Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Blue Jays Rumors

Vlad Guerrero Jr. Hopes To Play Third Base in 2021

By | at

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has every intention of playing third base in 2021, per Emily Sadler of Sportsnet.ca. Guerrero understands why the move was made, but the decision to move Vlad Jr. to first was in part to protect him from a knee injury that contributed to his struggles at the hot corner in 2018. With the injury behind him, Guerrero apparently has some newfound fervor to turn himself into a viable option at third. Vlad’s defensive marks at first in 2020 were similar to his DRS and UZR at third base in 2019, which is to say they weren’t great (-4 DRS, -13.8 UZR/150). To his credit, Vlad took responsibility for letting himself fall out of shape during the pandemic shutdown.

If Guerrero succeeds, the Blue Jays could broaden their free agent search to include a full-time first baseman or second baseman. Cavan Biggio could move to first base full-time, leaving Toronto to explore pacts with Kolten Wong, DJ LeMahieu, or Cesar Hernandez, suggests Shi Davidi of sportsnet.ca. Of course, that probably presumes not only that the Jays are comfortable with Vlad at third, but that they are comfortable committing to him there for a couple of seasons. They have the designated hitter to play with as well, and Biggio’s versatility serves as a safety net of sorts, but it’s still worth a consideration. Travis Shaw is the incumbent at third, but he’s not likely to return as the full-time starter (.239/.306/.411 in 2020).

Timing might be an even bigger factor than Guerrero’s progress at the third for Toronto, depending on how quickly the hot stove shapes up. There are a number of high-profile third baseman available via trade should the Jays choose to go that route. This year’s platinum glove winner Nolan Arenado could theoretically be available via trade from the Rockies, as is Kris Bryant of the Cubs. Bryant can move around the diamond a bit as well, so even a star acquisition at third doesn’t preclude manager Charlie Montoyo from utilizing Vlad at both infield corners. Beyond LeMahieu, World Series champ Justin Turner is probably the best option at third base, though we here at MLBTR predict Turner to return the Dodgers.

Blue Jays Re-Sign Robbie Ray

By | at

The Blue Jays have announced that free agent left-hander Robbie Ray has been re-signed.  ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan (Twitter link) was the first to report that the southpaw will receive a one-year contract worth $8MM.

It was a tough season overall for Ray, who posted a 6.62 ERA, 11.8 K/9, 2.3 HR/9, and a 7.8 BB/9 (highest of any pitcher in baseball with at least 50 innings pitched) over 51 2/3 combined innings for the Diamondbacks and Blue Jays.  If there is a silver lining, Ray’s numbers over his 20 2/3 innings with the Jays were better than his numbers with the D’Backs, though even a 4.79 ERA, 6.1 BB/9, and 1.7 HR/9 with Toronto is nothing to write home about.

Robbie RayStill, the Jays clearly saw enough to welcome Ray back into the fold and line him up for a spot in Toronto’s rotation.  Passan notes that the Blue Jays intend to use Ray as a starting pitcher, adding him to a rotation mix that includes Hyun Jin Ryu, Nate Pearson, Tanner Roark, and Ross Stripling.  It’s safe to assume that the Jays aren’t done exploring the pitching market, given how Ray, Roark, and Stripling all didn’t pitch well in 2020 and Pearson also struggled (and had some injury problems) in his first MLB season.

Home runs have always been an issue for Ray over his seven-year career, though his control went from being a concern to a full-on problem in 2020.  The one constant, however, has been strikeouts, as Ray has an 11.1 career K/9 and even led the league in that category in 2017 (12.1).  That season was Ray’s peak, as he finished seventh in NL Cy Young Award voting and seemed to be blossoming as a front-of-the-rotation starter.  However, Ray was more okay than spectacular in 2018-19, as his walk totals crept upwards, his ground-ball numbers declined, and batters began to generate more hard contact against his arsenal.

Ray’s fastball velocity also dropped by almost two miles an hour, from a 94.3mph average in 2017 to a 92.4 average in 2019.  His velocity clicked back up to 93.7mph last season, and while there wasn’t much to like about Ray’s Statcast metrics in 2020, he still finished in the 80th percentile in fastball spin rate.

