TORONTO – In the absence of the type of move befitting of the raised expectations created by the Toronto Blue Jays, each and every name that comes off the board will act as a test of faith in their off-season plan.
On the heels of known whiffs for Kevin Gausman and Ha-seong Kim, as the San Diego Padres and Mets make things happen, and amid a slow-moving overall market, there is fertile ground for cynicism to take root.
The Blue Jays have made calls and inquired and done background on nearly everyone of consequence available. So far, their noteworthy work is limited to re-signing Robbie Ray. Given how aggressive they’ve been, you’d think they would have more accomplished by this point.
That they don’t is either a cause for concern, or simply the result of a dysfunctional business environment caused by the pandemic’s economic fallout, depending on your outlook.
Now, failing to acquire Lindor – a possibility that captured the imagination of some Blue Jays fans on social media – is hardly a death knell for their winter. Bo Bichette deserves to be the team’s undisputed shortstop, anyway, and GM Ross Atkins would do well to anoint him so publicly.
But with Lindor off the table – the Blue Jays are said to have gone in pretty big for him – the rest of their pursuits must come into tighter focus. And rather than playing out the still plentiful remaining options and alternatives, now is the time to force the issue with their preferred targets before the market starts playing them.
Front and centre in that regard should be George Springer, another Mets target to whom there is suddenly a clearer pathway.
After adding both Lindor and Carlos Carrasco (we’ll discuss Cleveland’s return later), the Mets under new owner Steve Cohen right now are projected to have a payroll around $180 million, according to FanGraphs.
At minimum, one executive expects that they’ll still make some depth signings, each pushing them closer and closer to the Competitive Balance Tax threshold of $210 million. Springer will cost, at minimum, $25 million a season, so that doesn’t leave them much space beneath the line, and whether they’d cross it is uncertain.
At his introductory news conference, Cohen told reporters that “at some point we will, but maybe not this season.”
“I’m not afraid to go over it, but you want to have flexibility on our payroll,” he added. “Long-term contracts can limit a team’s ability going forward. I’ve said we are a major-market team and we should spend like we are a major-market team, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to spend like drunken sailors.”
Important context here is that Robinson Cano’s season-long suspension after testing positive for a banned substance removed his $24-million hit this season, but that same amount remains on the ledger in each of the next two years. If they’re going to extend Lindor, continue to carry Jacob deGrom’s $37.5 million, consider extending Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman, Michael Conforto or any of their other pending free agents, it’s fair to wonder if they can, or if it’s sensible, to carry another big ticket like Springer, too.
Mets president Sandy Alderson hinted at a yellow light there, but between Lindor, Carrasco, James McCann and Trevor May, it’s already been a pretty solid off-season.
Hence, there’s a pathway to Springer for Toronto, especially if Atkins and crew decide that’s it and it’s time to go get him. At $125 million over five years, maybe the Mets match, but if the Blue Jays move closer to $150 million over five years, does that seal the deal?
They need to find out now, and pivot quickly if that’s not going to happen, deciding who they’re going to overpay for, because that’s what it will take. The reason they landed Hyun-Jin Ryu last winter was because they gave him a fourth year, and some have suggested they were the only team willing to do so.
So far, the Blue Jays have stood firm on their valuations, refusing to budge. One source suggested that’s what happened with Kim, who got similar dollars but over a shorter term with the Padres, and there was similar speculation about a line in the sand stare-down with Sugano’s camp.
With lesser-known commodities, that’s understandable. But at some point, they have to ante up and it’s better if it’s for someone they have total conviction in, rather than someone who the market drove to them and fell into their financial comfort zone.
After all, if the Blue Jays aren’t willing to swallow inefficient back-ends to deals, and are going to wallow in the mid-tier market safety of two- or three-year contracts, then they’re not really advancing the program as aggressively as they should be.
And if they’re not going to do what it takes in free agency, then maybe they’re better off using their prospect capital to trade for players, since it’s traditionally been easier for the Blue Jays to keep players in Toronto than lure them here in the first place.
In return for Lindor and Carrasco, Cleveland picked up shortstop Amed Rosario, well-regarded infielder Andres Gimenez, rookie-ball righty Josh Wolf and outfielder Isaiah Greene, a second-round pick this past summer.
Rosario is an established big-leaguer while Gimenez posted a .732 OPS over 49 games in his rookie year last summer. If Cleveland was set on getting a young infielder ready to step in, the Blue Jays wouldn’t have a match for that not named Bichette, Cavan Biggio or Vladimir Guerrero Jr., obvious non-starters.
Maybe the Blue Jays could have built a package around Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and top prospect Jordan Groshans. But doing that for one guaranteed year of Lindor while also creating a hole in left field that would cost $10 million or so to backfill is a good way to shorten their competitive window.
Adding two years and an option on Carrasco, who ZiPS projects to be worth 2.9 fWAR this season, would have helped, and maybe framed in that light it changes some of the math.
Only Ryu projects better under ZiPS at 3.1, with Robbie Ray next at 2.5, so picking up Carrasco, even with $27 million guaranteed over the next two years, would have upgraded the rotation, another area of priority.
For whatever reason, it didn’t happen, and now the Blue Jays must decide what’s next. Plenty of good players remain and some of them will eventually take their money, but they should go get who they really want, rather than allow others to decide the path forward for them.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Canada’s Gabriela Dabrowski and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe remain undefeated in women’s doubles at the WTA Finals.
The 2023 U.S. Open champions, seeded second at the event, secured a 1-6, 7-6 (1), (11-9) super-tiebreak win over fourth-seeded Italians Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini in round-robin play on Tuesday.
The season-ending tournament features the WTA Tour’s top eight women’s doubles teams.
Dabrowski and Routliffe lost the first set in 22 minutes but levelled the match by breaking Errani’s serve three times in the second, including at 6-5. They clinched victory with Routliffe saving a match point on her serve and Dabrowski ending Errani’s final serve-and-volley attempt.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will next face fifth-seeded Americans Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk on Thursday, where a win would secure a spot in the semifinals.
The final is scheduled for Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Nov. 5, 2024.
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
