Blue Jays destined to be used as top free agent leverage for second straight winter

The Toronto Blue Jays spent last winter getting punked by more glamorous markets in free agency and on the trade front. Such was life for Ross Atkins and the front office, who made every effort to really go for it but ended up falling short.

Toronto was basically 1B to the Los Angeles Dodgers' 1A in the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes, making the same $700 million offer that Ohtani eventually accepted on the West Coast. At one point, we were all frantically tracking flights north of the border, under the impression that Ohtani was inbound for a new contract with the Blue Jays.

'Twas not meant to be, unfortunately. The Dodgers were the better team on paper and closer to his native Japan. He was always going to the Dodgers.

It was an admirable pursuit from the Blue Jays front office. And, credit to Atkins, Toronto's ownership group, and the other high-ranking officials. The Jays did not rest idly after whiffing on Ohtani, instead directing their attention to a potential Juan Soto trade. At one point, MLB insider Hector Gomez dubbed Toronto "favorites" to acquire the San Diego Padres superstar.

Well... Soto wound up in a New York Yankees uniform. The Blue Jays were beaten to the punch twice for two elite, game-changing talents. In the end, Toronto settled for a middling collection of past-prime vets and watched as their season went down the drain in record time. The vibes around the Blue Jays reached all-time bad levels in 2024. It was brutal.

Now, Toronto is hoping to reverse its fortunes. Soto is a free agent, available to the highest bidder in theory, and the Blue Jays want in.

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Blue Jays are once again fated to narrowly miss out of supermassive Juan Soto contract

Toronto couldn't get Ohtani to sign the dotted line for $700 million, so it's only right that Soto get that chunk of change from the Blue Jays... right? Well, it's a nice thought. Most of us non-Yankees folks would appreciate the unexpected nature of a move to Toronto. It's not a small market — hell, he'd be the sports face of an entire country — but it's not New York. Soto would be choosing a far more idiosyncratic destination than folks anticipate.

That said, we know how this ends. The Blue Jays will put up all the money, dot their i's and cross their t's, then watch Soto re-up his contract with the Yankees or leave for the Mets. Or, god forbid, he joins Shohei in the City of Angels. One of the marquee American teams will pull through and we'll all be left a little bit bummed, relegated to watching Soto in pinstripes or Dodgers blue for the next decade.

Let's play in the sandbox of hypotheticals for a moment, though. Does Soto in Toronto even make sense?

The Blue Jays finished last season 14 games below .500 and dead last in the AL East with reports of locker room turmoil running rampant. On the surface, the Blue Jays just aren't an appealing option. A dig beneath the surface, however, reveals room for optimism.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. put together one of the best hitting campaigns in recent memory last season, which will be lost to time thanks to Toronto's collective ineptitude. If anybody understands the value of two megawatt, all-time bats in the middle of a lineup, it's Soto. Guerrero hits for average and power as well as anybody in the American League not named Soto or Judge. That star power alone gives Toronto some credibility.

Factor in the inevitable bounce-back of Bo Bichette, a general expectation for better offensive luck in 2025, and a solid pitching staff, and suddenly the Blue Jays stack up well on paper. Soto can transform Toronto into a bonafide contender. It's just a matter of how badly he wants to, and how open he is to taking the unconventional route to legendary status.