After a season that saw the team finish dead last in the AL East with a 74-88 record, the Toronto Blue Jays have a lot of work to do if they want to return to the playoffs in 2025. General manager Ross Atkins and company need to find a way to rebuild baseball’s worst bullpen and add some life to a mediocre offence without having a tremendous amount of open payroll budget to work with.

The front office is going to have to get creative this winter, so roster turnover is going to be high. Which players who are currently on the Blue Jays’ roster will be around when the team opens training camp in Dunedin in February? Let’s go through the 40-man and who’s likely to stay and who could be on their way out.

It’s been two consecutive years of steep decline for the former World Series MVP, as Springer finished the 2024 season with career-lows in batting average at .220 and OPS at .647. He’s owed $24,166,666 in 2025 and 2026, so the Blue Jays might try to get out from under the biggest contract in team history this winter.

After a disastrous season in 2023 that saw him go from Opening Day starter to the Florida Complex League, Manoah seemed to be back on the right track this year. The 26-year-old posted a 3.70 ERA over five starts but had his season come to an end because of an elbow injury that required Tommy John. Manoah is eligible for arbitration for the first time this off-season and a move while recovering from surgery seems unlikely.

Three prospects acquired by the Blue Jays when the team sold ahead of the trade deadline, Wagner, Clase, and Loperfido are in similar spots this winter. Depending on what the Blue Jays are able to do in free agency, any of these three players could find themselves as trade bait later in the off-season.

With one more year remaining before he’s eligible to reach free agency for the first time, there’s been plenty of speculation that Bo Bichette might have played his last game as a member of the Blue Jays. He’s said that he wants to stay in Toronto but anything is possible given the situation. Bichette is owed $17,583,333 in 2025 and is coming off the worst season of his career.

The Blue Jays badly need to find a power bat to add to their lineup next season and there’s a chance the one they need is already on the roster. His season was derailed because of a banned substance suspension, but Martinez still smashed 17 home runs with an .869 OPS in 74 games in Triple-A this season.

It was another strong season for Berrios, who now has his disastrous 2022 campaign well in the rearview mirror. The Blue Jays have Berrios signed for $18,714,286 in 2025 and 2026 and then he’s eligible to either opt out of his contract or get paid 24,714,285 by the Blue Jays in 2027 and 2028.

When the Blue Jays traded Justin Turner, it opened a spot on the roster for De Los Santos, one of the longest-serving members of the organization. Signed all the way back in 2016, De Los Santos is an organizational depth player on the edge of the 40-man roster who could get shoved out for somebody else.

Varsho’s second season in Toronto was better than his first but it came to an early end because of a shoulder injury. The hard-nosed outfielder had rotator cuff surgery and might not be ready for the start of the 2025 season.  The Blue Jays have plenty of young outfielders who can fill his spot for a short time.

It would be shocking if Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was moved this off-season. He’s one year away from free agency and the Blue Jays need to get him signed.

The 2024 season was Clement’s first full year in the big leagues and he proved to be a reliable backup shortstop who could do a solid job when Bo Bichette went down with an injury. He’s eligible for arbitration this winter and will still be good value for the Blue Jays even after a nice raise.

The first season of a five-year, $32 million contract was a successful one for Rodriguez, as the Cuban right-hander went from taking the year off in 2023 to posting a 4.47 ERA over 86 2/3 innings in his first season in the Major Leagues. The Blue Jays will have Rodriguez in the mix to be a part of their starting rotation next season but he might wind up a multi-inning reliever.

Given the Blue Jays traded Danny Jansen this season, it’s hard to imagine that Kirk is going anywhere this winter. The former All-Star is eligible for arbitration for the first time and figures to be one of the team’s catchers again next season.

A couple of arms selected off of waivers during the season, both de Geus and Tate could find themselves off of the 40-man roster to make room for somebody else this winter. Tate was once a top prospect and has over 200 innings of big-league experience, so he’s the one of the two who’s more likely to get a test run next spring.

It was a difficult season for Gausman, who rushed back from an injury to start the year in the rotation. The right-hander still managed to put up a 3.83 ERA over 181 innings, an impressive result given he wasn’t at full strength the whole time. Gausman will be back with the Blue Jays next season and could be the Opening Day starter if he gets through spring healthy.

While all of the focus at the trade deadline was on the prospects the Blue Jays acquired, Yarbrough quietly had an excellent finish to the season after coming to Toronto from the L.A. Dodgers. The lefty pitched 31 1/3 innings for the Blue Jays and posted a 2.02 ERA. He’s a free agent this winter and Toronto needs a left-handed pitcher, so bringing Yarbrough back makes a lot of sense.

The shine of Schneider’s incredible debut in August of 2023 has all but worn off after a difficult showing in 2024. He started well but finished the year with a .193/.282/.345 slash line over 450 plate appearances. Though he isn’t a DFA candidate yet, Schneider isn’t guaranteed a spot on the 26-man in 2025.

Among the players who are in the mix for playing time because of Varsho’s surgery are Berroa and Lukes. The former is a switch hitter who stole 40 bases between Triple-A and the Majors in 2024 and the latter hit to a .303 batting average with the Blue Jays in September. You can expect both players to take a lot of at-bats for the Blue Jays in the spring.

