3 moves the Blue Jays can make after missing out on Shohei Ohtani

The Toronto Blue Jays faithful were taken for quite the ride on Friday. There were reports about a private jet heading to Toronto that allegedly contained free agent and two-time American League MVP Shohei Ohtani, but they were refuted. Even so, the Blue Jays were still viewed as one of the favorites to sign the two-way star.

One day later, the Blue Jays, much like the rest of the baseball world, found out on Ohtani's Instagram that he was signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ohtani's agent, Nez Balelo, released a statement to announce that the ace pitcher and slugger agreed to a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers.

This is an absolute gut punch for the Blue Jays faithful who were taken on a rollercoaster ride to nowhere on Friday. Not to mention, they watched their division rivals in the New York Yankees acquire star outfielder Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres.

With Ohtani off the board, here are some moves that the Blue Jays should make this offseason.

Blue Jays need to retain Matt Chapman

The first place to look is to retain some pivotal players on the roster. Perhaps one of their better players, third baseman Matt Chapman, is currently a free agent. The team acquired Chapman from the Oakland Athletics during the AL West team's fire sale after the 2021 season.

Chapman may not put up the best numbers in the batter's box, as he's only batted over .250 once in his career (.278 in 2018), but he makes up for it with his glove. This past season, Chapman won the Gold Glove for the fourth-time of his career after putting up a .968 fielding percentage by recording 114 putouts, 253 assists, and 12 errors in 379 chances.

At the plate in 2023, Chapman recorded a .240 batting average, a .330 on-base percentage, a .424 slugging percentage, 17 home runs, 54 RBI, 66 runs, 122 hits, 165 strikeouts, and 62 walks in 509 at-bats (581).

The Blue Jays may have to hurry to try and retain Chapman if they want to, as the Chicago Cubs are reportedly interested in him, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.