Every year, 29 Major League Baseball teams miss out on a World Series title. But the Toronto Blue Jays just came closer than any other team had in six years.
After leading the Fall Classic three games to two over the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Blue Jays dropped the final two contests at home, missing out on their first championship since 1993. So their task this winter seems simple, though it’s clearly not so in practice: Finish the job.
During the hot stove phase of the offseason, the Blue Jays have got to find a way to strengthen this roster just enough to remain the top team in the American League (which they barely were in the regular season) and make themselves a tougher out for the Dodgers, assuming they win a third straight National League pennant.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – OCTOBER 9: Kyle Tucker #30 of the Chicago Cubs celebrates a hit in Game Four of the National League Division Series against the Mi…
Could signing the most expensive free agent on the market be feasible? If so, Chicago Cubs right fielder Kyle Tucker would look awfully good in a Blue Jays uniform.
On Tuesday, ESPN insider Jeff Passan named his “perfect transaction” for a large group of teams this winter, and he made a strong plea for the Blue Jays to take a run at Tucker to put themselves over the top.
“Even with a number of players from the team that pushed the Dodgers to their limit headed to free agency, Toronto returns an excellent core that could use another big bat — particularly if Bo Bichette departs,” Passan wrote.
“After trying in free agency for Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto and Yoshinobu Yamamoto with no luck in recent years, this is precisely the time for the Blue Jays to make the biggest move of the winter by giving Vladimir Guerrero Jr. his left-handed complement. Sign free agent outfielder Kyle Tucker.“
A four-time All-Star who just won a Silver Slugger Award in a down year interrupted by injuries, Tucker fits just about every roster this winter, but perhaps the fit in Toronto is just a bit more pronounced, given that the Blue Jays’ top left-handed OPS among hitters with 100-plus games this year was Addison Barger at .755.
If there’s anything that would give a Blue Jays fan pause, it’s the idea of losing Bichette, the team’s two-time All-Star shortstop. It appeared Andrés Giménez was more than ready to take over shortstop defensively down the stretch, but Bichette felt like winning a World Series in Toronto was his fight to finish.
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