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Jeff Hoffman reportedly failed two physicals before signing with the Blue Jays, is it time for fans to panic?
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Photo credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Trevor Fitzpatrick
Jan 13, 2025, 14:28 EST
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Last Friday, the Toronto Blue Jays signed reliever Jeff Hoffman to a three-year deal, the splashiest free agent signing for the club this winter. However, soon after the news came of Hoffman joining Toronto, it was revealed that the Jays new closer had a larger deal offered to him from the Baltimore Orioles but that deal fell through due to concerns with his shoulder. The club countered with an offer of a lower value once they flagged his medicals but he eventually signed with the Blue Jays.  Sometimes, one failed physical can be viewed as a fluke. But two? Two can be the start of a trend and a concerning one at that. Hoffman’s three-year deal with the Jays has come under a microscope in the past few hours. Atlanta Braves beat writer Mark Bowman reported today on X that Hoffman had also failed a physical with the Braves. While he did not dive into specifics of what caused the Braves to nix the deal, it’s now the second instance this winter of Hoffman not coming to terms with an interested club this winter. 

Jeff Hoffman had deals fall through from both the Orioles and Braves before signing with Toronto

With that said, is it time for Toronto to hit the panic button? If you believe that history repeats itself, it certainly is. Ahead of the 2021 season, the Jays took a gamble on a relief pitcher with veteran experience and a shaky injury history. Kirby Yates, a former all-star with San Diego, failed a physical exam with the Braves, then signed with the Jays for a cheaper price. He never played for Toronto as he required the second Tommy John surgery of his career that March, sitting on the sidelines for the entire campaign and signing with the Atlanta Braves for the 2022 season.
In Yates’ defence, he did return from that surgery to be a strong bullpen piece and even earned his second all-star nod with the Texas Rangers during the 2024 season. Yet, it’s still an eerie precautionary tale that Ross Atkins doesn’t seem phased by. Back then, Yates was only offered a one-year deal – much less risky than locking in Hoffman for three years. Perhaps it’s because they already know Hoffman. He was drafted by the Jays back in 2014 after all.  The Jays have seen Hoffman recover from a serious injury first-hand. When the team drafted him back in 2014, using their first-round pick that year on the right-hander, he was still on the mend from Tommy John surgery he had undergone when he was at East Carolina University. From then on, he’s had no other serious injury history. The last “big” incident would’ve been a shoulder-related visit to the IL in 2021. Since being drafted, Hoffman has gone on to have a nine-year MLB career and earned his first All-Star appearance with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2024. He posted a 2.17 ERA across 68 appearances that year and posted some of the best numbers across relief pitchers in the National League. 
With that said, the level of concern for Hoffman seems low for the moment, but that’s easy to say from the outside looking in. Fans will likely never get to know what flagged the physical for the Orioles and Braves outside of things like ‘a shoulder concern’, but the Jays’ medical staff didn’t see anything wrong with his testing and records to not proceed with the three-year deal. Even in a worst-case scenario where Hoffman gets hurt, the team will still have two more years of control while he rebounds from injury although that would be a hard pill to swallow for a Jays squad that is looking to bounce back after posting one of the worst bullpen’s in the Major Leagues last year. Regardless of the risk, the Jays frankly need the help in the bullpen. Their hands were somewhat tied here as the list of top relievers continued to shrink.  With all of that said, maybe hold your hand slightly above the panic button instead of slamming your fist into it. Expect to see the Jays play a little conservatively with Hoffman in spring training until they are positive he’s ready to ramp up. If he does and manages to avoid injury, this is a great addition for the Blue Jays. 
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