<p>The Toronto Blue Jays can&#8217;t seem to get a win under their belt this offseason, a similar fate that fell upon the team last season when they finished with a disappointing 74-88 record in the basement of the AL East. The team struggled in the batter&#8217;s box and the bullpen and the front office is following suit with their free-agent pursuits.</p>
<p>With <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/the-dodgers-sign-former-blue-jay-teoscar-hernandez-to-a-three-year-deal">Teoscar Hernández</a> and <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/the-diamondbacks-sign-corbin-burnes-to-a-six-year-deal">Corbin Burnes</a> signing with the Dodgers and Diamondbacks respectively, the Blue Jays are back to the drawing board. Toronto was reportedly at the finish line with both players but they chose to sign elsewhere. <a href="https://twitter.com/BNightengale/status/1872891913520726260">USA Today&#8217;s Bob Nightengale</a> reports that the Jays and the San Francisco Giants offered more money to Burnes but he still pivoted to the Diamondbacks, for whatever reason that may be. Nightengale states that the tax difference may be the reason Burnes turned to the desert, but bonus structures and signing bonuses can navigate around those issues if that is the biggest concern.</p>
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2110" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="330"></div>
<p>For what it&#8217;s worth, it was always going to be difficult to pry Hernández from rejoining L.A. as long as the money was in the right area, but the Burnes signing was out of nowhere. If Nightengale&#8217;s reporting is factual, it&#8217;s just another notch on the disappointment belt that is this offseason for the Jays being a bridesmaid but never a bride. It doesn&#8217;t matter the reason why Burnes spurned the Jays at the end of the day, the general manager Ross Atkins has missed on another bat and a pitcher who could improve the roster.</p>
<h2>Blue Jays miss on Hernández and Burnes</h2>
<p>It&#8217;s another failed pursuit this winter, following the miss of Juan Soto (who the Jays were willing to commit over $700 million too). The fact of the matter is that the Blue Jays are not in a position where free agents want to sign—plain and simple. There are too many question marks surrounding this team&#8217;s future, the farm system is still looking to gain some traction to get out of the lower rankings, and the front office just can&#8217;t seem to convince any free agent to take their talents North of the border. It appears that &#8216;representing a whole country&#8217; is not a big enough selling point.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Corbin Burnes was offered more by the Giants and Blue Jays but big tax difference in Arizona</p>
<p>&mdash; Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) <a href="https://twitter.com/BNightengale/status/1872891913520726260?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2024</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>It starts with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and his impending free agency and it&#8217;s compounded by Bo Bichette, Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, Daulton Varsho, George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, and José Berríos (player option) all being free agent eligible over the next two seasons as well. There is no stability on this roster outside of Yariel Rodríguez, Andrés Giménez, and the multiple unproven prospects. Quite frankly, that is likely the biggest reason why premier free agents are not taking the Blue Jays seriously. Forget the lacklustre 2024 season and even the low-ranking farm system, but this Jays roster just has so much uncertainty moving forward that it&#8217;s starting to see why players are turning away from the Jays.</p>
<p>The easiest way to address that concern is to provide stability, starting with extending Guerrero Jr. The Blue Jays slugger<a href="https://twitter.com/Gate14Pod/status/1871303937598607598"> recently stated</a> that he provided a number to the organization, and the club&#8217;s most recent offer was not even close to where he sees his value. After seeing Soto and Shohei Ohtani ink multi-year deals worth hundreds of millions, Guerrero is looking to make his fortune as well and you can&#8217;t blame him for that.</p>
<p>From the outside looking in, barring Guerrero&#8217;s ask being astronomically out of left field, there should be no reason why Toronto doesn&#8217;t fly down and get Guerrero&#8217;s signature on the contract today. We know that the Jays will likely have to overpay to keep him in a Jays uniform for the foreseeable future but that&#8217;s the name of the game. Big-name stars are getting $25 to $35 million (and in Soto&#8217;s case, even more) a year in free agency and Guerrero sits within that bracket (and some would argue even more). To convince him to not test those waters, the Jays will have to hit that number he wants &#8211; again, plain and simple. If you extend him, everything else will fall into place. Keeping Guerrero around shows the Jays are willing to compete in the AL East and build around their star player, providing some answers as to the direction of where this club is going. The club was able to convince Berríos to not head to free agency and the Blue Jays need to find a way to do the same with their star first baseman.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">And just like that… Teoscar Hernandez is a Dodger.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BlueJays?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BlueJays</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TorontoBlueJays?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TorontoBlueJays</a> <a href="https://t.co/RNPEmWkA9R">pic.twitter.com/RNPEmWkA9R</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Blue Jays Today (@TodayJays) <a href="https://twitter.com/TodayJays/status/1872789397789393154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 27, 2024</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>It is at least a positive to see the Blue Jays playing in the deep end of the free agent pool but the concerns on being able to sign high-profile players from that end of the pool is starting to become a concern. Atkins and co. have put themselves into a situation where players are seeing the Jays&#8217; offer and still signing elsewhere &#8211; whatever that reason may be &#8211; and the Jays are starting to become the butt end of the contract negotiations when it comes to casting such a wide net in free agency just to come back with the leftovers. We have seen the Jays sign big names before &#8211; Springer, Gausman, Bassitt, and Hyun Jin Ryu for example &#8211; but this may be the second season in a row where they head to Spring Training without an impact signing.</p>
<h2>Time is running out for the Blue Jays</h2>
<p>The optimist in me says that the Jays still have time because there are names still out there like Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman, and Anthony Santander who can still provide some thump in the lineup while working on the Guerrero extension, who has set a timeline of the first day of Spring Training to be the last day of negotiations. The starting pitching market has thinned out considerably with Burnes now off the table but there are some impact relievers the Jays can pivot to should they so desire (and they should after last season).</p>
<p>However, the pessimist in me is starting to see the failed signings stack up and teams within the division continue to get better. There is a scenario where a struggling Blue Jays squad heads into the trade deadline this year and starts selling off assets again, which would signal another rebuild is on the horizon. Fans likely get their wish in Atkins being fired but it&#8217;s too late at that point &#8211; the damage is already done. The front office can still make moves this winter to improve the roster but it&#8217;s easy to see why the Jays fans have zero faith in them to get this done. We have already seen free agents spurn the Jays and there is no reason to think why the likes of Alonso or Bregman won&#8217;t do the same even if the Jays offered more money than rival clubs.</p>
<p>At the end of the day, it&#8217;s a mess that Ross Atkins has created and needs to figure out sooner rather than later, whether that is through free agency or trades. He&#8217;s well aware that his job as the club&#8217;s general manager is on the hot seat and he needs to get things moving. Finishing last in the AL East again is just not an option, especially after the club&#8217;s investments into renovating the Rogers Centre and all the talk of being a competitive team with the current core next season. We have seen the Blue Jays pull in big names in recent memory and they need to find a way to do it again this offseason while also keeping their best homegrown player around for the foreseeable future.</p>
<p>If the Giménez trade turns out to be the biggest move for Toronto this winter, the fans will likely storm the Rogers Centre gates and the club will finish with an even worse record in 2025. And at this point, I can&#8217;t say I blame them.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<hr />
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2110" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="330"></div>


