Sure sounds like the Blue Jays are clueless with recent link to third base free agent

The Toronto Blue Jays sure could use a third baseman as they search for offensive upgrades this offseason. With big-name free agent Alex Bregman on the market and Philadelphia Phillies All-Star Alec Bohm on the trade block, as we learned this week, there are plenty of high-end options for the Jays to pursue.

Unfortunately, the latest rumored player they've been linked to is a head-scratcher.

On Wednesday, Francys Romero reported that the Blue Jays are one of the teams monitoring former Chicago White Sox third baseman Yoán Moncada. The 29-year-old became a free agent after the season when the dreadful Pale Hose easily declined his $25M option and sent him out to the market.

Blue Jays are clueless after being linked to free agent Yoán Moncada

Doing due diligence and kicking the tires on all available options is a good approach when you're desperate to make changes. Still, Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins should steer clear of Moncada if he wants his team to be competitive again in 2025.

Once a No. 1 prospect of both the Boston Red Sox and the White Sox, the switch-hitting Moncada never became the player many around the game thought he would be. There was talent, no doubt, as he showed in his career year in 2019, the pinnacle of the juiced ball era, when he popped 25 home runs and hit .315 with a .915 OPS.

That season came on the heels of a 2018 campaign in which he led the majors with 217 strikeouts. With a career .254 batting average and a .756 OPS, Moncada has balanced out as a slightly above-league-average hitter, but it's been a roller coaster.

Free agent third baseman Moncada an injury-prone risk

And there's the rub with Moncada: he's never been able to stay consistent. Or healthy.

His injury report is a bafflingly long list, full of day-to-day ailments and trips to the injured list, stretching back to 2017. This past season, he only dealt with one injury (an adductor strain), but it kept him out most of the year, and he only appeared in 12 games.

He only played 92 games in 2023, and 104 in 2022. His last full season was 144 games in 2021.

As if to further prove the point, Moncada, who's currently playing for Cuba in the WBSC Premier12 tournament in Taiwan, was forced to leave his most recent game after being hit on the hand by a pitch, as reported by MLB Network's Jon Morosi. Luckily for him and his chance of landing a contract this winter, X-rays came back negative, per Romero, but he's doubtful for the rest of the tournament.

The guy just can't seem to catch a break.

Some may argue that the Blue Jays have nothing to lose. Taking a flier on a one-time top prospect on a cheap deal would be a gamble that may or may not work out. The problem is that the Jays have very little room for error heading into 2025. In a vacuum, signing Moncada looks like a no-lose situation — if he doesn't work out, it's an easy roster cut — but there's more at stake for Atkins and the Jays.

The futures of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette, and whether this franchise will head into another competitive window or a complete tear-down and rebuild, hang in the balance. Do you really want to put your faith in an inconsistent and injury-prone third baseman while other, better options are out there in free agency or trade?

If the Blue Jays want to be competitive, they need to find a better option than Yoán Moncada.

More from Jays Journal