Former MLB GM offers lukewarm assessment of Blue Jays' lineup

The Toronto Blue Jays enter 2025 with a lineup that could be dangerous. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is one of the best hitters in baseball and a perennial MVP candidate. Anthony Santander's coming off a 40-homer season. Bo Bichette's led the American League in hits twice in his career.

But, according to one former MLB GM, that still isn't enough for the Blue Jays to have a top-10 offense.

Former MLB GM offers lukewarm assessment of Blue Jays' lineup

In a new story for The Athletic (subscription required) former MLB general manager Jim Bowden ranked all 30 MLB lineups heading into Opening Day, where he had the Jays' lineup in 14th place. They were sandwiched between the Kansas City Royals and Minnesota Twins.

The Blue Jays improved their offense considerably by signing left fielder Anthony Santander, who belted 44 home runs last season for the Orioles. He’ll slot in between Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette in the lineup, making it difficult for teams to pitch around any of them," Bowden wrote.

While Bowden has praise for Guerrero and Bicehtte, he still has them ranked in the middle-of-the-pack. While it's clear that Toronto's offense isn't as dangerous as some other teams, it still boasts a strong top of the order and has some intriguing pieces at the bottom.

As Bowden mentions later on in his entry about the Jays, both Bichette and Guerrero are in their walk years, so they should be even more motivated to play well this season. The biggest factors that could help push the Blue Jays' lineup to another level is if players like Andrés Giménez, George Springer and Alejandro Kirk are able to play to their level of their previous peaks.

Both Giménez and Kirk were All-Stars in 2022 but have both had an OPS+ under 100 in each of the past two seasons, while Springer is coming off a season where he had an OPS+ of 92.

They'll both see plenty of time this season (Giménez and Kirk are a part of Toronto's new core thanks to their contracts), and Toronto would really benefit from them being able to lengthen the lineup.

Bowden also seems lukewarm on the Blue Jays' chances to compete in the American League East, as they finished behind the Red Sox (No. 8), Orioles (No. 10) and Yankees (No. 11) in the rankings. The Rays were ranked at 25th.

Bowden's likely not the only person in MLB who has questions about the Blue Jays' lineup. As mentioned above, it has sluggers and impact players, but there's also some valid question marks at the bottom of the lineup.

The Blue Jays' lineup slugged their way through the spring training slate. Will they be able to carry that over into the regular season?