Last year, the New York Yankees made the bold move to acquire Juan Soto and advanced all the way to the World Series. Though Soto left as a free agent this year, the Yankees are still projected to make plenty of noise in the American League East.
The Baltimore Orioles finished second in the division, just three games back of the Yankees. Their young roster came together and surprised some people with a strong season.
The Boston Red Sox finished third, 10 games back of the Orioles. They made some significant upgrades this offseason, including a trade for front-line starter Garrett Crochet and signing third baseman Alex Bregman.
Many people believe those three teams are still the cream of the crop in that division—a division that gets more attention than any other in Major League Baseball.
Which is what makes the Toronto Blue Jays the most intriguing team in baseball as we get started with spring training for the 2025 campaign.
Toronto finished 20 games out of first last year, in last place in the American League East. The Blue Jays were 14 games under .500 and six games back of Tampa for fifth. To say that performance was underwhelming is an understatement.
The Blue Jays were in the mix for many of the top free agents this winter, but came up short on all of them. They were able to sign outfielder Anthony Santander late in the game, but fans feel that not landing at least one top piece was a huge miss for the organization.
He is slated to reach unrestricted free agency following the 2025 season and is expected to entertain massive offers; hitting the market before turning 27 opens the door for a long-term deal that reaches into the $400 million-plus range.
The inability of Toronto and Guerrero to agree on an extension before camp opened immediately put his name at the top of trade rumors across the league. If the Blue Jays can’t keep him beyond this season, losing him for nothing would be catastrophic.
But Guerrero isn’t the only contractual issue the Blue Jays are staring at as the new season begins.
Shortstop Bo Bichette, who has seen a promising career seemingly stagnate, is also entering the final year of his contract and could hit the free agent market before his 28th birthday. Last season was the first in Bichette’s career that his OPS+ fell under 120 as he was limited to 81 games because of injuries.
If the Blue Jays are going to have to make tough decisions on two young players who have been viewed as the faces of the franchise and centerpieces of their competitive window, that raises additional questions about a roster that is not getting younger around them.
Toronto’s starting rotation is suddenly very old. They added future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer on a one-year deal this winter. He will turn 41 in late July and has appeared in only 17 games over the past two seasons (both with the Texas Rangers).
Scherzer joins a rotation with Kevin Gausman (34), Chris Bassitt (36) and José Berríos (31), making the Jays’ top four starters among the oldest in the game entering the season. Scherzer and Bassitt will also be free agents after the 2025 season, while Gausman has two years remaining and Berríos is signed through the 2028 season.
If this season starts slowly for the Blue Jays and it appears they won’t contend for a playoff berth, they could have considerable control over the trade market by the middle of the season. If their starting pitchers join Guerrero and Bichette as potential pieces on the market, the teardown would be significant.
It appears to be an uphill climb for Toronto, and the future of the franchise could hang in the balance.
