BREAKING: Jays make MULTIPLE moves... This is wild | Toronto Blue Jays News

We have some breaking news. This free agency is officially open to the Toronto Blue Jays. Just made multiple moves, including one move, which involved letting go. A very prominent name. We're going to break down these big moves and discuss, more importantly, what this means going forward, as there's an aspect of these moves that nobody is talking about, as well as a ton of injury updates that we just got. There is a ton to go over today, but before we get into it all, I'll be your quick reminder to hit that subscribe button if you want to stay up to date with all the latest Jays news. Folks, this is going to be the biggest month in Jays digest history and in what feels like Toronto Blue Jays offseason history, so make sure to hit that subscribe button. Let's start with the news. Folks, Myles Straw is gone. The Toronto Blue Jays have officially declined his 2027 player option. Now, this was a decision that was kind of expected it was at 8 million so there's a lot of rumblings about whether or not he's probably going to come back on a cheaper deal we'll dive into that but there was question marks about whether or not the jays would actually go ahead and not exercise this option because of how critical he's been to this team especially on the side that you know john schneider loves to use him let's dive into why they let him go and let's start with the money and a quick refresher on how we got here strass signed a five-year 25 million dollar deal with the cleveland guardians back in in April 2022 with two club options at the end of it. Then in 2025, Cleveland sent him to Toronto. The Jays took on his contract. We know this was, you know, part of what Toronto got back was about $2 million in international bonus pool space, which is the money they were using to chase Roki Sasaki. They didn't get Sasaki, but they got Miles Straub, played a critical role. Him bringing the Toronto Blue Jays close to, you know, Game 7 of the World Series. It wasn't him on his own, but he definitely played a factor. And at the end of the day here, over those two seasons, he tied for the MLB lead among outfielders with a perfect $1,000. I guess 100%, I guess, fielding percentage. Now, let's dive into it. So they declined the club option. Now, the club option is basically the easy way for them to bring him back at $8 million. And by not paying that now, there is a chance that they don't bring him back. The buyout was $1.75 million. And according to reports, Cleveland is the team paying that buyout amount. So that is kind of interesting. But this cost the Jays nothing, right? And at the end of the day, right now, They don't have him on the team. He's a free agent. And I mean, signs point to him leaving. Now, Straw also, as people are talking about, had an option in 2028 by declining this one and obviously kills that option as well. They've removed him, but let's dive into why. In 2026, he had a 646 OPS and 330 plate appearances, only three home runs all season. Pretty poor bat, right? We know that's not what he's known for. He was still elite defensively, outs above average, 88th percentile, sprint speed, 97th percentile. He pitched some games, which is absolutely hilarious. So on paper, it looked like a pretty easy call, right? He didn't produce. He's a very much so a glove first guy, but this was somebody that. Which is kind of crazy. John Schneider was pinch hitting in critical games down the stretch in the playoffs against lefties. And the fact that they aren't bringing him back, at least in the team option, actually gives me a lot of confidence going forward. Because they need a better bat and they need one as soon as possible. If we go back to August 3rd when the Jays traded Dalton Varshow and Cash to Houston for Spencer Arrighetti. But Myles Straw had something like a miracle run where he was going absolutely insane. But right now, with the emergence of Brett Bateman, I think that played a factor in as well. Brett Bateman is an elite, elite defensive outfielder. Now, will his offense stick in an 826 OPS that he had in 181 plate appearances? Probably not. But he is an elite defender. And I think that's where things happen. So the Jays believe in Brett Bateman a lot more than people think. But also... I ultimately think this team is now just transitioning into a new style of baseball, which is offense first, or at least. Not pinch hitting a glove first defender, a defender and a glove first outfielder in critical games. Let me know down below. Are you surprised about the, you know, Milo Strada decision? They could still bring him back on a two to three, four or $5 million deal. It doesn't have to be, you know, crazy, crazy expensive, but for now he's gone. He is not a Blue Jay. We'll see what happens. Now within that abundance of moves, they also reinstated seven players from this 60 day IL. Let's start with them. Addison Berger, Anthony Santander, Jonathan Classe, Jose Barrios, Jake Bloss, Bowden Francis, and Cody Ponce were all reinstated from the 60-day IL. And fun fact, four of those seven did not play a single Major League game in 2026. That is Santander, Barrios, Francis, and Jake Bloss. Zero games, and Cody Ponce threw 2.1 innings. So