THE BLUE AND WHITE

If there’s one thing to take away from the Jays’ playoff run this year, it would be that all of us are proud of Toronto’s team. While it wasn’t the result we were hoping for, if you told a Jays fan last year that the next season would end in the World Series, they’d be ecstatic. Knocking out the Yankees, then the Mariners, and taking the LA Dodgers to seven games is no small feat. This team, built on big names like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and George Springer never would have been able to go as far as they did without the contributions of unsung heroes like Ernie Clement, Andrés Giménez or Trey Yesavage through this postseason. 

However, if the Jays are to solidify their spot among the top teams in baseball, their work is far from over. With the team now heading into what is bound to be a busy offseason, the front office has work ahead of them. There are some glaring issues that face the Blue Jays, but free agency this year poses solutions that may work for this squad entering the 2026 season. 

Objective 1 – Resign Bo Bichette:

Should the Jays look to resign Bo? In short, yes. I believe that Bo Bichette is our man here. He’s just had one of his best years posting a batting average of .311 and amassing 181 hits over the course of the season. All of this was achieved while battling a knee injury towards the end of the regular season and through the first 2 postseason rounds. In the field, he’s shown his versatility by putting on a strong showing at second base during the Dodgers series, straying from his usual spot at shortstop. 

With a red-hot bat and the ability to move around the middle of the infield, Bo has made his case as an elite player heading into free agency this winter. The best thing the Jays could do would be to snap him up on a long-term contract worth (most likely) more than $200 million USD, allowing him to stay in the 6ix and fight for another ring with dear friend Vladdy Jr. 

Objective 2 – Strengthen the Bullpen:

This postseason, the Jays bullpen had an ERA of 4.44 – third highest out of any playoff team. With the (likely) departures of Chris Bassitt and Seranthony Dominguez, there are gaping holes left in this already mediocre relief lineup. In the closer spot, Jeff Hoffman isn’t exactly the lights-out closer we need, ranking 4th league-wide for the most blown saves in the regular season this past year. That’s why I think Edwin Diaz would be an excellent pickup for the Jays this offseason. A mid-length contract worth $60-100 million would be a great way to strengthen this bullpen, with Diaz’s ERA of 1.63 speaking for itself. With the departure of Bassitt, I can definitely see Jeff Hoffman moving towards a setup role as he did in the playoffs, often pitching back to back innings in a close game. 

Objective 3: The Free Agency Market

While this Toronto squad looked pretty complete, there is always room for improvement. This year’s free agency market is pretty complete, offering both strong hitters and pitchers. Kyle Tucker would be an elite pickup providing a left-handed bat who could rival Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s output, but it may be hard to balance the pitching side of the payroll with his heavy price tag likely surpassing a $400 million dollar long term deal.

On the pitching side of things, the Jays needs a starter to slip into Max Scherzer’s spot. While he posted a competitive 3.77 ERA against the superstar lineups of Seattle and LA this postseason, his regular season era of 5.19 is a concern, which doesn’t convince me that this team should pursue the prospect of giving him another deal. This year’s pitcher free agents include big names like Michael King and Dylan Cease, but I think that the best fit for Toronto would be Ranger Suarez. He slips perfectly into the 3-4 spot of Toronto’s rotation, having a solid year in 2025 with a 3.20 ERA and an 8-5 record with the Phillies. As a bonus, he’s also a lefty which diversifies the starting rotation, currently all made up of righties. If Toronto can score him for less than $90 million over 4-5 years, it would be a strong deal that provides some short-term stability to this starting rotation.

With the 2025 season now officially over, Toronto drifts back into the winter season to watch the Leafs back on the ice along with the (pretty exciting) Raptors. However, in the background will be Ross Atkin’s team working to improve the depth and talent of the ’25 Toronto Blue Jays, hopefully propelling the franchise to another competitive shot at the World Series in 2026.