Blue Jays watch division rivals make first major offseason splash as Red Sox sign Jake Bauers

Dec.1 is rapidly approaching and the transactions are slowly trickling in. Emilio Pagan was the first notable name off the board as he signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Tigers. Evan Phillips signed the first multi-year deal for a pitcher as he agreed with the Atlanta Braves. Now, Jake Bauers and the Boston Red Sox are in agreement on a multi-year deal.

The bullpen was not a top priority on the laundry list, and there are still plenty of options on the market. But now that Bauers is off the market, and with a division rival, that sends a signal to the Blue Jays that they need to act soon.

After struggling with various organizations in his first six Major League seasons, Bauers found a home with the Brewers in 2024. It was not an immediate success thought. Bauers hit .199/.301/.361 in 117 games in 2024. The following season, he looked better and showed signs of improvement, hitting .235/.353/.399 in 86 games while recording his highest wRC+ (115) up to that point.

In his contract year, Bauers was able to put it all together. In 144 games, he hit .266/.389/.484 with a 143 wRC+. He had career highs in home runs (26), runs (93), and RBI (86).

The underlying numbers further support his breakout in 2026. He showed elite plate discipline as his 21.7% chase rate and 16.3% walk rate ranked in the 93rd and 98th percentile, respectively. He made hard contact and did it often as he ranked in the 91st percentile or higher in average exit velocity, bat speed, barrel rate, and hard-hit rate.

Jake Bauers would have been a nice-to have but not a must-have for Blue Jays

It was an amazing year for the 31-year-old, culminating in a four-year, $58 million contract. While Bauers would fit what the Blue Jays should be looking for this offseason, he would have been an awkward fit defensively.

Bauers spent most of 2026 playing first base, but he posted a -5 OAA at that position, while incumbent, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was a Gold Glove finalist.

He spent some time in right field (32 games) and posted a -4 OAA, while in left field (16 games) he was plus-1 OAA. While the Blue Jays may have been able to hide his defensive deficiencies by giving him DH at-bats and time in left field, they probably prefer someone whose glove plays a little better than that. Especially after witnessing the disaster that Jesús Sánchez displayed last season.

That's what makes this an interesting fit between Bauers and the Red Sox. He likely will be taking every day DH bats while occasionally spelling Willson Contreras at first. The Red Sox still have an outfield logjam though, and the addition of Bauers is going to push someone off the roster, likely Masataka Yoshida or Jarren Durran.

Bauers also likes to pull the ball in the air often (20.7% career pull-air rate) and with Fenway Park's dimensions, it does not fully maximize Bauers' skillset. According to Baseball Savant, Fenway Park and PNC Park ranked last in Bauers' expected home runs by park with only 18.

To get Bauers at $14.5M annually is a good contract for the Red Sox. The Red Sox will also be banking on Bauers' breakout being legitimate as he never had a season like this in the past. Given the underlying numbers however, that should not be a huge concern.

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