Winter Meetings Roundup: Garcia, Gimenez Join Blue Jays; Burnes in Play
The chips are starting to fall and the puzzle pieces are starting to fit in place.
After a quiet Monday, the Blue Jays made a splash with a couple of big moves on Day 2 of the winter meetings.
First, they turned to old friend Yimi Garcia who is returning to the Blue Jays on a two-year, $15 million contract.
Garcia first came to the Blue Jays in 2022 and was with them up until the Jays traded him to the Mariners right before the trading deadline this past July.
Overall with the Blue Jays, Garcia has gone 10-9 with nine saves in 163 games and was a valuable contributor over his 2+ seasons with the team, especially last year.
The Blue Jays weren't done yet though.
A couple of hours after announcing the Garcia signing, the Blue Jays made their first big trade of the offseason. Spencer Horwitz and minor league outfielder Nick Mitchell were sent to the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for 2B Andres Gimenez and RHP Nick Sandlin.
Gimenez will immediately slot in as the everyday starter at 2nd, while Sandlin will provide stability and reliability in a middle-relief role for a beleaguered bullpen.
The Jays were also heavily involved in the Max Fried sweepstakes before the lefty signed an eight-year contract with the New York Yankees.
Wanting to obtain another starting pitcher, the Jays were rumoured to have made a substantial offer to Corbin Burnes, the top arm currently available. The amount is unknown, but is said to the highest bid.
The winter meetings wrap up on Thursday, Dec 12. If today was any indication, it is going to be an exciting 48 hours.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 11 | 199 ANSWERS Winter Meetings Roundup: Garcia, Gimenez Join Blue Jays; Burnes in Play Who were you most excited about? | ||
| Yimi Garcia | 43 | 21.6 % |
| Andres Gimenez | 56 | 28.1 % |
| both | 58 | 29.1 % |
| neither | 42 | 21.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