Ray is still only 29, and the one-year commitment gives the Blue Jays a chance to take a longer look at Ray without sacrificing any flexibility in future payrolls.  Toronto is thought to be one of the few teams who has some spending capacity this offseason, and this early strike to re-sign Ray (when most clubs reportedly have yet to even figure out their 2021 budget situations) indicates that the Jays could be aggressive players as they look to build on their wild card berth from the past year.  MLBTR ranked Ray 36th on our list of the winter’s top 50 free agents, correctly predicting him for a one-year contract but for only $6MM.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Blue Jays Had Previous Interest In DJ LeMahieu

By | at

The Yankees signed second baseman DJ LeMahieu to a two-year, $24MM contract going into 2019, but the division-rival Blue Jays were also after him then, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet reports. Speculatively, with LeMahieu set to hit the open market again, it seems possible the Jays will circle back to him. He greatly upped his value in his two seasons in New York, leading MLBTR to predict he’ll receive a four-year, $68MM payday this offseason. MLBTR even chose Toronto as LeMahieu’s destination this offseason.

Offseason Outlook: Toronto Blue Jays

By | at

After three losing seasons, the Blue Jays both topped the .500 mark and returned to the playoffs in 2020.  Now that the corner has seemingly been turned on the team’s rebuild, could a full-fledged push towards contention be on the way?

Guaranteed Contracts

Arbitration-Eligible Players

Note on arb-eligible players: this year’s arbitration projections are more volatile than ever, given the unprecedented revenue losses felt by clubs and the shortened 2020 schedule. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz, who developed our arbitration projection model, used three different methods to calculate different projection numbers. You can see the full projections and an explanation of each if you click here, but for the purposes of our Outlook series, we’ll be using Matt’s 37-percent method — extrapolating what degree of raise a player’s 2020 rate of play would have earned him in a full 162-game slate and then awarding him 37 percent of that raise.

Option Decisions

Free Agents

A 32-28 record under the wholly unique circumstances of the 2020 season doesn’t exactly mean that the Jays can suddenly start thinking about the World Series.  That said, this year’s results were definitely a positive development, and indicative of this roster’s potential — so much of the team’s young core is either still early in their MLB careers or not even in the majors yet, but the Blue Jays have already shown that they’re able to win.

It makes for a potentially fascinating offseason in Toronto, especially considering that the Jays might be one of the few teams who could have the ability to spend.  More will be known on this front once Jays management meets with the Rogers Communications ownership group for a budget meeting later this month, but on paper, the Blue Jays would seem to have some extra payroll capacity.  The team has roughly $81.25MM in committed salary for 2021, and less than $37MM on the books in both 2022 and 2023, with only three players (Hyun Jin Ryu, Randal Grichuk, Lourdes Gurriel Jr.) under contract beyond the coming season.

Since the Jays came into 2020 with a pre-pandemic payroll of around $93.2MM, there is some room for GM Ross Atkins to maneuver even if ownership doesn’t okay much or any new spending.  The club already carved out some extra space by declining Chase Anderson’s $9.5MM club option, and Travis Shaw’s projected arbitration salary makes him a non-tender candidate given his lack of production last season.

Is another Ryu-esque signing in the cards?  Atkins didn’t rule out the possibility, telling reporters last month that “I think we are in a position where we could add to this team with talent that is condensed in one player and a super high impact.”  While Toronto is far from being the proverbial “one player away” from a championship, it seems plausible that the Jays could try to duplicate their 2019-20 offseason by making one big-ticket acquisition and then a few other, more moderately-priced pickups.

Pitching is the most obvious need for a club whose rotation was in flux for much of the season.  Ryu and Tanner Roark were the only real constants, though Roark struggled in his first season in Toronto and now figures to slot into the back of the rotation.  Ross Stripling also didn’t pitch well as a Blue Jay after being acquired from the Dodgers at the trade deadline, though after years of being shifted in and out of the Los Angeles rotation, Stripling should get a clear-cut chance at being a full-time starting pitcher in 2021.  Nate Pearson battled some elbow problems and tossed only 18 innings in his rookie season, so while his prospect ceiling is very high, he can’t yet be counted upon as a front-of-the-rotation type.

Trent Thornton, Anthony Kay, T.J. Zeuch, and other young arms are on hand to compete for a starting job or provide depth, but adding certainly one and potentially two experienced starters would go a long way towards solidifying the starting staff.  Reunions with free agents Taijuan Walker, Matt Shoemaker, Anderson, and Robbie Ray will be considered, with Walker likely to receive the most attention from other teams given how well he pitched in 2020, particularly after joining the Blue Jays after the trade deadline.

