Three players we’re glad the Blue Jays did not sign in the offseason

Jonathan Villar

Signed a one-year deal worth $6 million with the Chicago Cubs

One player Blue Jays fans may remember from the shortened 2020 season is infielder Jonathan Villar, a utility-type switch hitter who was going to help the Jays make a final push for the postseason. It cost the Jays a prospect in Griffin Conine at the trade deadline to the Miami Marlins and the results were not what fans hoped for, as Villar made numerous base running miscues and struggled to hit with the Blue Jays, yielding a .481 OPS and going 13 for 69 down the stretch.

To make matters worse, during the Jays’ Wild Card playoff series against Tampa, it seemed like he quit on the team when he gathered his stuff and exited the dugout during the second game. He would sign with the Mets for the 2021 campaign during the offseason.

Fast forward to this past offseason and apparently, the Blue Jays front office was interested in a reunion with the Dominican infielder. They reportedly offered him a contract that he turned down (or was considering depending on who you asked) before signing with the Chicago Cubs on a one-year deal worth $6 million.

The move likely benefitted Villar because he would receive more playing time with a Cubs organization compared to the Blue Jays in that Chicago had either traded away or let almost every veteran player walk during free agency and was entering a rebuild.

The results did not follow for the former Jays infielder, however, as he struggled in Chicago to a .271/.327/.598 slash line with 15 RBI and a .598 OPS before being DFA’d on June 24th. He then signed on with the Los Angeles Angels and appeared in 13 games but continued to struggle, authoring a .451 OPS through 49 at-bats. He would be DFA’d by the Angels just a week before the trade deadline and is now currently in AAA with the Seattle Mariners organization.