2025 Blue Jays Offseason Thread

[TheDunc]

Man some of you really hate Varsho. I would bring him back, he's a crazy hard worker and is now 10x the player he was when Jays traded for him. His defense is needed and what he provided during the season and during some parts of the playoffs helped the team make it to game 7. All this team needs is Bichette back and Santander healthy and they are good offensively. The rest shouyld go to figure out the pitching.

Varsho is only good at catching flyballs. His arm is poor and the **** hasn’t improved at all as a hitter. That guy screams AAA. **** him.

Dude you have Kyle Tucker in CF! You lost alot of credibility if youre replacing Varsho with Tucker at CF

[PushDaRock]

There's not that much to think about from a position player stand point IMO. You're either bringing Bo back or you're letting him leave and going after an elite bat that plays the OF which is basically just Tucker or Bellinger. If they penny pinch, maybe they go after Bader instead.

The pitching is where you have decisions to make with Bieber, Bassitt, Scherzer and Dominguez as FA's. That's a lot of guys to potentially replace. I think they'll want to bring Bieber back if the number works out and possibly Bassitt as well with how he excelled in the playoffs, they probably try to convince him to come back in that spot star/swingman/reliever role. Right now, you have Gausman, Yesavage, Berrios slotted in and Varland, Lauer and maybe even Francis as options as well to start.

[ToCrooked]

This will be interesting off season, will Jays continue to spend big or not? I say they will be bidders for top players as they have been in the last few years. To stay top of the American East must be able to spend. Also Guasman and Springer have short time left in their contracts, would love to maximize the window with them.

My recommendation would be resigning Bo to whatever he asks, chemistry with him and Vlad cannot be understated. When healthy BO has shown to be top MLB player. Acquire a top notch starting pitcher and enhance relief pitching by trade, can get a smaller contract and quality pitcher like they did at the trade deadline...Freddy Peralta maybe?

Bring back Bassit and Scherzer for veteran leadership....one or both can be spot starters, not full time though.

Ideally would like to get more pitchers that can keep the ball on the ground. More power in the line up would be nice as well. Championship teams are built with power in mind.

[DelAbbot]

This will be interesting off season, will Jays continue to spend big or not? I say they will be bidders for top players as they have been in the last few years. To stay top of the American East must be able to spend. Also Guasman and Springer have short time left in their contracts, would love to maximize the window with them.

My recommendation would be resigning Bo to whatever he asks, chemistry with him and Vlad cannot be understated. When healthy BO has shown to be top MLB player. Acquire a top notch starting pitcher and enhance relief pitching by trade, can get a smaller contract and quality pitcher like they did at the trade deadline...Freddy Peralta maybe?

Bring back Bassit and Scherzer for veteran leadership....one or both can be spot starters, not full time though.

Ideally would like to get more pitchers that can keep the ball on the ground. More power in the line up would be nice as well. Championship teams are built with power in mind.

Are Bo and Vlad having a baby? What is being produced from their chemistry?

[dagger]

Add Padres' closer Robert Suarez to the list of quality FAs available. He opted out of his deal.

[DelAbbot]

There's not that much to think about from a position player stand point IMO. You're either bringing Bo back or you're letting him leave and going after an elite bat that plays the OF which is basically just Tucker or Bellinger. If they penny pinch, maybe they go after Bader instead.

The pitching is where you have decisions to make with Bieber, Bassitt, Scherzer and Dominguez as FA's. That's a lot of guys to potentially replace. I think they'll want to bring Bieber back if the number works out and possibly Bassitt as well with how he excelled in the playoffs, they probably try to convince him to come back in that spot star/swingman/reliever role. Right now, you have Gausman, Yesavage, Berrios slotted in and Varland, Lauer and maybe even Francis as options as well to start.

The Starting Rotation is really Gausman and Yesavage because
Berrios is cooked
Bassitt is cooked
Scherzer should retire
Varland has always struggled when starting

We could trade for Steven Kwan to play LF (can't depend on Lukes). Get either Bellinger or Tucker, to replace George Springer in 1 year.

[Madvillainy2004]

Man some of you really hate Varsho. I would bring him back, he's a crazy hard worker and is now 10x the player he was when Jays traded for him. His defense is needed and what he provided during the season and during some parts of the playoffs helped the team make it to game 7. All this team needs is Bichette back and Santander healthy and they are good offensively. The rest shouyld go to figure out the pitching.

Varsho is only good at catching flyballs. His arm is poor and the **** hasn’t improved at all as a hitter. That guy screams AAA. **** him.

Dude you have Kyle Tucker in CF! You lost alot of credibility if youre replacing Varsho with Tucker at CF

I love Kyle Tucker but Tucker in CF is a disaster waiting to happen lmao

[Madvillainy2004]

Im sorry to be the bearer of bad news here but Varsho is coming back next year (obviously). He had a .833 OPS and was still an elite defender. Next year with a full season playing on a good hamstring and another year to get his shoulder back to that 40-45th percentile range for his arm will help a bit too. Good chance he throws up another 4+ fWAR season with good power, and maybe another gold glove.

