<p>There are still plenty of free agents left on the board, but with each passing day, prime candidates for the Toronto Blue Jays are signing elsewhere. Yesterday <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/the-dodgers-sign-former-blue-jay-teoscar-hernandez-to-a-three-year-deal">it was Teoscar Hernandez</a> and late last night it was Corbin Burnes.</p>
<p>The seats at the proverbial game of musical chairs are running out, leaving the Blue Jays in danger of missing out on a marquee free agent. It&#8217;s for no lack of trying (<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/report-the-blue-jays-and-giants-offered-corbin-burnes-more-money-than-the-diamondbacks">Burnes reportedly turned down more money</a>), but there are no consolation prizes in free agency.</p>
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<p>The top free-agent position players remaining are Anthony Santander, Alex Bregman and Pete Alonso. The Blue Jays have been linked to Anthony Santander and Bregman, less so with Alonso because of his awkward roster fit, but a big bat is a big bat.</p>
<p>I&#8217;m not saying the Blue Jays&#8217; offseason is a failure if they can’t land one of these three hitters, but pivoting to a marquee free agent would improve their chances of contending in 2025. Let&#8217;s look at who might be the best fit in Toronto.</p>
<h2>Anthony Santander</h2>
<p>A few weeks ago, <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/is-teoscar-hernandezs-asking-price-finally-right-for-the-blue-jays">I pined for Hernandez over Santander</a>, and of course, Teo opted to rejoin the Dodgers on a three-year/$66 million deal. That was one of the more appealing aspects of Hernandez, that you could probably get him on a shorter-term deal, but Santander will look for at least a four-year contract and has been hoping for a five-year pact.</p>
<p>At only 30 years old, he still has plenty of gas left in the tank, but something is frightening about signing a player coming off a career year where he clubbed 44 home runs and posted only 3.3 fWAR.</p>
<p>If we&#8217;ve already witnessed Santander&#8217;s ceiling, that&#8217;s concerning if you&#8217;re plunking down $20-plus million a season for a below-average fielder and baserunner. The second Santander stops contributing with the bat, he&#8217;s a net negative player.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">With Corbin Burnes and Teoscar Hernandez both flying off the free agent board, it feels like the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bluejays?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Bluejays</a> offseason is almost cooked</p>
<p>At this point, it’s Alonso/Bregman/Santander or bust</p>
<p>&mdash; Blue Jays Today (@TodayJays) <a href="https://twitter.com/TodayJays/status/1872997446386856267?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2024</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>No offense to George Springer, but the Blue Jays already have one of those players on the roster for the next few seasons. Santander would provide some much-needed protection for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the middle of the lineup, but that&#8217;s only guaranteed for one season. If Vladdy walks, then Santander is the Blue Jays&#8217; primary source of output for 2026 and beyond.</p>
<p>If the price is right and the term isn&#8217;t exorbitant, the Blue Jays should explore adding Santander into the fold, but it might be a late-season acquisition if other teams are balking at the asking price.</p>
<h2>Pete Alonso</h2>
<p>From the outset, Alonso made the least sense for the Blue Jays to sign on the free agent market. The second he lands in Toronto, it would require some infield reconfiguration; whether that&#8217;s shifting Vladdy over to third base, or splitting first base and DH duties between Alonso and Guerrero.</p>
<p>But what do the Blue Jays need? Home runs. And who is the best source of raw power on the market? The Polar Bear.</p>
<p>By Alonso&#8217;s standards, 2024 was a &#8220;down&#8221; season, but he still hit 34 home runs and posted a 122 wRC+ in 162 games with the Mets. Unlike Santander, Alonso didn&#8217;t hit the afterburners approaching free agency and his case is a harder sell for prospective buyers. And also similar to Santander, all of Alonso&#8217;s value is locked inside his bat, but Alonso has the better track record when it comes to power numbers.</p>
<p>Depending on how the Blue Jays front office feels about their chances to extend Guerrero Jr., maybe it makes sense to give a bunch of money and term to Alonso in the hopes he becomes the new first baseman on the club.</p>
<p>If Vladdy already has one foot out the door, it doesn&#8217;t hurt to have a backup plan in place a year before his potential exit into free agency.</p>
<h2>Alex Bregman</h2>
<p>No free agent list among this trio is without their warts, but Bregman is the best all-around baseball player left in free agency. He plays a premium position at third base, hits for power and gets on base at a decent clip.</p>
<p>This is a player any contender would love to have on their team, and yet any team on the periphery of contention could also sign Bregman to help push them over the top. Despite him not signing yet, there are a lot of teams where the former Houston Astro can make a sizeable impact.</p>
<p>By defensive metrics, 2024 was the best campaign of his career, but Bregman also paired that with a tumble offensively, posting a 118 wRC+, his lowest since an injury-shortened 2021 campaign.</p>
<p>There were reports back in the day that <a href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/article/why-reunion-with-matt-chapman-was-not-in-cards-for-blue-jays/">the Blue Jays attempted to extend Matt Chapman to a six-year/$125 million contract</a>, and that&#8217;s the floor for potential contract negotiations with Alex Bregman if not about $40 million higher.</p>
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<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>
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<p>If you&#8217;re an optimist, there&#8217;s reason to believe Bregman can bounce back with his bat next year. His walk rate dipped 5.8% in 2024 and with a little less chase outside the strike zone, the 30-year-old could get back to career norms.</p>
<p>However, there&#8217;s always that lingering question of how his early career numbers were aided by Houston&#8217;s trash can-banging scandal, so take those numbers with a grain of salt. But if the Blue Jays are going to sink their money into one big-name free agent, it should be Bregman.</p>
<p>He fits Toronto&#8217;s current template of prioritizing run prevention, and he has 30-plus home run potential inside his bat. A one-two-three punch of Bichette-Bregman-Guerrero would be very enticing for a Blue Jays team that *checks notes* intends on being competitive in 2025.</p>
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There are still plenty of free agents left on the board, but with each passing day, prime candidates for the Toronto Blue Jays are signing elsewhere. Yesterday <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/the-dodgers-sign-former-blue-jay-teoscar-hernandez-to-a-three-year-deal">it was Teoscar Hernandez</a> and late last night it was Corbin Burnes.

