Breaking: Jays sign Chris Bassitt (3 years, $63m)

[polo007]

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[Duffman100]

Offseason shaping up now. I think that we turn our catcher surplus into another OF and we may be done here. Not sure I love the chances of Stripling returning despite wanting that pretty badly.

Are we resigned to another season of Bichette at SS?

Isn’t defense a concern.

[Parataxis]

Bassitt is about as good as they could have done for a FA SP outside of the truly elite ones (Verlander, DeGrom, Rodon) who were all costing a ridiculous amount in this market. They got a reasonable deal on him as well, likely because Bassitt turned down the QO which will cost the Jays a draft pick.

I wasn't sure they even had this kind of money to spend after the Teoscar trade so this is a good sign.

I assume the Teoscar trade is a part of WHY they had this kind of money to spend, no?

[Randle McMurphy]

Bassitt is about as good as they could have done for a FA SP outside of the truly elite ones (Verlander, DeGrom, Rodon) who were all costing a ridiculous amount in this market. They got a reasonable deal on him as well, likely because Bassitt turned down the QO which will cost the Jays a draft pick.

I wasn't sure they even had this kind of money to spend after the Teoscar trade so this is a good sign.

I assume the Teoscar trade is a part of WHY they had this kind of money to spend, no?

I think your assumption would be correct. It opened up room to make a move to improve the rotation.

[Randle McMurphy]

Offseason shaping up now. I think that we turn our catcher surplus into another OF and we may be done here. Not sure I love the chances of Stripling returning despite wanting that pretty badly.

Are we resigned to another season of Bichette at SS?

Isn’t defense a concern.

A big concern. Problem is that good shortstops cost a ton. We're probably stuck with him there unless we can somehow move one of our two high value catchers (Kirk/Moreno) for a good one.

[Raider917]

i liked this guy in oakland. after he had that vicious comebacker i thought maybe he could go south but he hasnt at all.

[TR50]

Love this signing

[Brinbe]

i wasn't hot on the previous move but i think this is a damn good signing. hopefully berrios is back to his normal self. pretty formidable top 4 there.

fk it. sign stripling too.

grab another OF, maybe a reliever or two and we're set.

[Lateral Quicks]

Good signing. AAV and term is fair, maybe even favourable for the Jays. Age is a concern, but pitchers tend to age better.

I'm a little surprised they signed Bassitt for what I expect will be much more than it takes to bring back Strip. Maybe they'll bring Strip back too, who knows. That rotation would look pretty damn great on paper.

A nice side effect of signing a pitcher in free agency is that we don't necessarily need to trade a catcher for a starter, freeing up that asset to add an outfielder.

[Hottie McShotty]

I like the signing.

Need another SP for insurance. If any of the top 4 go down with an injury we are screwed.

Now use the catcher suprlus we have to get as a lefthanded power bat and either another SP or RP and we should be sitting pretty.

[Schad]

Offseason shaping up now. I think that we turn our catcher surplus into another OF and we may be done here. Not sure I love the chances of Stripling returning despite wanting that pretty badly.

Are we resigned to another season of Bichette at SS?

Isn’t defense a concern.

A big concern. Problem is that good shortstops cost a ton. We're probably stuck with him there unless we can somehow move one of our two high value catchers (Kirk/Moreno) for a good one.

That said, our infield defense grades out reasonably well overall. Espinal/Biggio were both well above-average at 2B by OAA, Chapman was average, and the combination of them/Bichette was a net positive IF defense. Bichette still has plenty of range for the position, if he can just remember how ball goes into glove, and ball goes from hand to Vlad.

[polo007]

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What Does Pitcher Chris Bassitt Add To The Blue Jays Rotation? | Tim & Friends

SPORTSNET

Dec 12, 2022

Sportsnet MLB analyst Jeff Blair joins Tim and Friends to discuss the Toronto Blue Jays acquisition of pitcher Chris Bassitt, breaking down what he adds to the team, and also talk about how outfielder Kevin Kiermaier will fit into the lineup.

[polo007]

Toronto Blue Jays sign RHP Chris Bassitt to 3-year, $63 million deal: Source - The Athletic

• Bassitt’s deal with Toronto includes a limited no-trade clause, per sources. He can specify eight teams per year to which he cannot be traded. Bassitt also declined a qualifying offer from the Mets, so the Blue Jays will surrender their second-highest 2023 draft pick and the reduction of $500,000 from their international bonus pool to sign him.

Scouting report

Since returning from Tommy John surgery in 2018, Bassitt has quietly been one of MLB’s best starters, posting a 3.29 ERA in 594 innings. Over that span, his 124 ERA+ ranks 19th among pitchers with 75-plus starts, sandwiched between Zack Wheeler (127) and Luis Castillo (123).

