes, & Tidbits

    The latest Toronto Blue Jays free agent and trade rumors, along with notes and tidbits about the team.
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    Matthew Lenz
    Baseball America has released their latest version of the Top 100 prospects in all of baseball. While the Toronto Blue Jays didn't have any players added to the list, they did have three players improve upon their previous rankings. Trey Yesavage jumped from #98 to #89, Ricky Tiedemann from #95 to #92, and Arjun Nimmala from #58 to #41.
    It's not noted how many prospects graduated from the May version of the rankings. 
    Yesavage has dominated Hi-A Vancouver in 10 starts posting a 2.17 ERA and a 34.4 K-BB rate. Nimmala is at the same level and experiencing similar success with a .902 OPS with nine home runs and five stolen bases. Tiedmann is recovering from Tommy John surgery and is expected to come back sometime in 2025.
    When do you think Yesavage and/or Nimmala will be promoted to Double-A New Hampshire? Join the conversation in the comments!
    Matthew Lenz
    After the Toronto Blue Jays formalized their extension with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. earlier this week, it became unclear whether the team would be able to do the same with Bo Bichette. The 27-year-old shortstop is currently set to hit free agency at season's end and, despite an injury plagued 2024 that sapped his power, is expected to be one of the top commodities of the upcoming free agent class.
    On Wednesday, the Blue Jays General Manager provided some clarity via Hazel Mae of Sportsnet.
    This was something that was echoed by Bichette himself last season stating in part, "...my ultimate goal really is to play with Vladdy (Guerrero Jr.) forever, to win a championship with him and to do that with this organization..."
    Bichette has been one of the pillars for thr Blue Jays since playing in 159 games in 2021 after partial seasons in 2019 and 2020. He has a career .776 OPS with 93 home runs, 56 stolen bases, and plus defense at one the game's most premium positions. His success and popularity has garnered him two All-Star nods as well as MVP votes in three seasons.
    Do you think the Blue Jays should lock up Bichette ASAP or let him test free agency at season's end?
    Matthew Lenz
    MLB Insider and Broadcaster Mike Rodriguez is reporting that the Toronto Blue Jays and Vladimir Guerrero Jr are "very close to finalizing a $500-million plus extension".
    It's been a roller coaster of an offseason for the Jays and their star corner infielder, but it looks like the ride is about to come to an end in the form of an extension.
    In his first seven games of the season, the slugger is slashing .222/.290/.333 with no home runs, three runs scored, and three runs batted in.
    Davy Andrews
    This morning, Buster Olney of ESPN reported that the Blue Jays had made another offer to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Not much later, Héctor Gómez reported that the offer would be for 14 of 15 years and in the range of $550-600 million. The big question that has not yet been answered is how much deferred money the contract includes. That's important because it will determine the actual value of the deal. In the meantime, it looks like Guerrero's contract will remain top of mind throughout Opening Day.
    Matthew Lenz
    Alden González of ESPN is reporting that Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s asking price was "much less"  than the asking price of Juan Soto who netted a $765 million deal from the New York Mets earlier this offseason.
    This news comes two weeks after the deadline that Vlad Jr.'s camp established came and went without a deal. The 26-year-old now anticipates that he will reach free agency next year, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
    The most recent report adds that the ask was for the same number of years as Soto's contract (14) but that the total salary didn't reach $600 million. 
    Despite a very good bounce back campaign in 2024 that saw the slugger carry a .940 OPS with 30 home runs and 103 RBI's across 159 games, the Blue Jays may be smart to stand their ground. Not because Vlad's 2024 production is sustainable or repeatable, but because of Pete Alonso's 2024 free agent experience. The market for Alonso never really got "hot" relative to his level of production, which led to the masher going back to the Mets on a two-year, $54 million deal. Of course, he's four years older than Vlad Jr., but it still holds to reason that he Blue Jays might be better off seeing how his market plays out next offseason.
    Do you think Vlad's ask is too much or should the Blue Jays have signed him?
    Matthew Lenz
    We have more developments this morning related to the Toronto Blue Jays offseason. Yesterday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today said that the Jays are "still interested" in Pete Alonso. Now, Héctor Gómez is reporting that they have a three-year offer out to him and a six-year offer out to Alex Bregman.
    The fit would be interesting if both players were to accept. Adding Alonso would push Vladimir Guerrero Jr over to the hot corner. Alex Bregman has stated that he is open to playing second base, but the Jays have newly acquired Andrés Giménez at the Keystone. As of now, Will Wagner is penciled in as the teams designed hitter, but he projects to be more of a bench bat than a full-time player. If Alonso and Bregman were to accept their respective deals, they could theoretically play a game of musical chairs at DH.
    While it would be interesting to see how that works out, it's a no brainer to add both if the Jays can pull that off.
    Matthew Lenz
    After the Toronto Blue Jays made a bit of a splash yesterday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today was quick to report that they are still interested in firsts baseman slugger Pete Alonso.
    Rumors from a week ago suggested that talks between the two parties were "advancing", but since then we haven't heard much of anything on how the talks were progressing. In fact, Nightengale more recently said Alonso returning to the New York Mets "seems almost inevitable."
    From an earlier rumor we posted: Alonso is open to a short-term deal as long as it includes opt outs and exceeds $23 million per year. How far north of $23 million Alonso and company want has not been made clear to this point, but MLB Trade Rumors suggest that the front loaded $80 million that Cody Bellinger received is the low bar to obtain Alonso's services.
