Blue Jays listed as one of six destinations for Tarik Skubal by MLB.com
Photo credit: © Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
Oct 21, 2026, 19:00 EDTUpdated: Oct 21, 2026, 17:12 EDT
Imagine telling a Toronto Blue Jay fan 20 years ago that they’ll target the marquee free agent each off-season.
On Wednesday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com listed a handful of contenders to sign the consensus top free agent this off-season, Tarik Skubal. Alongside the listing of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, and Philadelphia Phillies, were the Blue Jays.
Starting pitching isn’t the Blue Jays’ biggest need, but it is still an area for improvement this off-season. While a #4 in the rotation is what they should be looking for, Feinsand notes that it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Jays have some interest in the left-handed pitcher.
Beginning his career with the Tigers, Skubal won back-to-back American League Cy Youngs in 2024 and 2025. Between the two seasons, the southpaw had a 2.30 ERA and 2.47 FIP, with a 31.2 K% and 4.5 BB%. Skubal’s 2026 was split between the Tigers and Dodgers, wasn’t as good as the two prior years, posting a 2.72 ERA and 2.51 FIP in 158.2 innings of work. But at the end of the day, you’d be hard pressed to name a pitcher who is currently better than the 29-year-old.
One pitcher who’ll be up for a Cy Young award this season is the Blue Jays’ own Dylan Cease. The righty signed a seven-year deal north of $200 million last off-season, and is just one of many high-calibre players the Blue Jays have targeted in free agency.
Big game hunting has defined the Blue Jays in the 2020s, so there’s precedent for the team to be connected to Skubal.
With Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette becoming big league regulars in 2019 and 2020, the Blue Jays turned to free agency to further improve their team. During the 2019-20 off-season, they signed Hyun Jin Ryu, then George Springer the following off-season. This was a turning point.
In the 2021-22 off-season, the Blue Jays replaced Robbie Ray with Kevin Gausman while also adding Yusei Kuchi. Their 2022-23 off-season was rather quiet, with their notable signings being Chris Bassit, Brandon Belt, and Kevin Kiermaier. They didn’t land a big fish in the 2023-24 off-season, but their pursuits of big-name free agents ramped up.
The Blue Jays were famously a finalist to sign Shohei Ohtani before he ended up agreeing to terms with the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was much of the same in the 2024-25 off-season, swinging and missing on Juan Soto and Rōki Sasaki, before landing Anthony Santander.
Then there was last off-season. Despite the heartbreak of the 2025 World Series, there was optimism heading into the 2025-26 off-season. The big fish last off-season was Kyle Tucker, who ended up signing with the Dodgers. Instead, the Jays added Kazuma Okamoto, Cease, and Tyler Rogers, some of their best players this past season.
The Blue Jays have a ton of money coming off the books this off-season, meaning they can afford to try to land a big-name free agent. While that money is better spent on improving their dismal offence in 2026, a rotation of Skubal, Cease, José Soriano, Trey Yesavage, and Cody Ponce is an enticing proposition.
Cynthia Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, DFOEdmonton, and DFOCalgary. She can be followed on Twitter @CynthiaRDelaney.
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