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A look at the Toronto Blue Jays in-house options to play third base in 2025
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Photo credit: © John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Trevor Fitzpatrick
Jan 30, 2025, 08:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 30, 2025, 06:50 EST
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Should the Toronto Blue Jays be unable to sign a free-agent third baseman this offseason – Alex Bregman or Yoan Moncada – they’ll have to look within their own system to find someone to suit up at the hot corner.
As it turns out, that system is fairly full of MLB-ready talent. Here’s a look at the team’s main options heading into the 2025 season at third base.

Ernie Clement

Simply put, Ernie Clement was a solid option at third base for the Blue Jays in 2024.
With the most games played at the hot corner for the team last year with 96 appearances, playing Clement at third in 2025 would require the least amount of change for the team. 2024 marked Clement’s first season in which he played over 100 games and he made the most of it. Through his 134 games, he accumulated a 3.4 WAR while slashing .263/.284/.408. He also added 12 home runs, 51 RBIs, and 12 stolen bases while posting a 95 OPS+ and a 9.1 K% – putting him in the 100th percentile at the plate. He just doesn’t strike out and doesn’t swing at bad pitches, posting a 14.4% whiff rate. 
His defence was solid as well, as he put up a nine DRS and sat in the 92nd percentile in OAA with a +7 mark. He finished as a finalist for the AL Gold Glove Award for his work at the hot corner, authoring a .961 fielding percentage with an AL-leading 2.82 range factor over nine innings. 
Clement can be viewed as the “safe” option to play third in 2025 and will boost his stock even more if he can find a way to put more balls in play and up his .266 BABIP. Should the Jays turn to him to play third again, they’ll have a decent bat and a plus glove to manage the position.

Addison Barger

Logging the second most innings at the hot corner for the Blue Jays in 2024 was former top prospect Addison Barger in his first big league season.
He played in 69 games for the team, 36 of which he manned third base while suiting up in the corner outfield spots for the other reps. One of the key factors that may determine where Barger ends up next year is his positional flexibility.
His other appearances were in the outfield, mainly in right, due to his cannon of an arm. Barger’s arm strength was measured to be in the 99th percentile of all MLB fielders last year. However, that arm was unfortunately only good for a slightly above-average DRS of two at third base, as he struggled at times to make routine plays at the hot corner, authoring a .925 fielding percentage with six errors committed. 
His bat was even worse as he struggled to adjust to major league pitching at the start, with his slash line sitting at .197/.250/.351 with a .601 OPS. He did start to put in some stronger at-bats towards the end of the year, which is a solid sign for the future as he continues to adjust to big-league pitching, but he will need to start strong amidst the internal competition. Especially if he can find some more power on top of the seven round-trippers he put forward last year. 
There are certainly positives in Barger’s game, but if the Jays decide to trust him to be the everyday starter at third base, they’re also trusting that he can make key adjustments quickly to start the season.

Orelvis Martinez

Orelvis Martinez is certainly one of the most interesting cases on the Blue Jays roster as of now.
The 23-year-old made his MLB debut in 2024 but only played one game before being suspended 80 games for breaking the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy. Still considered a top prospect for the Jays, he’ll likely be seen in the majors again after finishing his 2024 in the minor leagues once his suspension was over.
A monstrous power bat is what headlines Martinez’s kit. 2024 was the first season in which he didn’t lead the Jays minor league system in home runs since 2019 (2020 excluded due to the cancelled season). Looking back to 2023 for his last full season, the only concern appears to be his bat-to-ball skills. Between 70 games in double-A and the 55 in triple-A Buffalo that year, he slashed .243/.340/.496 with a 23.4% strikeout rate with a .266 BABIP. His home run power carried a lot of weight to his .835 OPS but he also did walk at a solid clip that year (12.5%).  
Similarly to Barger, Martinez also brings flexibility to the field. During his time in the minor leagues, he’s played games at second, third, and shortstop, with the Jays moving him away from the shortstop position as of late – mostly to help him find a spot on the big league roster. 
Regardless of what happens this upcoming season, expect to see the young prospect see the field at some point. The Jays showed willingness to call him up in 2024 and teams almost always manage to find room for power bats, an area the Jays were sorely lacking last year. If he hits for power during the spring, it wouldn’t be surprising if he finds himself on the big league roster in some capacity this year, especially as an option for third base with Andres Gimenez now in the fold. 

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Make no mistake, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is a primary first baseman. But, the twelve games he did appear at third base in 2024 did show a willingness from the Jays to play Guerrero Jr. at his original position from time to time. It’s also a position that he wants to return to given his comments to finish out the 2024 season. 
The last time that Guerrero Jr. played the majority of his games at third base was his rookie season in 2019 and it didn’t go so great. His DRS of negative three that season puts him a decent bit below average at the position. At a spot as important defensively as third base is, it would be tough to justify letting him play there routinely although, a lot has changed since his rookie campaign. He still possesses that rocket of an arm and has some more experience under his belt, albeit at first base. 
It also may be a situation that the Jays find themselves in though if they’re able to sign a big free agent such as Pete Alonso to the team. They simply can’t exclude Guerrero Jr.’s bat from the lineup, so he’d be likely to get more starts at third unless the Jays balance a platoon between Alonso and Guerrero at the first base/DH spot all season long. 
This situation is only likely should a big free-agent first baseman sign with the team. Otherwise, Guerrero Jr. would be much more valuable at first base, where he won a Gold Glove back in 2022 but did see some slight regression over the past two campaigns. His bat is his calling card at the end of the day but he’s not going to become a DH-only player at this point in his career. 
Think of his ability to play third base as a nice bonus that can help if someone such as Anthony Santander needs a day at first base instead of the outfield.
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