The Toronto Blue Jays can't seem to get a win under their belt this offseason, a similar fate that fell upon the team last season when they finished with a disappointing 74-88 record in the basement of the AL East. The team struggled in the batter's box and the bullpen and the front office is following suit with their free-agent pursuits.

With <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/the-dodgers-sign-former-blue-jay-teoscar-hernandez-to-a-three-year-deal">Teoscar Hernández</a> and <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/the-diamondbacks-sign-corbin-burnes-to-a-six-year-deal">Corbin Burnes</a> signing with the Dodgers and Diamondbacks respectively, the Blue Jays are back to the drawing board. Toronto was reportedly at the finish line with both players but they chose to sign elsewhere. <a href="https://twitter.com/BNightengale/status/1872891913520726260">USA Today's Bob Nightengale</a> reports that the Jays and the San Francisco Giants offered more money to Burnes but he still pivoted to the Diamondbacks, for whatever reason that may be. Nightengale states that the tax difference may be the reason Burnes turned to the desert, but bonus structures and signing bonuses can navigate around those issues if that is the biggest concern.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2110" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="330"></div>
For what it's worth, it was always going to be difficult to pry Hernández from rejoining L.A. as long as the money was in the right area, but the Burnes signing was out of nowhere. If Nightengale's reporting is factual, it's just another notch on the disappointment belt that is this offseason for the Jays being a bridesmaid but never a bride. It doesn't matter the reason why Burnes spurned the Jays at the end of the day, the general manager Ross Atkins has missed on another bat and a pitcher who could improve the roster.
<h2>Blue Jays miss on Hernández and Burnes</h2>
It's another failed pursuit this winter, following the miss of Juan Soto (who the Jays were willing to commit over $700 million too). The fact of the matter is that the Blue Jays are not in a position where free agents want to sign—plain and simple. There are too many question marks surrounding this team's future, the farm system is still looking to gain some traction to get out of the lower rankings, and the front office just can't seem to convince any free agent to take their talents North of the border. It appears that 'representing a whole country' is not a big enough selling point.

