When I learned I was going to be spending the next three years of my life in Toronto, I was fresh off watching two disappointing wild-card losses. Since then, the Toronto Blue Jays have lost seven straight post-season games. Although any major league baseball is better than no major league baseball, I am concerned that Ross Atkins is deliberately trying to ruin my love for the team that has meant too much to me over the years.
Like I am sure most Jays fans do, I remember vividly where I was for Jose Bautista’s home run against the Texas Rangers in 2015, and Edwin Encarnacion’s three-run home run in the 2016 wildcard game—back when the wild card was rightly only one game—but that is a story for another day. I find myself wondering what made the team in that era so strong and exciting to watch?
For the new generation of baseball fans including myself, “Touch ‘Em All Joe” does not really feel the same as it does for my parents who were alive during that run. For many of us younger fans, the 2015 and 2016 runs were the pinnacle of Blue Jays baseball. Nevertheless, ever since Josh Donaldson grazed the cover of MLB The Show 16, things just have not felt the same. I think it is important to remember what made that team so special. The acquisitions of Russell Martin, Donaldson, and Marco Estrada come to mind. As well, the dramatic recovery of Marcus Stroman throughout the season, something straight out of a storybook. Let us also never forget the trade deadline acquisition of David Price—bless his soul—which created a hype that I—and presumably most other fans—have not felt since.
It is not like the contemporary Jays are devoid of similar talent. I remember the new “big three”: Vladimir Guerrero Jr, Bo Bichette, and Cavan Biggio, sons of former players, who were supposed to usher in the new era and replace the old stars of Donaldson, Bautista, and Encarnacion. But despite a franchise-record payroll, 2024 found the Jays in the basement of the American League East. Bichette’s average dropped from .306 to .225 year over year and Biggio is not even on the team anymore. One bright spot is Guerrero Jr’s improved performance—which begs the question—what is he still doing on the team? Don’t get me wrong, I am as big a fan as anyone else when it comes to Vladdy, but the franchise needs to commit to a rebuild and free up cap space. Otherwise, we will end up infinitely mediocre for the next decade like the Colorado Rockies.
Financially, the Jays aimed to reset their luxury tax penalties by reducing the 2024 payroll below the first competitive balance tax threshold of $237 million. This was intended to provide more flexibility for future spending. My question however, is what will they be spending this freed up money on? Please do not let it be Juan Soto, who remains a free agent at the time of writing. With the 24th best minor league pipeline, the last thing the Jays need right now is to burn their luxury tax on a superstar of that caliber when the rest of the team is deteriorating.
My unsolicited advice this offseason? Let the players develop, I know the fans will not like seeing the newly renovated stadium host another year of basement baseball. But this route is better than remaining one of the American League teams in purgatory yet another year. It is also certainly better than getting our hopes up just to be disappointed in the wildcard series once more when October rolls around. I truly believe that this team with the right roster moves—AND PATIENCE—can win a pennant before the decade is over