The Toronto Blue Jays are running out of rotation options after their inability to land Corbin Burnes
The most surprising free agent signing of the offseason came together late last night when the Arizona Diamondbacks and right-hander Corbin Burnes reportedly reached an agreement on a six-year deal that guarantees Burnes $210MM.
According to multiple reports, the Toronto Blue Jays offer to Burnes included more money than the $210 million over six years he got from the Diamondbacks.
That makes Burnes' decision to join Arizona another tough pill to swallow for the Blue Jays' front office, which has experienced a series of failures in the last two years.
The Blue Jays fell short after pursuing a trade for former MVP Cody Bellinger, and were left empty-handed after high-profile pursuits of the top options in each of the last two off-seasons, Juan Soto this year and Shohei Ohtani a year ago.
Regardless of how competitive the offers Burnes received from San Francisco and Toronto ultimately were, both clubs will now have to turn their attention to other options as they look to fortify their rotations.
The Blue Jays' top priority is surely attempting to hammer out an extension with the face of the franchise Vladimir Guerrero Jr, that will keep him in town following the 2025 season.
However at the present time the Blue Jays are reportedly not close to a contract extension for the home-grown superstar.
As MLB.com's Keegan Matheson notes, Burnes, who finished fifth in American League Cy Young voting in 2024 with a 2.92 earned-run average and a 15-9 record for the Baltimore Orioles, represented a chance for the Blue Jays to solidify their rotation moving forward.
On the rotation front, the club has reportedly shown interest in Canadian right-hander Nick Pivetta,
Veteran pitchers Chris Bassitt (2025), Kevin Gausman (2026) and Jose Berrios (2026) are all likely to depart in the next two seasons, after Yusei Kikuchi was traded at this year's deadline.
To add to the issues on the pitching side, Toronto finished the 2024 season last in the AL East for the first time since the 2013 campaign at 74-88.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 28 | 229 ANSWERS The Toronto Blue Jays are running out of rotation options after their inability to land Corbin Burnes Who should the Blue Jays pivot to next? | ||
| Nick Pivetta | 45 | 19.7 % |
| Luis Castillo | 63 | 27.5 % |
| Jack Flaherty | 64 | 27.9 % |
| None of the Above | 57 | 24.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