    Jays24
    The Tigers, Houston Astros, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox are in the hunt to sign Bregman, who has a six-year, $156 million offer from the Astros on the table. The Astros have been trying to shed payroll to keep Bregman, will any other teams step up and beat their offer?
    https://www.freep.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2025/01/26/detroit-tigers-alex-bregman-rumors-tarik-skubal-jack-flaherty/77957308007/
    Matthew Lenz
    Pat Ragazzo of Sports Illustrated recently reported that Max Scherzer threw in front of many teams, including the Toronto Blue Jays, both teams out of New York City, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, and Boston Red Sox.
    Notably, of that entire group, the Blue Jays are the only team mentioned to be "in contact" with the future Hall of Famer. Scherzer, who is now 40-years-old, threw less than 60 innings at the Triple-A and Major League levels in 2024. Although he fared fairly well in nine starts with the Rangers, it was spread across three different timeframes. He didn't debut until June 23rd due to an offseason surgery to fix a herniated disc in his back, then made his way back to the IL after eight starts due to right shoulder fatigue before being put back on the IL after just one start due to a left hamstring strain.
    After missing out on Roku Sasaki, the Blue Jays are still trying to bolster their rotation and Scherzer represents a good buy-low option despite a rough 2024.
    Do you think the Jays should take a chance on the three time Cy Young Award winner?
    Matthew Lenz
    It was reported earlier that the Blue Jays were interested in acquiring Astros' reliever Ryan Pressly ($$).
    Now it's being reported that Pressly, who has a no-trade clause, will not waive for a team on either coast.
    This effectively eliminates the Blue Jays from acquiring two-time All Star. This news comes roughly a week after losing out on the Tanner Scott sweepstakes and, as of right now, the team hasn't been tied to any other reliever via trade or on the open market.
    From the perspective of the bullpen, this has been a disappointing offseason for the Jays who had arguably the worst relief corpse in baseball a year ago. While it's encouraging to hear them getting involved in high end relievers, it means very little if they can't close the deal.
    Who should they target next whether it be via free agency or trade?
    Matthew Lenz
    Andy Martino of SNY is reporting that talks between the Blue Jays and Pete Alonso are "advancing", but further states that a deal is "not done yet" and that there is "no guarantee" one will get done.
    Alonso, a 30-year-old four-time All-Star, is the top name remaining on the market but hasn't been tied to many teams. In fact, other than the Blue Jays, the New York Mets are the only other team to have been tied to the 1st base slugger. The Mets were said to offer a three-year contract in the $68-70 million range with opt-outs, per Joel Sherman and Dan Martin of The New York Post, which was then declined by Alonso's camp unofficially marking the end of his time in Queens. Around that same time, Will Sammon of The Athletic ($$) said that Alonso and his representatives at the Boras Corporation pitched a similar deal to the Mets but with higher annual salaries.
    So if we start putting together multiple reports, it appears that Alonso is open to a short-term deal as long as it includes opt outs and exceeds $23 million per year. How far north of $23 million Alonso and company want has not been made clear to this point, but MLB Trade Rumors suggest that the front loaded $80 million that Cody Bellinger received is the low bar to obtain Alonso's services.
    Across six big-league seasons, the righty has proven to be a modern day iron horse having exceeded 152 games played five times and has a 162 game average of 43 home runs and 112 runs batted in.
    Given his reliability and skillset, how much are you willing to fork over for Alonso?
    Davy Andrews
    A few hours after news broke that Roki Sasaki had eliminated the Padres and was choosing between the Blue Jays and the Dodgers, the Blue Jays announced that they had traded for outfielder Myles Straw from the the Guardians in exchange for either cash or a player to be named later. However, Straw wasn't the real headliner, and neither was the cash.
    The real headliner was what the Jays got back: $2 million in international bonus pool money, the kind a team could spend on Roki Sasaki. We shouldn't take this as any indication about which way Sasaki is leaning, but it does make it clear that the Blue Jays still think they've got a chance.
    As for Straw, he's a very useful player, a Gold Glove outfielder who doesn't hit, so he is certainly capable of sliding right in for Kevin Kiermaier without missing a beat.
    Davy Andrews
    Good morning, and I hope you're not sick of this same old picture from the photo services (© Sam Navarro-Imagn Images, thank you for your service). It appears that Roki Sasaki is now deciding between only the Blue Jays and the Dodgers. This morning, Francys Romero reported that multiple sources have told him the superlative 23-year-old Japanese pitcher is no longer considering the Padres.
    Sasaki announced just a few days ago that he was down to three finalists. In case math isn't your specialty, today's news leaves just the Blue Jays and the Dodgers standing in the Roki Sasaki Sweepstakes, bringing Toronto's chances from one-third to one-half.
    Well, we actually have no idea what the Blue Jays' chances are. We're busy chasing theories. The smart money is still on the Dodgers, who boast their own Japanese superstar, a juggernaut of a team that contends for a World Series ring year in and year out, a deep farm system, a cutting-edge player development department, deep pockets, closer proximity to Japan, and at this point, I think you get the picture so I will pause for a moment to breathe into a paper bag.
    Ok, so the Blue Jays are still plucky underdogs here. However, they clearly have something that interests Sasaki. Even if they don't land him, at least they didn't finish in third!
    Fingers crossed. Everything crossed. I need another paper bag.
    Jays24
    According to Mike Rodriguez, a source has told him that the New York Mets are attempting to trade for Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
    Which is strange news because former Met and current free agent first baseman Pete Alonso is... right there. A long-time fan favorite in Queens, Alonso has had a quiet offseason as he looks for a long-term contract.
    To say the least, this feels like an odd fit for both teams.
    Report: Mets checked in with Blue Jays about Guerrero this winter
    https://thescore.com/mlb/news/3190734
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