that's a lot of money that were on the sidelines last year. That's $43.4 million for three guys who gave the Jays just two and a third innings combined. So injuries happen, it's the way it is, but they have a lot of improvement to do. And for the pitchers in that group, coming back healthy is gonna be almost like a mini signing. So if Burrios and Ponce are ready to go in the spring, that's two rotation arms the Jays didn't have to buy this winter. Though I think that's very scary logic to actually use in practice because we have no idea how good they'll be. Now, I think the bigger piece of news here, obviously, is Addison Berger out of this. Yeah, 28 plate appearances this past year, 0.45 OPS. It is what it is. He's going to be really good next year. Need him healthy. Jonathan Class A, what can he do? He's ultimately a fourth outfielder. Maybe he'll replace. Myles Strauss spotted, you know, way cheaper. He was hot and on fire before he got injured, though he only played 25 games. Or rather, not 25 games, 25 plate appearances. Significantly less games. I think it was six or five games. Now, outside of Class A, and actually, comment down below, it's through fun trivia, how many games did Class A play last year? First one I commented, I will heart their comment, but we also have some other updates as well. Two smaller moves. Pitcher CJ Van Eyck cleared waivers and went to AAA, and then outfielder Rudy Martin Jr. chose free agency. Now, here's... Why this is interesting, players on the 60-day injury list don't count against the 40-man roster, and the second you bring them back, they do. So with all seven back, the Blue Jays' 40-man now is at 39 players, 39 out of 40 because they signed a single free agent. On November 17th, they have to add the prospects they want to protect from the Rule 5 draft. Every one of those needs to be, it needs a 40-man spot as well. So keep in mind, if you want to be protected from, like Central Miles was, I guess, from the Rule 5 draft, you need to add them to your 40-man roster or else other teams can. What comes next for this team? Obviously, this is the beginning of free agency. Moves could happen today, and if so, we'll keep you up to date, so make sure to hit that subscribe button. But I sound like a broken record. I mean, this is an offense that was dead last in the AL East. I mean, one of the worst in the major leagues. And I think letting go of Myles Straw at least at $8 million, I don't know if they would have done that last year. And at this point in time, yes, Straw is a valuable player, but I'm hoping and praying that this is a sign of changes when it comes to their offensive philosophy. You cannot have a guy in John Schneider putting out Myles Straw, as much as I love Myles Straw, in a pinch-hit scenario ever, period. And this front office has shown it will spend, still in C's last year, seven years, 210. Kazuma Okamoto, four years, 60. So the question isn't whether they'll do something, it's whether they move fast enough. And how much room is there? You can look at the luxury tax. The Jays don't care about that. They are going to move quickly because there is a clock. Keep in mind, to give you guys a bit of a timeline here, everything is crammed into November. GM meetings are from November 9th to 12th. The Rule 5 protection deadline is November 17th. Non-tenders on November 20th. Obviously, the names to watch say a Suzuki. He got the qualifying offer from the Cubs today, one year, $23.15 million. He has until November 17th to say yes or no. Guess what? He's going to say no. The Jays, if they sign him, have to give the Cubs a draft pick, and he's insane. We know. We had a video on it today, and again, if Suzuki says no, No, look at a compensation draft pick, but who? Who cares at this point? Other names from Japan, Teruaki Sato, Kema, Tera, Hiromi, Ito, Ace, and Si, Juan, Rowe. I think they were all posted yesterday, which means they're all going to be coming to the major leagues and Sato being the most exciting one out of those. So folks, let me know down below what your thoughts are on these moves. If you're Ross Atkins, who do you pursue the most? But were you surprised and are you surprised that they decided to not Pick up Myles Straw's contract. I think it's fine. They might still bring him back. Like this is a, you know, a very fluid situation, but one thing is for sure. Finally, the off season is here. And at the end of the day, folks, multiple reporters, I mean, I'm reading right now on Twitter, multiple industry sources, agents, and executives expect a flurry of deals over the next 30 days. It's going to be maybe not Otani level crazy from 2022, but it is going to be, I think it was 2022. Either way, it's going to be one of the most, probably the busiest ever month. On this channel and in baseball history, you could argue. So if you want to stay up to date with all that, make sure to hit that subscribe button and comment down below your favorite Myles Straw moment, whether you think that Myles Straw should have been brought back. And more importantly, how excited you are for this season because, or for this off season, because guess what? We're what, two hours in, one hour in, and it's already moving. Thank you guys for watching. Cheers.