Walker did speak quite highly of his time with the Jays, noting that “they did such a great job of making us comfortable in Buffalo.”  This could be an underrated factor in the team’s offseason planning, as pitchers like Walker or the other Jays free agents could be prioritized since they’re already familiar with conditions at Buffalo’s Sahlen Field.  A decision on whether or not the Blue Jays will be able to play in Toronto in 2021 likely won’t be known for at least a few months, so external free agents might be wary of potentially spending a year at a hitter-friendly minor league ballpark.

Then again, that might be just the kind of thing that would appeal to an unconventional free agent like Trevor Bauer.  Atkins and Jays president/CEO Mark Shapiro were part of the Cleveland front office that brought Bauer to the Indians back in December 2012, and while landing Bauer would be much more costly this time around, Bauer’s stated openness to shorter-term or even one-year contracts could make him a particular fit for the Jays.  Such a contract would keep Bauer in the fold during the window of Ryu’s prime and still give the Blue Jays future payroll flexibility, while also allowing more time for Pearson, Kay, or Simeon Woods Richardson to develop.

Whether the Blue Jays are prepared to make quite that big a splash in pursuing Bauer remains to be seen, though given how aggressively the team went after pitching last offseason, it can’t be ruled out.  If the Jays are allowed to stretch their payroll, that gives them a leg up on virtually every other team in baseball in this post-pandemic offseason, and puts Toronto in play for conceivably any free agent.  A case can be made for the Jays to pursue the likes of Bauer, J.T. Realmuto or (as MLBTR did in our Top 50 Free Agents list) DJ LeMahieu, or perhaps rather than shop in the upper tier of the market, the Blue Jays could spread their money around in the second tier.  If Bauer is to command upwards of $30MM in average annual value, that $30MM+ could also cover, say, Walker and Masahiro Tanaka in the rotation and Justin Turner at third base.

Besides free agents, the Jays could also look to acquire talent in a trade, especially if rival teams are more willing to unload quality players in the name of cost-cutting.  Beyond just the obvious Cleveland connection with Shapiro and Atkins, Francisco Lindor is a player that would make some sense for the Jays, particularly since they have looked into acquiring him in the past.  The Indians would certainly have a high asking price for even one year of Lindor, yet considering salary concerns just led the Tribe to cut ties with a valuable player in Brad Hand, getting Lindor’s salary off the books might be a bigger concern for Cleveland than fully maximizing a trade return.

Installing Lindor at shortstop for a year also solves the third base question, assuming Shaw is non-tendered — Bo Bichette would be moved off shortstop to play either third or second base, with Cavan Biggio handling the other position.  Acquiring a position player on a shorter-term deal might be the optimal move for a Jays team that has Austin Martin and Jordan Groshans in the prospect pipeline, and seems mostly set around the diamond in the present.  The core of Gurriel, Grichuk, and Teoscar Hernandez in the outfield, Danny Jansen behind the plate, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Rowdy Tellez as the first base/DH duo, Bichette at shortstop and Biggio at second base (or multiple positions) is solid from an offensive standpoint, but the Jays were one of the league’s weaker defensive teams.

Inserting a premium defender like Andrelton Simmons or Kolten Wong into the one open infield spot would certainly help in this regard, though if the Blue Jays wanted to go bigger, they could explore trading Grichuk or Tellez.  Such moves would allow for the acquisition of a more traditional center fielder to patrol the outfield, or free up the DH spot so the Jays could keep some of their lesser defenders in the lineup.

As they did last offseason, it seems likely that the Jays will continue to target multi-position players, in order to upgrade a bench that didn’t provide much help when injuries arose during the season.  Biggio is developing nicely as a super-utilityman, but getting another reliable player who can play several positions could be another path towards helping the defense, at least in a late-game capacity.

The Jays haven’t traditionally spent much on relief pitching under Atkins, and that strategy might continue this winter even though the bullpen didn’t post good numbers in 2020.  Toronto relievers were asked to throw a lot of innings in support of the shaky rotation, so things could stabilize simply with a more normal workload, plus several good young arms (i.e. Jordan Romano, Thomas Hatch, Julian Merryweather) delivered strong results.

It’s possible the Jays don’t have a traditional closer at all next season, or if they do, Romano or Rafael Dolis could get more consideration than an external pitcher.  But since the Jays will presumably look to add at least one veteran reliever, they could check into pitchers with past closing experience.  As the Indians’ decision to decline Hand’s option might indicate, this could be a particularly volatile market for relief pitching, leaving the Blue Jays with many opportunities to acquire a significant bullpen piece at perhaps something of a bargain price.

