Blue Jays reportedly “checked in” on Bryce Harper

Bryce Harper, who recently signed a massive contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, was apparently of some interest to the Toronto Blue Jays, per a recent report.

According to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet, the Blue Jays “checked in” on Bryce Harper prior to his signing with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Nicholson-Smith adds that a source has indicated that the Blue Jays also “checked in” on Marwin Gonzalez and Dallas Keuchel, two other notable clients of super-agent Scott Boras.

Though the Blue Jays did, per the report, have some conversations with Boras about Harper, Keuchel, and Gonzalez, a source quoted in Nicholson-Smith’s report says that there were “not a lot of conversations”.

Of course, Harper, 26, signed the biggest contract in Major League Baseball history, a mega 13-year, $330 million deal with Philadelphia, on March 2.

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Gonzalez, a super-utility player who has spent his entire seven-year major league career with the Houston Astros, signed a two-year, $21 million contract with the Minnesota Twins on February 25.

Keuchel, 31, remains unsigned but has been the topic of several recent rumours, especially considering the complex and constantly evolving starting pitching market that has become increasingly difficult to predict this offseason.

While it’s obvious that the Blue Jays never made a serious pitch to Harper, it is worth noting that they were at least engaged with Boras and Harper at some point.

Though fans may remain angry that the organization didn’t pursue him with intensity, many other big-market franchises, most notably the New York Yankees, Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs, were reportedly among those to never make a serious offer to Boras and his camp.

Harper, who hails from Las Vegas, Nevada, will wear No. 3 in 2019 and was formally introduced at a press conference in Florida Saturday. The San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers were among the teams rumoured to have made Harper a serious and competitive offer.