11 Blue Jays players that won't be back in 2024

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The end of the 2023 season for the Toronto Blue Jays came in heartbreaking fashion, as the club was swept out of the Wild Card Series by the Minnesota Twins two games to none. Entering the series, the Twins were riding a historic 18-game playoff losing streak and had not won a postseason series since all the way back in 2002. It just felt like it was meant to be that this year's Blue Jays would be the ones that'd help Minnesota break that cycle.

As we turn our collective attentions over to the offseason, this is going to be one full of change for the organization. Not only are there a rather large amount of pending free agents, but there are quite a few members of the big league coaching staff whose roles moving forward need to be under consideration here.

This includes manager John Schneider, who often was the scapegoat fans needed whenever something went wrong; hitting coach Guillermo Martinez, whose approach to hitting may well have led the team to lowered offensive production; bench coach Don Mattingly, whose veteran presence offered zero actual help to a team destined for an early playoff exit, and more.

We're going to stick with the players for now, though. Here are the most notable players on the big league roster that will be hitting free agency this offseason (note: we predict that some of them will be back, but for the sake of clarity, this is a complete list of FAs):

1B Brandon Belt
3B Matt Chapman
RHP Chad Green (club option)
RHP Jordan Hicks
RHP Jay Jackson
OF Kevin Kiermaier
INF Whit Merrifield (mutual option)
LHP Hyun Jin Ryu

However, it does not stop here. There are a handful of players who are still under contract for next season and beyond that have most likely already played their last innings in the Blue Jays' organization. We're going to dive in and look at every single member of the 2023 Jays that will likely not be back next year.

11 Blue Jays who won't be back in 2024.

Brandon Belt

Few players excelled in their expected roles for the Blue Jays quite like Brandon Belt did this year. In fact, there's an argument to be made that he was the single most valuable one-year pickup this club made prior to the 2023 season.

Belt, 35, was quite the run-producer for the Jays, especially in the months of May and August, when he had a .940 and 1.033 OPS, respectively. On the season, he made it into over 100 games for the first time since 2019 and actually led the club in OPS+ with a 136 in the regular season.

If there's any real gripe for a Jays fan to have with Belt, it's the fact that he did not do very well in high-leverage spots this year ... at all. In fact, he was just 7-for-36 (.194 average) in these situations throughout the season and was one of the least "clutch" players the Jays had. While the crafty veteran seemed to always put together competitive at-bats, so few of them resulted in a positive outcome in the grand scheme of things.

At the beginning of September, Belt hopped on the Foul Territory podcast that's hosted by multiple former big league players like A.J. Pierzynski, Erik Kratz and Adam Jones, and suggested that he could be retiring at the end of the 2023 season. He cited the desire to spend more time with his family moving forward, and how can you blame him?

Should the 13-year veteran hang it up, he'll do so having accomplished everything a big leaguer could ask for. Since his debut in 2011, he made an All-Star Game and won two World Series rings. Most players are lucky to have a shot at just one ring throughout their entire career.

During his tenure in Toronto, Belt was very much a well-liked figure by Blue Jays fans. However, the fact that he could retire mixed with the presence of Spencer Horwitz, who plays the exact same position(s) as Belt and needs consistent playing time, likely means that we've seen the last of "Baby Giraffe" in a Jays uniform.

Matt Chapman

Matt Chapman's case is a curious one, as he was durable and remained an otherworldly defender at third base throughout this past season. The 30-year-old started off the year as one of the league's hottest hitters, but he came crashing back down to earth in a big way as the months rolled by.

In the end, Chapman did manage to finish 2023 with 39 doubles and an OPS+ of 108, which is nothing to scoff at. However, his best non-April performance came in July when he hit just .247 with four home runs. Other than that, he routinely failed to hit over .200 in a month and was practically a black hole in the Blue Jays' lineup.

This streakiness carried over into the Wild Card Series, as the third baseman went just 1-for-7 in a two-game sweep by the Twins. Really, he was damn near unplayable at certain parts of the season so it's understandable why many Blue Jays fans are ready for the club to move on.

