Toronto Blue Jays: Who is at Third Base for 2022?

Jose Ramirez
It seems that the most consistent player that is coming up in speculation for the Blue Jays to acquire for the hot corner is Cleveland Guardians’ third baseman Jose Ramirez.  Ramirez would come with two years of team control as he is set to make $11 million in 2022 and has a team option for $13 million the year after, which you’d expect to be picked up.

Ramirez is coming off a 2021 season that saw him selected to his third All-Star Game with 36 home runs and 103 RBI while posting a slash line of .266/.355/.538.  He comes with three Silver Slugger Awards in his trophy case and also finished second in AL MVP voting in 2020.  The question would be what would the cost be to acquire Ramirez, which my guess would be that it would start with Alejandro Kirk and likely require two more pieces.  There are several different combinations, but I would be ok with most packages as long as Alek Manoah and Gabriel Moreno weren’t involved.

Ketel Marte
The Arizona Diamondbacks made it known back in the summer that they won’t be trading Ketel Marte, but now that it is the offseason, can Ross Atkins influence the D-backs to make a move?  Marte has only actually played 11 innings at third base over his career, which was all back in 2017, but similar to Biggio, he is a versatile player that could potentially play the position.

Marte is signed through 2022 on an $8.4 Million deal, with team options for the two years after that ($8M and $10M for each of those seasons).  Marte had battled injuries during the 2021 campaign that limited him to just 90 games but he was still able to collect 44 extra base hits while posting a slash line of .318/.377/.532.  The 28-year old is just two seasons removed from an All-Star Appearance in a season that he finished fourth in NL MVP voting.  The cost would likely be less than Ramirez despite gaining an extra year of control.