Blue Jays: Why George Springer is the key domino to the offseason

It sounds like the George Springer sweepstakes are still between the Blue Jays and the Mets, and the centre fielder is a key domino to the offseason.

The story remains the same with the Blue Jays’ offseason, and even some of the rumours are basically starting to repeat themselves.

To that end, on Monday we heard from ESPN’s Jeff Passan that the Blue Jays and Mets remain the most likely landing spots for free agent outfielder George Springer. We’ve known that for a while, and the assumption is that Springer’s camp has been hoping to expand the market for his services, and likely drive up the value at the same time. So far that hasn’t materialized, but neither has the rest of the free agent market either.

The more you look at the situation with Springer, the more it seems that he could be the key domino to the offseason for a lot of free agents, and a handful of teams as well. That might especially be the case for the Mets and Blue Jays.

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So far the Mets have made one of the biggest signings of the winter, inking catcher James McCann to a four-year deal. That takes them out of the running for J.T. Realmuto, one of the other premium free agents available at the moment. With new ownership looking to make a big splash for the Mets, they appear to have made Springer their top priority, and that obviously affects the Blue Jays’ plans if they feel the same way.

This is total speculation on my part, but I believe that Springer tops the list for both teams right now, and that we could be in a holding pattern until that changes. The Blue Jays are in a similar situation with DJ LeMahieu and the Yankees as well, so they could always pivot to the infielder, especially if they get the sense that Springer prefers New York and/or is leaning way. I think they already know that in LeMahieu’s case as far as returning to the Yankees.

Once Springer is off the board, my expectation is that LeMahieu, Realmuto, and even Trevor Bauer could be right behind him. For the Blue Jays, if they miss out on Springer then I believe LeMahieu becomes plan 1b, and Realmuto could be another strong option, even if their own catching ranks are fairly promising. In that case, then trading for someone like Francisco Lindor could make more sense, with a solid prospect like Alejandro Kirk acting as one of the centrepieces of the deal going the other way.

A lot can still change, especially since not much has over the last few months, but it’s looking more and more likely that George Springer could be the key domino this offseason. Here’s hoping he makes his decision soon, and this free agent market finally gets moving.