It was an interesting week inside the Blue Jays organization, as the club decided to not protect any prospects within the farm system from the Rule 5 Draft while also letting relievers Dillon Tate and Jordan Romano <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/blue-jays-non-tender-jordan-romano-dillon-tate">head</a> to free agency, with neither player being tendered a contract before the Friday evening deadline. The moves free up anywhere between $8-10 million based on projection numbers but for a bullpen that ranked towards the bottom of numerous statistical categories in 2024, letting Romano go is a move that looks bad on paper but is shrouded in mystery.
The move to let the Canadian closer go is rooted in his elbow, as the right-hander missed most of last season after undergoing surgery in his throwing arm. It&#8217;s apparent that the Jays didn&#8217;t like where he currently stands in his rehab progression toward a return to the mound and weren&#8217;t willing to commit the contract money to gamble on a return to form.

There can be multiple arguments made on both sides of the coin &#8211; an article in its own right &#8211; but looking ahead, with Romano currently slated to wear a different uniform next year barring a return and Génesis Cabrera already being given his walking papers, the Blue Jays bullpen has found a way to gain more question marks out of the gate this winter.
With moving on from Cabrera, Tate, and Romano, the Jays could arguably net two to three veteran relievers on the open market this year to join Erik Swanson and Chad Green, the only two relievers I would put in more of a lock situation compared to the rest of the group. Rounding out the relief corps (as it currently stands) is a boatload of journeyman &#8216;prove it&#8217; types or some looking for a new start in a different organization. Some arms have more experience on the Jays active roster like Zach Pop, Brendon Little, Ryan Burr, and Tommy Nance while there are quite a few others who were picked up late in the campaign and were given a chance to shine late in the year to mixed results &#8211; Brett de Geus and Easton Lucas for example.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Jordan Romano, the Canadian closer with 105 career saves, has been non-tendered by the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BlueJays?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BlueJays</a>
Story on the decision and bullpen rebuild: <a href="https://t.co/YK2PMHB1Rn">https://t.co/YK2PMHB1Rn</a>
&mdash; Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) <a href="https://twitter.com/KeeganMatheson/status/1860142284827951395?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
There are a few wild cards like Nick Robertson and Michael Petersen who could carve a spot out in the bullpen to start the season but given the current depth charts, the Blue Jays need to do some heavy lifting this winter if they want to put forth a group that will improve upon the dreadful 2024 numbers. Putting all your chips into the current group would be a pretty risky maneuver for Atkins after a disappointing season and while the front office has lost a lot of faith in the Jays fanbase as of late, there is no question the club will sign some relievers this winter &#8211; the question will just lie in waiting as to who those pitchers may be.
As is the norm in recent years, the Jays are kicking the tires on numerous free agents, whether that is Juan Soto, Max Fried, or a different power bat that they also desperately need. This will include relief pitchers as the winter moves forward and with some extra cap space to play with given the recent roster moves, it would make sense that the Jays will divert some funds toward bullpen arms. While they have not committed both years and salary to impact bullpen arms since the B.J. Ryan pact in 2005, there are a few names out in the open market who could provide the depth and impact the Jays are looking for if they wish to fish in the deep end. Tanner Scott leads the charge in that category but there are also a few more relievers out there in the upper tiers the Jays could pursue as well.
The Jays brass could also dip into the plethora of middle infield talent that lies within to find a trade partner with an arm to spare &#8211; which is a route the Jays have done recently at the trade deadline compared to the offseason in recent memory.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Blue Jays are expected to non-tender reliever Dillon Tate, source tells me &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/ShiDavidi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ShiDavidi</a> 
Jays were intrigued by Tate late in the season, but he had a projected $1.9 million salary in arb via <a href="https://twitter.com/mlbtraderumors?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mlbtraderumors</a>
&mdash; Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) <a href="https://twitter.com/bnicholsonsmith/status/1860099402532290943?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 22, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
However, considering the Jays need some quantity within the relief corps along with improved quality, it wouldn&#8217;t be surprising to see Ross Atkins and co. try and find a few different arms who might not be the hottest names out there but can give you dependable innings throughout most of the season and have some history to back up those claims &#8211; regardless if it is through free agency or trade.
For free agents, think of a Yimi García type deal where a pitcher is signed for a couple of years for around $4-6 million AAV. There were times when García was downright unhittable and some moments when he couldn&#8217;t get an out to save his life, finishing his Jays tenure with a respectable 3.44 ERA across 163 outings. Having two to three more arms ranging in the mid-three ERA area would already be an improvement on the 2024 crew, so the merit of this type of game plan has some validity even if it isn&#8217;t the flashiest of names joining the organization.
The discourse of improving the bullpen is all fine and dandy as long as the Jays can execute their game plan, which means they need to sign or trade for those relievers to fulfill the areas that need to be filled.
Letting Cabrera and Romano walk (elbow issues aside) create more holes for this group in 2025, and if the Jays plan to divert resources to fill the bullpen gap, then action will obviously be needed. Otherwise, the Jays will arguably be in worse shape heading into the new campaign compared to last year, which will not bode well within a stacked AL East division. Teams exposed the Jays bullpen at times which shifted the tides late in games and had an impact on their overall record. As well, we have also seen teams with strong bullpen corps make deep postseason runs in recent history, especially since starting pitchers don&#8217;t go as late into games given the analytics and data out in the world.
It&#8217;s early to criticize the overall outcome as there are still a few months to go before players make their way to Spring Training but it is no secret that Atkins is on the hot seat, especially with the internal measures that need cleaning up as well like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette&#8217;s long term fate with the organization. This should persuade the front office to make moves and spend across the board to support the contention mentality Atkins went into the offseason with but until those deals happen, fans will continue to bear down on the front office until action to improve the squad takes place.