There is no shortage of possibilities open to the Blue Jays this winter, making a team to watch both this winter and in 2021, when the young cornerstones and (presumably) some new additions could gather to again make the Jays postseason factors.

Mutual Interest Between Blue Jays, Taijuan Walker

By | at

  • Taijuan Walker figures to get a lot of attention in free agency this winter, but there is mutual interest between Walker and the Blue Jays in a return to Toronto’s rotation, Sportsnet.ca’s Ben Nicholson-Smith writes.  Acquired in a trade from the Mariners in late August, Walker posted excellent numbers (1.37 ERA, 8.5 K/9, 2.27 K/BB rate) in his six starts in a Jays uniform.  Beyond the on-field results, Walker was also impressed by both the Jays’ long-term potential as contenders, and how the club treats its players.  “They have really good staff, coaches, training staff.  For me, it’s all about comfort and people,” Walker said.  “Being connected and having that family, and that’s what it felt like.”  Once one of baseball’s most highly-touted pitching prospects, injuries cost Walker virtually all of the 2018 and 2019 seasons but he has somewhat revived his stock after his solid 2020 performance.

Latest On Chase Anderson, Rafael Dolis

By | at

3:04 pm: The Jays will, however, exercise their $1.5MM club option on reliever Rafael Dolis, per various reporters (including Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star). The 32-year-old Dolis pitched to a 1.50 ERA/3.02 FIP in his first season in Toronto after returning from NPB.

1:05 pm: The Blue Jays have declined their $9.5MM club option on right-hander Chase Anderson, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (Twitter link). He’ll receive a $500K buyout and hit free agency.

Anderson, who turns 33 in November, lasted just one season in Toronto after coming over in a trade from the Brewers. He tossed 33.2 innings with a 7.22 ERA in his only season as a Jay, thanks largely to a shocking eleven home runs allowed in that time. On the plus side, Anderson did manage solid strikeout (24.7%) and walk (6.5%) rates in that small sample.

The veteran started at least 27 games every season from 2015-19, so he’ll likely attract interest from teams seeking durable back-of-the-rotation depth.

Mark Shapiro Expects To Remain With Blue Jays

By | at

Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro has fielded his share of criticism over five years at the helm, but now seems on the precipice of another term. As Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca was among those to report, Shapiro strongly suggested that he’s going to re-up with the Toronto organization.

Shapiro has long spoken of his interest in remaining with the Jays, so there’s no news there. But as Davidi observes, it’s hard to imagine that the veteran executive would’ve casually made these additional comments in the absence of an all-but-imminent new contract:

“The desire to be here long term has been reciprocated by the people I work for. That’s as simple as I can be for you. I’ll be here until I’m not here. Based upon my desire to be here and the reciprocation of that, I would expect that that’s going to continue to happen.”

It’d certainly rate as a major surprise at this point to see Shapiro depart. Just how long and lucrative his new contract will be remains to be seen, but it appears the Blue Jays will entrust him with navigating a tricky economic and competitive situation.

Quite apart from these suggestive comments, Shapiro seemed safe after a successful 2020 showing. Facing increasing pressure from the fanbase, he and GM Ross Atkins delivered a postseason appearance after making a few significant roster moves in the 2019-20 offseason.

Blue Jays Notes: Pitching, Defense, Pearson, Kirk

By | at

Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said Wednesday the club will prioritize improving its strike throwing and defense this offseason, Scott Mitchell of TSN tweets. Although Toronto earned a playoff spot in 2020, its pitching staff ranked 28th in the majors in walks per nine innings (4.29), helping lead to a middling 4.63 ERA/4.73 FIP. The Blue Jays now have multiple openings in their starting staff, which could see Matt Shoemaker, Taijuan Walker and Robbie Ray leave in free agency. Defensively, the Jays ended up 20th in UZR (minus-6) and 29th in DRS (minus-39), so it’s also understandable that Atkins wants to address that aspect of the team.