Also hes not a AAA player lmfao I know everyone hates him after the WS (fair) but hes still a good player that is not easily replaced (but do tell me how much you want to see 500 PAs of Myles Straw).

[ToCrooked]

Team is wins is being produced by chemistry. Also Bo gives Vladdy protection behind him to allow Vladdy being Vladdy.

[Madvillainy2004]

Pitching wise i would try to bring back Bieber, I think theres still good stuff their and a year removed from TMJ with a full offseason does sound good. Obviously you kick the tires at Skubal, Freddy Peralta, and Joe Ryan. But I question the package we could put together for those guys.

FA wise, Suarez and Valdez are probably to two guys you pursue the hardest. I like Cease, Eflin, and Mahle, as well. Hopefully Lauer/Tiedeman/Francis/Varland can find a spot in your rotation as a #5 guy. End up with something like.

Gausman
Valdez/Suarez
Bieber
Yesavage
One of the 4 guys I mentioned previously.

Bullpen is voodoo but I think Devin Williams is a strong "positive regression" candidate and he looks done in New York.

[Randle McMurphy]

There's not that much to think about from a position player stand point IMO. You're either bringing Bo back or you're letting him leave and going after an elite bat that plays the OF which is basically just Tucker or Bellinger. If they penny pinch, maybe they go after Bader instead.

The pitching is where you have decisions to make with Bieber, Bassitt, Scherzer and Dominguez as FA's. That's a lot of guys to potentially replace. I think they'll want to bring Bieber back if the number works out and possibly Bassitt as well with how he excelled in the playoffs, they probably try to convince him to come back in that spot star/swingman/reliever role. Right now, you have Gausman, Yesavage, Berrios slotted in and Varland, Lauer and maybe even Francis as options as well to start.

The Starting Rotation is really Gausman and Yesavage because
Berrios is cooked
Bassitt is cooked
Scherzer should retire
Varland has always struggled when starting

We could trade for Steven Kwan to play LF (can't depend on Lukes). Get either Bellinger or Tucker, to replace George Springer in 1 year.

Why is Bassitt cooked? He was pretty much an identical pitcher this year to what he was in 2023 and 2024 (2.5 WAR guy). Seems to me there would likely be value at bringing him back at a similar cost for another two years.

Scherzer has no plans to retire, but I can't imagine they go through the Scherzer injury nonsense again. That thumb stuff was totally ridiculous for half the season.

[Ranger One]

If i hear the words Varsho and Defense one more time im going to puke. Defense didnt lose us the World Series, stranding 50 runners in games 6 and 7 did. Of which Varsho was the prime offender. Also, screw his defense. Cool he can catch some fly balls. But he throws like a girl and cant be relied on as anything than a bottom of the order bat. Im sorry but thats just not worth it. If anything this WS proved the value of having guys with the ability to put the bat on the ball and make contact. How many rallies did he kill with his cricket swings or wiffing on fastballs above his head?

Regarding Springer, asking him to play the outfield after the renaissance season he had as a primary DH is bonkers. I dont care how healthy he is next year, he is 36 going on 37 and clearly had the best hitting season of his life BECAUSE he didnt have to play the outfield. Forcing him out of the DH role to accommodate the dumpster fire that is Santander is asinine, and only makes that signing look worse and more panicky than ever.

Bieber i couldnt care less about. He looked like trash in most of his outings and im not convinced he'll ever return to the ace status he held before TJ surgery. Dude couldnt get swing and miss on any of his pitches to save his life. Scherzer is gone. Dont care about him one bit. He was a mercenary and is grossly over the hill, a few adrenaline fueled WS starts notwithstanding. He doesnt give a damn about this team or city.

IKF should be thrown in the trash and actively PAID to never be seen in this town again. Enough said. Bo i could see returning but his recurring knee and calf problems for the past two years make me question his future as an infielder and wonder if hes also heading for a career as a DH and given how many DH's we already have its gonna be hard to see him as a long term Jay. His legs seem like they will never fully recover. And even if they do he will be incredibly injury prone for the rest of his career when it comes to his legs.

Clement and Barger could cement themselves as future stars...OR could be exposed next year when given full time player responsibilities. Hopefully its the former instead of the latter. Lukes im not so sure off. Yeah he had a great season all told, but the guy is 30 and a career minor leaguer. I dont think he repeats his success next year, and his huge falloff in the WS was pretty telling. I just dont see any growth there like with a guy like Barger.

[Randle McMurphy]

Also worth pointing out that there's going to be a long work stoppage after the 2026 season as well (it's virtually guaranteed, the majority of the owners badly want a cap and the MLBPA will not accept that). The Jays should be spending a ton this offseason while they still can and putting as many eggs as possible into the 2026 basket.

It already makes sense to do that in general due to Gausman and Springer's age and the final years of their deals and Varsho's last year of control (at least for cheap).

