Emerging NL Central contender joins Blue Jays in pursuit of Carlos Estévez

It's no secret that the Toronto Blue Jays are trying to upgrade every part of the roster this winter. One area of focus that needed some serious TLC when the offseason got underway was the bullpen. The front office has signed old friend Yimi García and acquired Nick Sandlin in the Andrés Giménez trade, but they're still shopping.

One of the big-name relievers to recently appear on the Blue Jays' radar was Carlos Estévez. The big right-hander is, like most top high-leverage bullpen arms, still available in the slow-moving reliever free agent market. Unfortunately, the Blue Jays aren't the only team in on the 32-year-old, who finished the 2024 season as the Philadelphia Phillies' closer after switching teams at the trade deadline.

Blue Jays have more competition from the Reds for Carlos Estévez

Among the half dozen teams that have reportedly expressed interest in Estévez, a new suitor has emerged, and they aren't one to be trifled with this offseason. The Cincinnati Reds are making some waves and have now thrown their hat in the ring for Estévez's services, according to the New York Post's Jon Heyman.

As a team with some undeniable electric young talent (think Elly De La Cruz and Hunter Greene), the Reds are making moves this winter to finally re-emerge as a contender in the NL Central after some years lost in the wilderness. Sure, they finished 16 games back in their division last season, but that's not stopping them from wheeling and dealing.

Despite not being among the big MLB spenders (they finished with an estimated 2024 payroll of $100 million), the Reds aren't looking to cut payroll and may add salary, per MLB.com's Mark Sheldon, which means anything is possible.

The Reds recently traded for Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Gavin Lux and have already beefed up the starting rotation. The bullpen is one area they haven't touched yet. If they're talking to Estévez's camp, it adds another hurdle for the Blue Jays to make a big free agent signing.

Coming off the best year of his career in 2024, Estévez is heading into his ninth MLB season. He posted a 2.45 ERA and 0.91 WHIP with 26 saves in 55 innings split between the Los Angeles Angels and Phillies. With a career 4.21 ERA, his lowest ERA before last year was in 2022, when he posted a 3.47 ERA with the Colorado Rockies (where he spent his first six seasons).

Spotrac projects Estévez's future contract to be for three years at around the $42 million mark. Whether the Reds would consider adding a $14 million per year reliever remains to be seen. The Blue Jays can afford it. The question is whether they'd pull the trigger on a deal that rich for a relief pitcher who had what can only be seen as an outlier season — especially after saying sayonara to homegrown closer Jordan Romano, who would have made roughly $8 million in arbitration.

Either way, the way this offseason has gone, the last thing Toronto needs is more competition for free agents.