Blue Jays Discussion: 2024-25 Off-season: The free agent watch begins (and sometimes old baseball radio broadcasts)

[Kurtz]

I don't know if this was the right or wrong move, but I do know that we've just opened up another giant hole and didn't free up much cap in the process.

 

[Blitzkrug]

Obviously what Swanson did 2 seasons ago was good, and I guess hope he returns, but man he was horrible last season, makes the Teo trade look even more bad.

I think the problem with this thinking is Teo's performance in LA is somehow being thrown into this equation.

in a vacuum, the Jays won the trade. Teo struggled in Seattle while claiming the batter's eye sucked (honestly might be worth looking into if you're the Mariners.) whereas Swanson was valuable in 2023 and one of the Jays best relievers. The trade is a win.

If they traded him, there was no chance they were going to re-sign him anyway, so him coming back to life in LA is a moot point.

 

[Discoverer]

I think the problem with this thinking is Teo's performance in LA is somehow being thrown into this equation.

in a vacuum, the Jays won the trade. Teo struggled in Seattle while claiming the batter's eye sucked (honestly might be worth looking into if you're the Mariners.) whereas Swanson was valuable in 2023 and one of the Jays best relievers. The trade is a win.

If they traded him, there was no chance they were going to re-sign him anyway, so him coming back to life in LA is a moot point.

Yeah, the Mariners got what they got and that's done - an underwhelming 2023 season from Teoscar.

The Jays got a dominant 2023 from Swanson plus ~$10 million in savings, a garbage 2024 season, whatever he does going forward, and whatever Macko is able to do.

 

[Puckstuff]

I don't know if this was the right or wrong move, but I do know that we've just opened up another giant hole and didn't free up much cap in the process.

I don't mind moving on from Romano. They must have a plan to bring in a new closer.

So what's the bullpen depth now, something like Green, Swanson, Rodriguez with some AAA guys? Probably need to bring in 3 more arms at minimum.

1. Gausman
2. Berrios
3. Francis
4. Bassit
5. _______


1. _________
2. Green
3. ________
4. Swanson
5. Rodriguez
6. _______
7. Danner? / ? /
8. Bloss? / ? /

 

[ChuckNorris4Cup]

I think the problem with this thinking is Teo's performance in LA is somehow being thrown into this equation.

in a vacuum, the Jays won the trade. Teo struggled in Seattle while claiming the batter's eye sucked (honestly might be worth looking into if you're the Mariners.) whereas Swanson was valuable in 2023 and one of the Jays best relievers. The trade is a win.

If they traded him, there was no chance they were going to re-sign him anyway, so him coming back to life in LA is a moot point.

You can argue it for 2023 forsure, but obviously not for last year, but the main factor, is this management going for a defense first mentality over an offense first mentality.

 

[Ale Brew]

But we never owned Teo’s rights for last year. We technically could have signed him back as a FA, so last year wasn’t part of the deal. Part of the value we got was 4 cost controlled seasons of Swanson for 1 year of Teo.

 

[ChuckNorris4Cup]

But we never owned Teo’s rights for last year. We technically could have signed him back as a FA, so last year wasn’t part of the deal. Part of the value we got was 4 cost controlled seasons of Swanson for 1 year of Teo.

Exactly and another question why after Ohtani didn't come here last season, guys like Teo, Bellinger were available, yet Jays weren't linked to either of them, because this management was still committed to this defense first mentality.

 

[Gabriel426]

How come we are not following planes for Soto?

 

[Ale Brew]

How come we are not following planes for Soto?

He travels by train?

 

[Gabriel426]

He travels by train?

Where is the fun in that? Lol

 

[ChuckNorris4Cup]

How come we are not following planes for Soto?

Toronto just waiting on a MLB insider to write "Soto is en route to Toronto, but not sure of his travel plans" then they can try and track his plane

 

[hockeywiz542]

The Blue Jays cut Jordan Romano to save money. They might pay for it - Toronto Star

By non-tendering Romano, the Jays are admitting they don’t believe he’ll get back to his old form after an injury-plagued season. He was limited to 13 2/3 innings this year because of an elbow injury that required surgery. The native of Markham told the Star’s Mike Wilner earlier this month that he was feeling great and expected to soon resume throwing off a mound.

Romano’s departure will make Atkins’ task of overhauling the relief corps even more daunting.

The Jays have veteran Chad Green at the back end of the bullpen and then a lot of question marks. Right-hander Erik Swanson, who avoided arbitration on Friday by signing a $3-million deal, is coming off a season in which he posted a 5.05 ERA. None of Tommy Nance, Brendon Little, Ryan Burr and Zach Pop has a long track record of success.

The upside here for the Jays is additional financial flexibility. Team president Mark Shapiro has previously said next year’s payroll is expected to remain similar to 2024. They were already expected to have about $40 million to spend this off-season, and now that number will tick up even higher. The top available free-agent relievers include Tanner Scott, Jeff Hoffman, Carlos Estévez, Kenley Jansen and Clay Holmes.

The Jays and Romano technically could still be reunited, but a source told the Star that no offer was made prior to Friday’s deadline, so there’s little reason to believe one will be coming in the weeks ahead. Romano is free to talk with all 30 teams and will likely be seeking a one-year incentive-laden deal with an opportunity to re-enter the marketplace next fall.

Without having access to Romano’s medicals it’s impossible to properly critique the Jays’ decision. If Romano struggles to get healthy or experiences a drop on his upper-90s fastball, this will have been a smart move. If Romano bounces back, it’s a needless blow to an already weak bullpen that will be difficult to fix without much prospect capital to offer in trades.

What should be far more certain is that Romano deserved better.