Bassitt lacks high-end stuff, instead relying on a deep pitch mix led by a 92-94 mph sinker to generate grounders while his four-seam fastball, cutter, slider and curveball each miss a fair amount of bats. His walk and strikeout rates are good, not great, but he limits damage by being hard to square up, allowing fewer than one homer per nine innings each of the past three seasons.

Traded from the A’s to the Mets after the lockout, Bassitt set career-highs with 30 starts and nearly 182 innings (he totaled just 191 big-league innings in his 20s). He showed that his approach still works away from the pitcher-friendly dimensions in Oakland.

Bassitt straddles the line between No. 2 starter and mid-rotation starter, and he’s older than his résumé would suggest, but few pitchers have been as consistently competent for the past five seasons.

Why Bassitt makes sense for the Blue Jays

The Blue Jays had an open spot in their starting rotation after right-hander Ross Stripling departed in free agency. Stripling, a swingman, initially took over the rotation spot from Hyun Jin Ryu, who underwent Tommy John surgery in June and will miss at least the first half of the 2023 season if not more. So, the Blue Jays needed a starting pitcher. Bassitt gives them a durable and experienced arm that slides in alongside Alek Manoah, Kevin Gausman and José Berríos to fortify a deep starting group.
The Blue Jays had been targeting a pitcher with a combination of upside and durability. Playoff experience was seen as an asset, too. Bassitt fits that description as one of the most successful and reliable starters over the last four seasons.

Adding a pitcher of Bassitt’s caliber should in theory take some of the pressure off of Berríos, who struggled in 2022, his first full season in Toronto after signing a seven-year extension. With Gausman, Manoah and now Bassitt, Berríos can probably slide more comfortably into a mid-rotation role without the weight of having to lead the way, while he tries to regain his previous form. The Blue Jays are confident Berríos can bounce back, as well.

The backend of the Blue Jays rotation still carries question marks with Yusei Kikuchi and Mitch White each looking to rebound from shaky performances with the Blue Jays. Between the two of them and Nate Pearson, the Blue Jays can probably creatively fill their fifth spot. But, given the uncertainty at the backend of their rotation, it makes sense the Blue Jays wanted to fortify the front end with a consistent starter such as Bassitt. — McGrath

What else do the Blue Jays have to do this offseason?

Adding a starting pitcher was a clear priority for the Blue Jays but even with that need checked off, they still have more to do.

The outfield remains an area where they can still add. The club added defensive center fielder Kevin Kiermaier over the weekend — his deal is not yet official and pending a physical — but the club is still eyeing another outfielder with more offensive upside, who can help make up for the offense it lost by trading Teoscar Hernández to Seattle for reliever Erik Swanson. And while Swanson addressed the need for more swing-and-miss in Toronto’s bullpen, there is still room to further bolster it. — McGrath

[linery88]

Now if only Kickuhi could find something,and maintain some decent enough consistency...how good could we be ?

[bluerap23]

Good signing. I am pleasantly surprised that they got budget approval for this move. Looks like we are going to approach 200 million in 2023

[Mr.Raptorsingh]

Christopher Bassitt is a good pitcher, nice signing for the Jays

[Cyrus]

i wasn't hot on the previous move but i think this is a damn good signing. hopefully berrios is back to his normal self. pretty formidable top 4 there.

fk it. sign stripling too.

grab another OF, maybe a reliever or two and we're set.

LOL our salary committment is already pushed around 200 mill, doubt we doing all that, as much as I would love to see it. If anything could see us maybe even attaching one of our catcher to Yusei K, and just grabbing some lottery ticket prospect to get under that contract.

Curious if a pitcher like Ryu is out for the season, does his salary count for tax/competitive balance purposes.

[Davey0]

I'm all for the idea of keeping Kickuhi in the bullpen as he seemed more comfortable with it ( imo ). Bring back Stripling for that 5th spot. Trade for a CF. Another Lefty. They could do some damage ( again from my view as I'm sure any Jay fan wants them to ). But this signing helps. Not a big contract so that adds to the value.

[Schad]

Good signing. I am pleasantly surprised that they got budget approval for this move. Looks like we are going to approach 200 million in 2023

We're already over $200m, heh. Adding Bassitt and Kiermaier will put us in the $210m range, and it's doubtful they're the last additions.

[bluerap23]

Good signing. I am pleasantly surprised that they got budget approval for this move. Looks like we are going to approach 200 million in 2023

We're already over $200m, heh. Adding Bassitt and Kiermaier will put us in the $210m range, and it's doubtful they're the last additions.

I have them at around 202m and they could just as easily be planning to cut a little via trade vs. adding a little (Jansen and Biggio would be some shrewd cost cutting moves). Either way I am pleased as I was wrong in speculating that the budget would be capped in the 180 range.