Both of the position players acquired from the Astros in the Yusei Kikuchi trade made their debuts with the team but the Blue Jays opted not to call pitcher Jake Bloss up to the Majors. The right-hander posted a 3.18 ERA over 21 starts between High-A, Double-A, and Triple-A in 2024 but struggled late in the season after joining the Buffalo Bisons. Bloss is a high-quality prospect and the team has some pitching depth, so the Blue Jays might dangle him in trades to improve their roster.

Bassitt’s second season in Toronto wasn’t as good as his first, as the right-hander saw his ERA grow from 3.60 to 4.16 and his innings total decrease from 200 to 171. He’s going into the final season of his three-year, $61 million contract in 2025 and is owed $22 million. As noted above, the Blue Jays have some pitching depth, so Bassitt could be an option to be moved to open up some wiggle room.

When looking at the many no-name arms that the Blue Jays acquired during the season, Burr was the one who did the most to make a case for himself. The right-hander pitched 32 2/3 innings for the Blue Jays after being purchased from the Phillies and posted a 4.13 ERA while striking out 13.1 batters per nine. With almost every bullpen spot up in the air in 2025, Burr is worth bringing back for another look.

Another pitcher who really made a name for himself this season was Bowden Francis. The late-bloomer made 27 appearances for the Blue Jays in 2024 and posted a 3.30 ERA, highlighted by a run in the rotation that saw him take two no-hitters into the ninth inning in a matter of a few weeks. Francis’ breakout is why it might be possible for the Blue Jays to move Bassitt this winter.

Though Nance was solid for the Blue Jays, posting a .4.09 ERA over 20 appearances after being grabbed off of waivers, he’s a 33-year-old with under 100 innings at the Major League level, so it seems unlikely he’ll get through the winter on the 40-man.

The Blue Jays falling out of contention early in the season allowed the team to pivot playing time to young players. Horwitz was among the team’s best hitters in 2024, Jimenez proved to be a capable backup infielder, and Barger flashed skills on both offence and defence. None of them have guaranteed 26-man spots in 2025 but they’re in the conversation.

It was a difficult year for Swanson, who was sent down to Triple-A Buffalo with a 9.22 ERA in May and was injured immediately upon his return in June. The right-hander managed to finish the season with a 5.03 ERA thanks to a strong September. Swanson made $2.75 million in 2024 and is eligible for his third go-around at arbitration, so he won’t be cheap. It isn’t a guarantee the Blue Jays bring him back in 2025.

He only made it into one appearance with the Blue Jays and had a 6.87 ERA over 33 appearances in the minors across three organizations in 2024, so Robertson feels like an early winter DFA candidate.

Along with Ryan Burr, Brendon Little was one of the pleasant surprises in an otherwise terrible Blue Jays bullpen this season, as the lefty posted a 3.74 ERA over 49 appearances. There’s no reason to assume the Blue Jays will let him go this winter.

What feels inevitable is Heineman getting claimed by another team on waivers in February or March only to be reacquired by the Blue Jays at some point during the 2025 season.

Given the injuries to Toronto’s bullpen, Pop got way more high-leverage innings for the Blue Jays in 2024 than expected and he didn’t impress with the opportunity. The right-hander posted a 5.59 ERA over 58 appearances and only struck out 6.1 batters per nine. He’s eligible for arbitration this winter and the Blue Jays might cut ties.

The Blue Jays took an option in Green’s contract last winter that locked him up for $10.5 million in 2024 and 2025. There was speculation the team would trade the veteran reliever ahead of the deadline but they opted to hold on, which assumes he’s going to be part of the team’s bullpen next season.

A lot of different pitchers made appearances for the Blue Jays this season and it’s surprising that Eisert didn’t make more. The team’s 18th-round pick from the 2019 draft posted a 3.86 ERA for Triple-A Buffalo over 53 2/3 innings but only made three appearances with Toronto.

Another pair of arms in the game of bullpen musical chairs the Blue Jays played this season, Lucas and Frias posted ERAs of 11.57 and 21.60, respectively. It’s pretty safe to say they won’t last through the winter on the 40-man roster.

These two pitching prospects could figure into Toronto’s plans in 2025 if they aren’t used in a trade to address other needs on the roster. Macko started the year in High-A and finished in Triple-A with a 4.63 ERA over the three levels. Danner put up a 3.06 ERA over 34 appearances with the Bisons.

Like Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., this will be Jordan Romano’s last season before he’s eligible to become a free agent. The two-time All-Star struggled through an injury-riddled season and his absence played a role in the team’s bullpen imploding. After making $7.75 million last season, Romano won’t be cheap in 2025. The Blue Jays may bite the bullet and move the local product to save money and add prospect capital.

The Blue Jays have been able to get a lot out of Cabrera, as the lefty has a 3.34 ERA in 98 appearances with the team since being acquired from the Cardinals during the 2023 season. He isn’t expensive, so it would be surprising to see the Blue Jays move on this winter.

These two players were added on waivers but weren’t ever called up to the Blue Jays. They’re likely to be among the first names to come off the 40-man roster this winter.