https://twitter.com/BNightengale/status/1872891913520726260

It starts with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and his impending free agency and it's compounded by Bo Bichette, Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, Daulton Varsho, George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, and José Berríos (player option) all being free agent eligible over the next two seasons as well. There is no stability on this roster outside of Yariel Rodríguez, Andrés Giménez, and the multiple unproven prospects. Quite frankly, that is likely the biggest reason why premier free agents are not taking the Blue Jays seriously. Forget the lacklustre 2024 season and even the low-ranking farm system, but this Jays roster just has so much uncertainty moving forward that it's starting to see why players are turning away from the Jays.

The easiest way to address that concern is to provide stability, starting with extending Guerrero Jr. The Blue Jays slugger<a href="https://twitter.com/Gate14Pod/status/1871303937598607598"> recently stated</a> that he provided a number to the organization, and the club's most recent offer was not even close to where he sees his value. After seeing Soto and Shohei Ohtani ink multi-year deals worth hundreds of millions, Guerrero is looking to make his fortune as well and you can't blame him for that.

From the outside looking in, barring Guerrero's ask being astronomically out of left field, there should be no reason why Toronto doesn't fly down and get Guerrero's signature on the contract today. We know that the Jays will likely have to overpay to keep him in a Jays uniform for the foreseeable future but that's the name of the game. Big-name stars are getting $25 to $35 million (and in Soto's case, even more) a year in free agency and Guerrero sits within that bracket (and some would argue even more). To convince him to not test those waters, the Jays will have to hit that number he wants - again, plain and simple. If you extend him, everything else will fall into place. Keeping Guerrero around shows the Jays are willing to compete in the AL East and build around their star player, providing some answers as to the direction of where this club is going. The club was able to convince Berríos to not head to free agency and the Blue Jays need to find a way to do the same with their star first baseman.

https://twitter.com/TodayJays/status/1872789397789393154

It is at least a positive to see the Blue Jays playing in the deep end of the free agent pool but the concerns on being able to sign high-profile players from that end of the pool is starting to become a concern. Atkins and co. have put themselves into a situation where players are seeing the Jays' offer and still signing elsewhere - whatever that reason may be - and the Jays are starting to become the butt end of the contract negotiations when it comes to casting such a wide net in free agency just to come back with the leftovers. We have seen the Jays sign big names before - Springer, Gausman, Bassitt, and Hyun Jin Ryu for example - but this may be the second season in a row where they head to Spring Training without an impact signing.
<h2>Time is running out for the Blue Jays</h2>
The optimist in me says that the Jays still have time because there are names still out there like Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman, and Anthony Santander who can still provide some thump in the lineup while working on the Guerrero extension, who has set a timeline of the first day of Spring Training to be the last day of negotiations. The starting pitching market has thinned out considerably with Burnes now off the table but there are some impact relievers the Jays can pivot to should they so desire (and they should after last season).

However, the pessimist in me is starting to see the failed signings stack up and teams within the division continue to get better. There is a scenario where a struggling Blue Jays squad heads into the trade deadline this year and starts selling off assets again, which would signal another rebuild is on the horizon. Fans likely get their wish in Atkins being fired but it's too late at that point - the damage is already done. The front office can still make moves this winter to improve the roster but it's easy to see why the Jays fans have zero faith in them to get this done. We have already seen free agents spurn the Jays and there is no reason to think why the likes of Alonso or Bregman won't do the same even if the Jays offered more money than rival clubs.

At the end of the day, it's a mess that Ross Atkins has created and needs to figure out sooner rather than later, whether that is through free agency or trades. He's well aware that his job as the club's general manager is on the hot seat and he needs to get things moving. Finishing last in the AL East again is just not an option, especially after the club's investments into renovating the Rogers Centre and all the talk of being a competitive team with the current core next season. We have seen the Blue Jays pull in big names in recent memory and they need to find a way to do it again this offseason while also keeping their best homegrown player around for the foreseeable future.

If the Giménez trade turns out to be the biggest move for Toronto this winter, the fans will likely storm the Rogers Centre gates and the club will finish with an even worse record in 2025. And at this point, I can't say I blame them.

&nbsp;

<hr />

<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2110" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="330"></div>

The Blue Jays continue to swing and miss on signing free agents this offseason

Recent articles from Tyson Shushkewich

Breaking News