Here’s more on the up-and-coming Jays…

  • The Blue Jays promoted hyped right-handed prospect Nate Pearson in late July, but he ultimately went through an adverse rookie campaign. The 24-year-old threw 18 innings of 6.00 ERA/7.50 FIP ball, owing in part to elbow problems. Although Pearson didn’t experience the success or endure the workload the Jays were hoping for this year, they’re optimistic about him going forward (via Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star). “What I think it means is that he made progress this year, even though he had the injury and had the setback. He made his major-league debut, he showed he can get major-league hitters out, and he will better because of that in his progression next year,” said Atkins. Toronto will monitor Pearson’s innings in 2021, though he should still be an important part of its rotation.
  • More from Chisholm, who writes that Toronto could hand the catching reins to Alejandro Kirk sometime in 2021, though he’s not a lock to begin the season with the big club. Atkins called the 21-year-old Kirk’s process “very, very mature,” but he’ll need a “very productive” winter to earn a season-opening spot with the Blue Jays. Kirk, who hadn’t played above High-A ball, was hugely impressive during his brief MLB debut in 2020, slashing .375/.400/.583 with a home run in 25 plate appearances. Primary catcher Danny Jansen batted .183/.313/.358 with six homers across 147 PA.

Blue Jays Notes: Bichette, Shoemaker, Vlad

By | at

Bo Bichette figures to be one of the centerpieces for the Blue Jays for the foreseeable future, but the budding superstar said on Sportsnet’s Good Show this week that a contract extension isn’t anything he’s thinking about at this time (audio clip).

“It’s been brought up and it’s definitely something I’m interested in, but at the same time I’m not going to sell myself short,” said Bichette. “We’ll see what happens. Right now, I’m not too worried about. I’ve still got a lot to prove in my career, and really the last thing on my mind is a contract extension.”

He’s only played in 75 games at the MLB level, but Bichette looks the part of an All-Star right now. The former top prospect has put together a .307/.347/549 slash with 16 home runs, 27 doubles, a triple and eight steals through his first 340 trips to the plate. He won’t be eligible for arbitration until after the 2022 season and is controlled all the way through 2025, however, so there’s ample time for the Jays to worry about financial matters down the road. Of course, the more Bichette established himself and the closer he inches to arbitration or free agency, the more the price tag on an extension will rise.

A couple more notes on the Jays…

  • Right-hander Matt Shoemaker also joined The Good Show this week to chat about his time with the organization and his upcoming venture into free agency. The 34-year-old was dominant in five starts with the Blue Jays in 2019 before suffering a torn ACL that ended his season. He returned in 2020 with lesser results, but Shoemaker’s overall body of work in Toronto was solid: 11 starts, 57 1/3 frames, 3.14 ERA, 4.30 xFIP, 50-to-18 K/BB, 49.7 percent ground-ball rate. Home runs were a huge issue in 2020, but Shoemaker could represent a reasonably affordable piece of rotation depth and made clear that he’d love to return. “I just want to go to a team that’s just hungry, right?” said Shoemaker. “And the Jays are hungry, man. Like, we’ve got this really young team who just love the game, fiery players, really talented.”
  • Toronto GM Ross Atkins said at season’s end that the Jays haven’t given up on the idea of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. being able to play some third base, even if he’s not a primary option there. The Toronto Star’s Gregor Chisholm makes a case against prioritizing versatility in this case and opines that Guerrero should simply be left to try to hone his craft at first base. Chisholm notes that defensive metrics and the eye test alike have panned Guerrero at both positions but likens Guerrero’s move across the diamond to the one made by Edwin Encarnacion several years ago — a move that eventually resulted in Encarnacion putting up some solid defensive marks at the less-demanding position. Guerrero still needs to develop better instincts at the spot, and getting regular reps at the spot should help.

Jonathan Villar Switches Representation

By | at

Blue Jays infielder Jonathan Villar has changed agencies and is now a client of Wasserman, Robert Murray reports. He’d previously been with MDR Sports Management. MLBTR has made note of the switch in our Agency Database.

The change in representation comes at a key time for Villar, who’s on the cusp of free agency. He’s on track to join Didi Gregorius, Andrelton Simmons, Marcus Semien, Freddy Galvis and Korea’s Ha-Seong Kim as some of the most recognizable shortstop-capable players on the open market.

Now 29 years old, Villar has posted quality seasons in the past (including a 4.0-fWAR showing with the Orioles in 2019), but he’s due to reach the open market off a poor campaign. Between Miami and Toronto, the latter of which acquired him before the Aug. 31 trade deadline, the switch-hitting Villar recorded a paltry .232/.301/.292 line with two home runs in 207 plate appearances in 2020. But with 16 stolen bases, it was the fifth straight season in which Villar swiped double-digit bags, and he did continue to flash defensive versatility by accruing well over 100 innings at both middle infield spots.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

hide arrows scroll to top