The seats at the proverbial game of musical chairs are running out, leaving the Blue Jays in danger of missing out on a marquee free agent. It's for no lack of trying (<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/report-the-blue-jays-and-giants-offered-corbin-burnes-more-money-than-the-diamondbacks">Burnes reportedly turned down more money</a>), but there are no consolation prizes in free agency.
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The top free-agent position players remaining are Anthony Santander, Alex Bregman and Pete Alonso. The Blue Jays have been linked to Anthony Santander and Bregman, less so with Alonso because of his awkward roster fit, but a big bat is a big bat.

I'm not saying the Blue Jays' offseason is a failure if they can’t land one of these three hitters, but pivoting to a marquee free agent would improve their chances of contending in 2025. Let's look at who might be the best fit in Toronto.
<h2>Anthony Santander</h2>
A few weeks ago, <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/is-teoscar-hernandezs-asking-price-finally-right-for-the-blue-jays">I pined for Hernandez over Santander</a>, and of course, Teo opted to rejoin the Dodgers on a three-year/$66 million deal. That was one of the more appealing aspects of Hernandez, that you could probably get him on a shorter-term deal, but Santander will look for at least a four-year contract and has been hoping for a five-year pact.

At only 30 years old, he still has plenty of gas left in the tank, but something is frightening about signing a player coming off a career year where he clubbed 44 home runs and posted only 3.3 fWAR.

If we've already witnessed Santander's ceiling, that's concerning if you're plunking down $20-plus million a season for a below-average fielder and baserunner. The second Santander stops contributing with the bat, he's a net negative player.

https://twitter.com/TodayJays/status/1872997446386856267

No offense to George Springer, but the Blue Jays already have one of those players on the roster for the next few seasons. Santander would provide some much-needed protection for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the middle of the lineup, but that's only guaranteed for one season. If Vladdy walks, then Santander is the Blue Jays' primary source of output for 2026 and beyond.

If the price is right and the term isn't exorbitant, the Blue Jays should explore adding Santander into the fold, but it might be a late-season acquisition if other teams are balking at the asking price.
<h2>Pete Alonso</h2>
From the outset, Alonso made the least sense for the Blue Jays to sign on the free agent market. The second he lands in Toronto, it would require some infield reconfiguration; whether that's shifting Vladdy over to third base, or splitting first base and DH duties between Alonso and Guerrero.

But what do the Blue Jays need? Home runs. And who is the best source of raw power on the market? The Polar Bear.

By Alonso's standards, 2024 was a "down" season, but he still hit 34 home runs and posted a 122 wRC+ in 162 games with the Mets. Unlike Santander, Alonso didn't hit the afterburners approaching free agency and his case is a harder sell for prospective buyers. And also similar to Santander, all of Alonso's value is locked inside his bat, but Alonso has the better track record when it comes to power numbers.

Depending on how the Blue Jays front office feels about their chances to extend Guerrero Jr., maybe it makes sense to give a bunch of money and term to Alonso in the hopes he becomes the new first baseman on the club.

If Vladdy already has one foot out the door, it doesn't hurt to have a backup plan in place a year before his potential exit into free agency.
<h2>Alex Bregman</h2>
No free agent list among this trio is without their warts, but Bregman is the best all-around baseball player left in free agency. He plays a premium position at third base, hits for power and gets on base at a decent clip.

This is a player any contender would love to have on their team, and yet any team on the periphery of contention could also sign Bregman to help push them over the top. Despite him not signing yet, there are a lot of teams where the former Houston Astro can make a sizeable impact.

By defensive metrics, 2024 was the best campaign of his career, but Bregman also paired that with a tumble offensively, posting a 118 wRC+, his lowest since an injury-shortened 2021 campaign.

There were reports back in the day that <a href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/article/why-reunion-with-matt-chapman-was-not-in-cards-for-blue-jays/">the Blue Jays attempted to extend Matt Chapman to a six-year/$125 million contract</a>, and that's the floor for potential contract negotiations with Alex Bregman if not about $40 million higher.

https://twitter.com/BNightengale/status/1872891913520726260

If you're an optimist, there's reason to believe Bregman can bounce back with his bat next year. His walk rate dipped 5.8% in 2024 and with a little less chase outside the strike zone, the 30-year-old could get back to career norms.

However, there's always that lingering question of how his early career numbers were aided by Houston's trash can-banging scandal, so take those numbers with a grain of salt. But if the Blue Jays are going to sink their money into one big-name free agent, it should be Bregman.

He fits Toronto's current template of prioritizing run prevention, and he has 30-plus home run potential inside his bat. A one-two-three punch of Bichette-Bregman-Guerrero would be very enticing for a Blue Jays team that *checks notes* intends on being competitive in 2025.

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Who should the Blue Jays pivot to: Alonso, Bregman or Santander?

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