Quick postseason exits in 2022 and 2023 left the Blue Jays wondering last winter if their core roster was good enough to compete for a World Series. Heading into this offseason, the question is now if the Jays' core can even still contend at all, after the team cratered to a 74-88 record. In what could potentially be Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s last season in Toronto, the Jays are under enormous pressure to turn things around.
Guaranteed Contracts
- Jose Berrios, SP: $84MM through 2028 (Berrios has opt-out clause after 2026 season)
- Kevin Gausman, SP: $46MM through 2026
- George Springer, OF: $45MM through 2026
- Yariel Rodriguez, SP/RP: $22MM through 2028 (includes $6MM player option for 2028; Blue Jays have $10MM club option if Rodriguez declines)
- Chris Bassitt, SP: $21MM through 2025
- Bo Bichette, SS: $16.5MM through 2025
- Chad Green, RP: $10.5MM through 2025
Other Commitments
- Roughly $1.22MM to the Pirates to cover a portion of Isiah Kiner-Falefa's 2025 salary
2025 financial commitments: $117.72MM
Total future commitments: $246.22MM
Arbitration-Eligible Players (projections from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz)
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (5.157): $29.6MM
- Erik Swanson (5.059): $3.2MM
- Jordan Romano (5.051): $7.75MM
- Genesis Cabrera (5.011): $2.5MM
- Dillon Tate (4.144): $1.9MM
- Daulton Varsho (4.128): $7.7MM
- Alejandro Kirk (4.047): $4.1MM
- Alek Manoah (3.063): $2.4MM
- Zach Pop (2.171): $1MM
- Ernie Clement (2.168): $1.7MM
- Non-tender candidates: Cabrera, Pop, Tate
Free Agents
After a comparatively average 2023 season, Guerrero responded with a huge year that re-established him as one of baseball's top hitters. Daulton Varsho also improved to roughly league-average offense, and continued his exceptional glovework in Toronto's outfield. Alejandro Kirk has quietly become something of the catching equivalent of Varsho, as a standout defender whose bat leaves something to be desired. Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, and Chris Bassitt were more good than great this season but they bring a lot of durability and general effectiveness to the rotation. They'll be joined in next year's staff by Bowden Francis, whose sudden emergence in the second half made him like a budding ace, let alone simply worthy of a starting role.
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Jays’ front office lacks the vision required to put a team over-the-top.
Too easy, have you ever seen any of 3 stooges clips -Schneider, Shapiro & Atkins -nuff said. Next! Ahahahaha!
They should have sold off at the past trade deadline. They don’t have the money in the budget to land enough quality FA’s and there isn’t enough talent on the farm to trade for talent or play a role to be a difference maker. Atkins and Shapiro have a team/farm system of mainly utility players.
Yup. We can talk about all the trades and free agency blunders and all that, but ultimately the biggest failures have been the abysmal drafting and development.
They’ve lost/traded quality big leaders and only have role players to call up to replace them.
@Dustyslambchops23Cancel
Yeah. Their FA signings have been the only plus side of their game. Everything else is below average or a fail.
The FAs have been ‘okay’ but it looks like they are now paying off for the declining years. You got good early-years production from guys like Springer & Gausman, but aging was inevitable.
$130 million wrapped up in Gausman and Berrios is a challenge. They are certainly not producing at that level anymore, and those contracts are not tradable. This window has closed. Time to sell off what you can and start building for the next window.
Really, the only thing Toronto fans want to hear, is shapiro and his baggage have been fired …..
Cabrera being left handed could prevent him from being non-tendered. Swanson should be a candidate.
@SkenesandSlopes
If Swanson can come close to his production in ’23, he will be worth every penny they’ll be saving on a more expensive signing.
Romano, too.
Their closer should not be non-tendered before Swanson.
This team is a disaster.
@JoeBrady
That’s the gamble with FA’s. Hope to get above average performance in the first half of the deal and live with the decline in the second half. Nature of the beast.
The best thing the Blue Jays can do is build up their Minor League system. Trade Bichette for a PKG of young prospects would help that.
Agreed. If they could get LHH catcher Dalton Rushing and RHP Edgardo Henriquez from the Dodgers for Bichette, I’d do that deal.
Basically…the Jays ownership and front office have “blown it”, to the point where it will take years to get the real fans back. Yes, there will be suits filling the seats for the first five innings, but until there’s a front office that is planning for success, the real fans have left the building. As evidence here, there is no interest in the Jays anymore. Fooled big time last year with the Ohtani shenanigans, fans won’t be fooled again, regardless of what rumoUr is posted here.
Sad thing…is that those shenanigans have hurt a huge number of people. Most fans have realized that watching multimillionaire athletes have hissy fits (re; Bo) or can’t work because of a hangnail or callous, is a stark contrast to slogging away at a 9 to 5 job, and getting docked because they haven’t given 100%.
They’re good at selling ‘Loonie Dogs’. But the team went 6-7 in those Tuesday night home games this year. Did most of the fans at those games care more about breaking the Loonie dogs record than the actual ‘on field’ product? Possibly.
Shapiro has never won an American League pennant in 23 years of front office leadership. His predecessor as GM in Cleveland, John Hart, won seven AL Central titles in his last 8 seasons as GM. They went to the ALCS three times in that stretch, and the WS in 1995 and 1997.
In his 14 years as GM and then president in Cleveland from 2002-2015, Shapiro won one just AL Central title, in 2007. After Shapiro and Atkins left for Toronto following the 2015 season? Amazingly, Cleveland has won the AL Central 5 times in the last 9 seasons since Mark & Ross left, and have been to the playoffs 6 times, including the current ALCS.
The Blue Jays are the only team in their division NOT to win the AL East since then. Coincidence?
“Ya have to trust the process”. I think the only process here is contributing to Shatkins bank account….
All of the four remaining teams have baseball fields full of fans. Not “entertainment complexes” full of suits that are leaving by the 5th inning. Shapiro has done Toronto wrong.
“The Jays will win nothing while Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins are making baseball player decisions for the Toronto Blue Jays.” – jimmer, 2016 and repeated through 2024.
And the same holds true for 2025 and beyond…
Will there be team specific chats this year to go along with the outlooks?
How do I read the article without a front office subscription? [Paying ain’t happening for me].