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The Toronto Blue Jays need to make a splash. The team has had a habit of being an also-ran in major free agent sweepstakes, including with Shohei Ohtani last year and Juan Soto this offseason.
Now that Corbin Burnes has signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto is left looking elsewhere for starting pitching.
It's about more than signing a big name. Yes, bringing in a perennial All-Star would give some legitimacy to a franchise fighting to get out from under the shadow of the other American League East titans — especially after not living up to expectations in 2024. But the Blue Jays' window for contention may be closing, or it is at least about to change.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette are both free agents after next season and there's no guarantee the team won't be hitting a rebuild after that. Or, if the Blue Jays manage to retain Guerrero at least, it will represent a significant investment that would up the pressure on the club to win even further.
Burnes would have made the ideal addition to a rotation that ranked right in the middle of the Major Leagues last season (14th in rotation ERA). Without him, the Blue Jays must regroup. Here's where they can focus their attention as the calendar flips to 2025.
The Blue Jays can make a statement by signing Jack Flaherty
Burnes was the biggest name remaining on the board, but Flaherty isn't far behind after a resurgent 2024 season. Splitting time with the Detroit Tigers and World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, Flaherty went 13-7 with a 3.17 ERA in his age 28 season. It was a strong bounce-back from 2023, when he got off to a slow start with the St. Louis Cardinals (4.43 ERA) and cratered with the Baltimore Orioles (6.75 ERA).
This year, Flaherty topped 150 innings for the first time since 2019 and had a WHIP below 1.100 for the first time since 2021. His postseason performance may have left much to be desired, but fans can focus on his strong Game 1 of the World Series (5.1 IP, 2 R, 6 SO) than his disastrous Game 5 in which he lasted only 1.1 innings.
Signing Flaherty would also come with the bonus of denying a division rival a major target. Now that Burnes has moved on, the Orioles are reportedly looking at Flaherty to replace him. Baltimore won 91 games in 2024 to reach the postseason and seems determined to contend again. The Blue Jays can bolster their own rotation while denying the Orioles an opportunity to plug a hole in one move.
MLB Trade Rumors suggests Flaherty could command a deal in the neighborhood of five years and $115 million. That would come out to $23 million a year — money that Toronto would no doubt be able to spend after dangling far bigger numbers in front of Soto and Ohtani.
Toronto is rumored to be targeting Nick Pivetta
While Flaherty would give Toronto the chance to steal a target from a division rival, they could also poach a division rival's starting pitcher by signing Nick Pivetta, formerly of the Boston Red Sox.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported last week that the Blue Jays were interested in Pivetta's services after the veteran went 6-12 with a 4.14 ERA in 2024. Because Pivetta rejected Boston's qualifying offer, signing him would cost the Blue Jays a draft pick, but for a team that wants to contend immediately, it's a small price to pay.
While Pivetta's track record has him as a league-average pitcher at best, he has struck out at least 170 batters each of the past four seasons. He can also start or come out of the bullpen, giving the Blue Jays some versatility to address two areas of need.
It's hard to tell how much Pivetta will command in free agency. A qualifying offer in 2024 was worth $21.05 million over one year. He'll want multiple years, but that rate on an annual basis seems high for the production Pivetta has provided. If the Blue Jays can sign him for three years in the $12-15 million AAV range, he'd be a solid pickup.