It was an interesting week inside the Blue Jays organization, as the club decided to not protect any prospects within the farm system from the Rule 5 Draft while also letting relievers Dillon Tate and Jordan Romano <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/blue-jays-non-tender-jordan-romano-dillon-tate">head</a> to free agency, with neither player being tendered a contract before the Friday evening deadline. The moves free up anywhere between $8-10 million based on projection numbers but for a bullpen that ranked towards the bottom of numerous statistical categories in 2024, letting Romano go is a move that looks bad on paper but is shrouded in mystery.

The move to let the Canadian closer go is rooted in his elbow, as the right-hander missed most of last season after undergoing surgery in his throwing arm. It's apparent that the Jays didn't like where he currently stands in his rehab progression toward a return to the mound and weren't willing to commit the contract money to gamble on a return to form.



There can be multiple arguments made on both sides of the coin - an article in its own right - but looking ahead, with Romano currently slated to wear a different uniform next year barring a return and Génesis Cabrera already being given his walking papers, the Blue Jays bullpen has found a way to gain more question marks out of the gate this winter.

With moving on from Cabrera, Tate, and Romano, the Jays could arguably net two to three veteran relievers on the open market this year to join Erik Swanson and Chad Green, the only two relievers I would put in more of a lock situation compared to the rest of the group. Rounding out the relief corps (as it currently stands) is a boatload of journeyman 'prove it' types or some looking for a new start in a different organization. Some arms have more experience on the Jays active roster like Zach Pop, Brendon Little, Ryan Burr, and Tommy Nance while there are quite a few others who were picked up late in the campaign and were given a chance to shine late in the year to mixed results - Brett de Geus and Easton Lucas for example.

https://twitter.com/KeeganMatheson/status/1860142284827951395

There are a few wild cards like Nick Robertson and Michael Petersen who could carve a spot out in the bullpen to start the season but given the current depth charts, the Blue Jays need to do some heavy lifting this winter if they want to put forth a group that will improve upon the dreadful 2024 numbers. Putting all your chips into the current group would be a pretty risky maneuver for Atkins after a disappointing season and while the front office has lost a lot of faith in the Jays fanbase as of late, there is no question the club will sign some relievers this winter - the question will just lie in waiting as to who those pitchers may be.

As is the norm in recent years, the Jays are kicking the tires on numerous free agents, whether that is Juan Soto, Max Fried, or a different power bat that they also desperately need. This will include relief pitchers as the winter moves forward and with some extra cap space to play with given the recent roster moves, it would make sense that the Jays will divert some funds toward bullpen arms. While they have not committed both years and salary to impact bullpen arms since the B.J. Ryan pact in 2005, there are a few names out in the open market who could provide the depth and impact the Jays are looking for if they wish to fish in the deep end. Tanner Scott leads the charge in that category but there are also a few more relievers out there in the upper tiers the Jays could pursue as well.

The Jays brass could also dip into the plethora of middle infield talent that lies within to find a trade partner with an arm to spare - which is a route the Jays have done recently at the trade deadline compared to the offseason in recent memory.

https://twitter.com/bnicholsonsmith/status/1860099402532290943

However, considering the Jays need some quantity within the relief corps along with improved quality, it wouldn't be surprising to see Ross Atkins and co. try and find a few different arms who might not be the hottest names out there but can give you dependable innings throughout most of the season and have some history to back up those claims - regardless if it is through free agency or trade.

For free agents, think of a Yimi García type deal where a pitcher is signed for a couple of years for around $4-6 million AAV. There were times when García was downright unhittable and some moments when he couldn't get an out to save his life, finishing his Jays tenure with a respectable 3.44 ERA across 163 outings. Having two to three more arms ranging in the mid-three ERA area would already be an improvement on the 2024 crew, so the merit of this type of game plan has some validity even if it isn't the flashiest of names joining the organization.

The discourse of improving the bullpen is all fine and dandy as long as the Jays can execute their game plan, which means they need to sign or trade for those relievers to fulfill the areas that need to be filled.

Letting Cabrera and Romano walk (elbow issues aside) create more holes for this group in 2025, and if the Jays plan to divert resources to fill the bullpen gap, then action will obviously be needed. Otherwise, the Jays will arguably be in worse shape heading into the new campaign compared to last year, which will not bode well within a stacked AL East division. Teams exposed the Jays bullpen at times which shifted the tides late in games and had an impact on their overall record. As well, we have also seen teams with strong bullpen corps make deep postseason runs in recent history, especially since starting pitchers don't go as late into games given the analytics and data out in the world.

It's early to criticize the overall outcome as there are still a few months to go before players make their way to Spring Training but it is no secret that Atkins is on the hot seat, especially with the internal measures that need cleaning up as well like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette's long term fate with the organization. This should persuade the front office to make moves and spend across the board to support the contention mentality Atkins went into the offseason with but until those deals happen, fans will continue to bear down on the front office until action to improve the squad takes place.

The Blue Jays bullpen picture becomes a lot murkier with Romano heading to free agency

Toronto Blue Jays right fielder Nathan Lukes (38) is congratulated by third baseman Addison Barger (47) after he hit a home run during the fourth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

Recent articles from Tyson Shushkewich

Breaking News