Just when you think things couldn’t get any worse for the Toronto Blue Jays, they hit another new low yesterday.
The Blue Jays seemingly started their day off on the right foot, as they made a trade with the Cleveland Guardians that got them international bonus signing pool space. Part of the deal also included taking on Myles Straws’ ugly contract, though that was of lesser concern to the fan base.
This trade opened up space for the Blue Jays to be able to sign Japanese starting pitcher Roki Sasaki, who was one of the most coveted free agents this offseason. The 23-year-old has dominated the NPB over the last four seasons, putting up a 2.10 ERA throughout that lengthy stretch.
Getting that international bonus signing space ended up being for nothing, however, as news broke later in the day that Sasaki had agreed to a deal with the LA Dodgers.
Breaking: Roki Sasaki has signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, he announced on social media. pic.twitter.com/9kGkK5sVRy
— ESPN (@espn) January 17, 2025
The Blue Jays not only lost out on Sasaki, but are now stuck with Straw’s contract. The 30-year-old spent all but seven games with the AAA Columbus Clippers this past season.
Straw will command $6.4 million in 2025, and will jump to an even higher $7.4 million in 2026. He also has a club option for $8 million in 2027 that comes with a $1.75 million buyout. The Guardians will cover $3.75 million of his salary, leaving the Jays with the remaining $11.8 million.
This is the biggest blunder yet, but far from the only misstep from this Blue Jays management group.
Free-agent misses
Ross Atkins and his staff entered this offseason with the goal of turning this roster around via free-agent signings.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do and we’ve got some time to do it,” Atkins said following the Jays’ 2024 season. “Obviously we’ve already started that work. There are some obvious areas like adding run scoring and adding to our bullpen … We want to be really comprehensive and creative to make sure that we’re doing it in a way that ensures we take a step.”
Aside from signing Jeff Hoffman, however, there haven’t been any changes on either of those fronts.
The Jays started things off with the goal of signing Juan Soto. They offered him a lucrative contract, but he chose to pass it up and instead sign a monstrous 15-year deal with the New York Mets.
Brad Penner/Imagn Images
Atkins and his team have also tried to lure in several other free agents, perhaps the next most notable being Corbin Burnes. They held an in-person meeting for the starting pitcher, but it wasn’t enough, as he chose to join the Arizona Diamondbacks instead.
Other big-name players they’ve attempted to sign but were unable to bring in include Max Fried, Blake Snell, and Willy Adames.
Trade disasters
Missing on free agents is far from the only area where Atkins and his staff have failed. They’ve also made several trades which have set this franchise back in a major way.
Perhaps the worst of all came following the 2022 season, in which Atkins chose to trade fan-favourite Teoscar Hernandez to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for Erik Swanson and Adam Macko.
Vincent Carchietta/Imagn Images
Swanson had a fine 2023 season for the Jays, but struggled to the point of being optioned to Triple-A for a brief period in 2024, while Macko spent the majority of 2024 in Double-A. Hernandez, on the other hand, has continued to produce big numbers offensively, and played an integral role in the LA Dodgers winning the World Series this past season.
Other big misses on trades include moving Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and then top-catching prospect Gabriel Moreno to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Daulton Varsho. They also traded Josh Donaldson for Julian Merryweather, despite being offered a package earlier in the year that included starting pitcher Jack Flaherty.
The greatest thing to happen to the #Stlcards was the #Bluejays’ rejection of the Cards’ trade proposal this winter for Josh Donaldson. They offered two players, a Jays official said, that included rookie of year candidate Jack Flaherty. The Jays turned it down.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) September 14, 2018
Poor signings
When the Blue Jays don’t miss on free-agent signings, the deals they do make have often failed. One that stands out immediately was their decision to sign Kendrys Morales instead of bringing back Edwin Encarnacion following the 2016 season. Morales struggled in his two years with the Jays, while Encarnacion went on to have three more very productive MLB seasons.
They’ve also had some signings that didn’t work out from the get go, such as Tanner Roark, who, after being handed a two-year, $24 million deal, had a 6.80 ERA in 2020 and was designated for assignment early in 2021.
Jesse Johnson/USA TODAY Sports
Another ugly signing that is continuing to haunt the Jays is the six-year, $150 million deal they gave to George Springer ahead of the 2021 season. He has a salary north of $24 million for each of the next two seasons, and hit just .220 with 19 home runs and 56 RBIs in 145 games in 2024.
Players not buying what Atkins is selling
Based on how many free agents continue to steer clear of the Blue Jays, it’s obvious that they don’t have a ton of confidence in the front office. The fans are in the same boat, and it seems that some within the clubhouse may feel the same way.
Both Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette are unsigned past this coming season, and will both become free agents if extensions aren’t worked. At this point, it’s hard to envision either being too keen on sticking around given how big of a mess the organization is in.
The Blue Jays haven’t won a playoff game under Atkins’ guidance since 2016, and have missed the playoffs entirely in five seasons from 2017 to 2024.
If the Blue Jays hope to have any shot of re-signing Guerrero and Bichette, as well as turn things around in future years with free-agent signings, they need to head a different direction in terms of their management group.
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