[Mehar]

If i hear the words Varsho and Defense one more time im going to puke. Defense didnt lose us the World Series, stranding 50 runners in games 6 and 7 did. Of which Varsho was the prime offender. Also, screw his defense. Cool he can catch some fly balls. But he throws like a girl and cant be relied on as anything than a bottom of the order bat. Im sorry but thats just not worth it. If anything this WS proved the value of having guys with the ability to put the bat on the ball and make contact. How many rallies did he kill with his cricket swings or wiffing on fastballs above his head?

Regarding Springer, asking him to play the outfield after the renaissance season he had as a primary DH is bonkers. I dont care how healthy he is next year, he is 36 going on 37 and clearly had the best hitting season of his life BECAUSE he didnt have to play the outfield. Forcing him out of the DH role to accommodate the dumpster fire that is Santander is asinine, and only makes that signing look worse and more panicky than ever.

Bieber i couldnt care less about. He looked like trash in most of his outings and im not convinced he'll ever return to the ace status he held before TJ surgery. Dude couldnt get swing and miss on any of his pitches to save his life. Scherzer is gone. Dont care about him one bit. He was a mercenary and is grossly over the hill, a few adrenaline fueled WS starts notwithstanding. He doesnt give a damn about this team or city.

IKF should be thrown in the trash and actively PAID to never be seen in this town again. Enough said. Bo i could see returning but his recurring knee and calf problems for the past two years make me question his future as an infielder and wonder if hes also heading for a career as a DH and given how many DH's we already have its gonna be hard to see him as a long term Jay. His legs seem like they will never fully recover. And even if they do he will be incredibly injury prone for the rest of his career when it comes to his legs.

Clement and Barger could cement themselves as future stars...OR could be exposed next year when given full time player responsibilities. Hopefully its the former instead of the latter. Lukes im not so sure off. Yeah he had a great season all told, but the guy is 30 and a career minor leaguer. I dont think he repeats his success next year, and his huge falloff in the WS was pretty telling. I just dont see any growth there like with a guy like Barger.

Best post in the thread. I really could not have said it any better. I will literally puke also if I hear the words Varsho and Defense one more time.

Go get a real quality hitting Centre Fielder in free agency Ike Cody Bellinger who will not cost you a draft pick, and send Varsho, IKF, and Brendon Little on a one way ticket out of town.

[DelAbbot]

Also worth pointing out that there's going to be a long work stoppage after the 2026 season as well (it's virtually guaranteed, the majority of the owners badly want a cap and the MLBPA will not accept that). The Jays should be spending a ton this offseason while they still can and putting as many eggs as possible into the 2026 basket.

It already makes sense to do that in general due to Gausman and Springer's age and the final years of their deals and Varsho's last year of control (at least for cheap).

That makes no sense.

You want Shapkins to overspend in FA at current market prices ahead of expected salary cap?

1) If and when salary cap is established, you think existing contracts will be amnestied/exempt from salary cap rules?
2) If and when salary cap is established, FA market price will drop, yet you want Shaptkins to lock-in higher FA prices now?
3) You don't think there a salary limit (above a future league-mandated salary cap) from ownership? Blowing past it all in one offseason on a limited FA class is recipe for disaster

[Randle McMurphy]

Also worth pointing out that there's going to be a long work stoppage after the 2026 season as well (it's virtually guaranteed, the majority of the owners badly want a cap and the MLBPA will not accept that). The Jays should be spending a ton this offseason while they still can and putting as many eggs as possible into the 2026 basket.

It already makes sense to do that in general due to Gausman and Springer's age and the final years of their deals and Varsho's last year of control (at least for cheap).

That makes no sense.

You want Shapkins to overspend in FA at current market prices ahead of expected salary cap?

1) If and when salary cap is established, you think existing salaries will be amnestied/exempt from salary cap rules?
2) If and when salary cap is established, FA market price will drop, yet you want Shaptkins to lock-in higher FA prices now?
3) You don't think there a salary limit (above a future cap) from ownership? Blowing past it all in one offseason on a limited FA class is recipe for disaster

I want them to spend a massive amount now while the Jays' financial advantage is still actually an advantage, yes.

If MLB actually is able to win the labour battle (and I'm not convinced they will, the MLBPA has been preparing for a long work stoppage for 5 years now to prevent a cap), the Jays no longer maintain their only real advantage on most of the rest of baseball for the rest of time (because it certainly isn't through the strength of their FO that they are making the playoffs so frequently).

2026 is the year to go all-in completely.

[Randle McMurphy]

Gausman is still a really good pitcher (4-5 WAR) and Springer (somehow) is still a really good hitter (4-5 WAR). They're a huge part of why we made the WS, they're both also under contract for only one more year and a major performance decline should be expected very soon for both.

Even if there wasn't a work stoppage coming after 2026, this is clearly a year the Jays should be looking to go big anyway. The hype is up, ride the wave as long as you can.

[LoveMyRaps]

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Jays should get him.

Hoffman can be the setup guy.

[LoveMyRaps]

Strong free agent class this year. No reason not to spend and make another postseason push next year.

[polo007]

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