Spending is set to reach historic heights in 2026 for the Toronto Blue Jays.

After losing in heartbreaking fashion in Game 7 of the World Series last fall, the franchise hasn’t hit the brake pedal since transitioning to the off-season, building off the incredible momentum sparked by their magical post-season run with a trio of aggressive free-agent signings — first Dylan Cease, then Cody Ponce and most recently Tyler Rogers.

All three moves have drastically enhanced the pitching staff’s outlook for next season, bolstering what’s slated to be one of the deepest rotation-and-bullpen combos across baseball. Financially speaking, the organization has already committed $277 million between Cease, Ponce, and Rogers this winter (not including Shane Bieber’s $16 million option) — nearly double last winter’s $156 million spent in free-agent commitments.

And that’s before making any meaningful position-player additions.

The Blue Jays’ front office will surely continue spending into the New Year, narrowing its sights on improving a lineup that features franchise cornerstone Vladimir Guerrero Jr., along with George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, Daulton Varsho, Addison Barger, and a returning Anthony Santander — who missed most of 2025 due to multiple injuries.

Whether that’ll result in bringing back Bo Bichette or making another free-agent splash with Kyle Tucker, arguably the best player available from this year’s crop, remains to be seen. There’ll be other alternatives if they happen to miss out on both, such as pursuing Cody Bellinger or Alex Bregman, or shifting their focus to the trade market.

Even after reportedly signing Rogers — a deal that, once officially finalized, will require opening a spot on the 40-man roster — and claiming fellow reliever Spencer Miles during last week’s annual Rule 5 draft, Toronto’s intentions to continue fortifying its pitching depth likely aren’t finished quite yet. Any potential future additions, though, will probably come in the ‘pen.

If we’ve learned anything from the last six-plus weeks, it’s to expect the unexpected (to steal the infamous line from the reality show Big Brother). What’s clear is that the Blue Jays are all-in on returning to the World Series next season, even if it means spending more than they ever have before.

For context, the franchise finished last season with a projected Competitive Balance Tax (CBT) payroll around $282 million, per FanGraphs’ RosterResource. If we assume that figure is accurate (all publicly available payroll calculations should be considered rough estimates), they slotted in slightly above the third luxury-tax threshold of $281 million, subjecting them to an increased tier of CBT penalties, which are as follows:

As currently constructed, the Blue Jays have already surpassed last season’s CBT payroll figure and are close to reaching $300 million for the first time in franchise history, with their ’26 payroll sitting at approximately $294 million — $10 million above the third luxury-tax threshold.

For those wondering, that provides Toronto with the fourth-highest projected CBT payroll in the majors for next season, trailing only the New York Mets ($297 million), Philadelphia Phillies ($298 million) and back-to-back champion Los Angeles Dodgers ($339 million), per RosterResource.

If this team continues spending at its current pace, which is currently the expectation, they’re likely to cross the fourth and final luxury-tax threshold (previously coined the “Steve Cohen threshold”) of $304 million before spring training arrives. As a result, they’d enter another increased tier of CBT penalties for the second straight year.

As aggressive and motivated as the Blue Jays brass has operated this off-season, they almost certainly aren’t about to enter the extreme territory that’s been exclusively reserved for the Mets and Dodgers in recent years. So, while this organization will probably soar beyond the fourth luxury-tax threshold in ’26, expecting to stand alongside those other financial behemoths is unrealistic.

In turn, that’s a prime reason why they shouldn’t be expected to sign both Bichette and Tucker in free agency, as doing so would surely push the club’s projected CBT payroll north of $350 million.

Those of an older generation of Blue Jays fans probably fondly remember when this franchise rivalled the sport’s highest spenders during the cherished early-to-mid ’90s, featuring a top-three Opening Day payroll from 1992-95 and led the majors when the regular season opened in ’93 and ’95, per The Baseball Cube. Those instances, of course, came before MLB first introduced luxury-tax penalties in ’97.

Flush with a new generation of Canadian baseball fans, the Blue Jays — who’re owned by Rogers Communications, one of the wealthiest ownership groups among all 30 clubs — are proving again exactly how much financial power they can hold when competing for a World Series title.

They’ve always been a big-market team, supported by an entire nation and playing in the country’s most populous city. It’s just taken three decades for the rest of the world to catch on.