The Toronto Blue Jays had to do something.
After futile runs at a number of top free agents — Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes and Roki Sasaki all spurned Canada’s team this winter — the Jays found themselves in a position of desperation. Their roster, though capable of competing in 2025, remained incomplete and undermanned, particularly on offense. And with two of the club’s franchise cornerstones, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette, just a year from free agency, the future was growing increasingly hazy. The pressure, for this franchise without a postseason win since 2016, had reached a fever pitch.
But on Monday, the Jays gave themselves some breathing room and a much-needed injection of power, with the club reportedly agreeing to terms with slugging outfielder Anthony Santander on a five-year contract. It’s an inevitable, obvious pairing between a team sorely lacking in pop and a free agent with immense juice.
Toronto finished 26th in home runs in 2024. No player but Guerrero surpassed 20 long balls. Only six players reached double digits. The club’s 156 homers were the franchise’s lowest single-season tally since 2004. It was, for a team with postseason aspirations, an embarrassing output.
Enter Santander.
The former Oriole clobbered 44 big flies in 2024. Only Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, the sport’s two MVPs, finished the season with a higher tally. Santander’s total was the fifth-most home runs ever by a switch-hitter and the most since Lance Berkman cranked 45 in 2006. Berkman, Chipper Jones and Mickey Mantle are the only both-siders above Santander on the single-season list.
And while 2024 was a notable breakout, the broad-shouldered Venezuelan had established himself as a formidable middle-of-the-order force with solid campaigns in 2022 and ‘23. Since the start of the 2022 season, only Judge, Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber, Pete Alonso and Matt Olson have slugged more homers than Santander. His long journey from Rule-5 pick to All-Star was a huge developmental success story for the Orioles, and Santander became a key cog in their offense as the club returned to contention.
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But while Santander’s pop is undeniable, the rest of his game has some warts — warts that cast a shadow over his lengthy pact with the Jays.
Defensively, Santander is limited, a below-average glove in a corner outfield spot. As he ages and his speed continues to dwindle, a move to first base or designated hitter could be advantageous. And while his offensive profile is impactful, an overdependence on the long ball could become a problem as the years go by. Santander delivered a career-low batting average in 2024 while walking much less than you’d like.
Then again, few contracts in MLB are designed to look pristine by their end. Santander, who is entering his age-30 season in 2025, might decline as he inches into his 30s. Many other players have. But he has also been impressively durable, playing at least 150 games in each of the past three seasons, something accomplished by only 15 other players.
For Toronto, put it all together, and this deal represents a risk worth taking.
Santander could rip another 40 homers in 2025 and help propel the Jays back to October glory. Even if he doesn’t, while he’s not a franchise cornerstone, Santander is an extremely valuable complementary piece, particularly for a Jays team that entered the offseason with a shallow position-player group. But with his arrival, plus the acquisition of Andrés Jiménez earlier this winter, Toronto has a solid group of hitters to go along with a strong starting rotation.
Another bullpen arm to supplement the addition of closer Jeff Hoffman and a left-handed-hitting DH type, such as Joey Gallo, Anthony Rizzo or David Peralta, on a one-year deal would round out a solid offseason for the Jays. Lately, the prevailing narrative around this team has been its inability to land the big, top-of-the-market fish. But viewed as a whole, Toronto has improved upon its 2024 version more this offseason than at least two of its division rivals (Tampa Bay and Baltimore).
None of that will ease the sting of missing out on Sasaki, Soto and Burnes, but credit to Toronto’s front office for doing what it had to do. Santander alone can’t solve the Blue Jays’ problems, but he can certainly help.