Offensive struggles aside, Chapman is still likely to ask for (and receive) a hefty payday in free agency. There are many third base-hungry teams out there that would be more than willing to pay him strictly for his defensive chops, which certainly makes sense. With a group of exciting left-side-of-the-infield prospects in the system, the Blue Jays feel likelier to explore a cheaper option or promote from within for the 2024 season and beyond.

Adam Cimber, Mason McCoy, Wes Parsons, Zach Pop

There shouldn't be any real surprises here, as this entire quartet failed to positively contribute to the Blue Jays this year.

Cimber, 33, made just 22 appearances during the regular season, missing a ton of time due to multiple different injuries. He finished the year on the 60-day injured list and made his last appearance for the team on June 18. He coughed up 17 earned runs on 25 hits in under 21 innings of work and was nowhere close to a productive big leaguer. A non-tender seems likely for him in the near future.

Wes Parsons spent the vast majority of the season in Triple-A pitching for the Buffalo Bisons. While his 4.55 ERA doesn't exactly jump off the page, he began striking out batters at a higher rate than he'd ever been at before and was a huge part of the Bisons' success. However, he made his lone big league start for the Blue Jays in Game 162 and completely melted down. The Jays needed length from him, so they kept him in for four innings before saying enough was enough, but he had already surrendered nine runs on 10 hits with three walks. He's not coming back.

Pop, 27, made the Opening Day roster after a promising spring showing and had a sub-2.00 ERA until a meltdown against the Astros at the end of April. His final regular season appearance came on May 4 and he was, well, awful in Triple-A to round out the year. In 34 outings for Buffalo, he posted a 5.30 ERA and surrendered entirely too many base hits to really feel like someone the Jays need to keep around. When it comes time to protect prospects from the Rule 5 Draft, look for Pop to lose his spot on the 40-man roster and likely hit free agency.

McCoy, the only position player in this group, is going to hit minor league free agency any day now and is not likely to be brought back. Don't get me wrong, he is absolutely the best defensive infielder in the entire Blue Jays organization, but he's going to be pushed out of a job by some of the aforementioned prospects. The 28-year-old is a career minor leaguer but was able to get in to the first six big league games of his career, scoring two runs and striking out in his lone at-bat. He has value for sure, but don't look for him to log anymore games in the Jays system.

Jordan Hicks

Throughout his tenure on the Blue Jays post-trade deadline, there was some sort of vibe surrounding Jordan Hicks. It's difficult to put into words, but it almost felt like he didn't truly enjoy his time on the club. Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith added a bit of fuel to that fire on Saturday as well, when he went on JD Bunkis's podcast and said, "I don't see Hicks returning. I don't see him coming back. I never got the sense that that fit fully landed between those two sides."

Do with that information what you will. Strictly throwing a guess out there, but he could have been unhappy with John Schneider's unwillingness to use him as the club's closer. Jordan Romano has a firm hold on that role, so it's a bit confusing when BNS says that the fit never fully landed between the club and Hicks.

Either way, the flamethrowing right-hander is good as gone. He performed exceptionally well whenever he was called upon (even if he was a bit erratic with his 100mph+ fastball at times) and undoubtedly played a significant role in the team's postseason run, but the fit just isn't there anymore.

The Blue Jays had to give up a nice pair of pitching prospects to acquire Hicks at the deadline from St. Louis, so if he departs in free agency, that may sting a bit more than it does at this current moment, but don't hold your breath for a reunion.

Kevin Kiermaier

As tough as it is to say, it feels like Kevin Kiermaier is not coming back to the Blue Jays next year. The speedy outfielder gave the Jays his all this season and is to seriously be commended for it. Not only did he tie the highest amount of games he's played since 2015 (129), but he hit his most home runs (8) since 2019 and his .741 OPS is the highest he's had since 2017.

The man showed up, exceeded expectations and is now likely to turn that in to a nice payday in free agency.

Sure, the 104 OPS+ and newfound durability was nice to see from Kiermaier, but his glove and overall defensive chops continue to be the very best part of his game. His Baseball Savant page is full of red (meaning he's near the top of the league) and he ranks amongst the best in the game in Range, which is determined based off of Outs Above Average, and Arm Strength.

In Kiermaier's case, it's not that he's going to be out of the Blue Jays' price range, but rather that he's going to be pushed out of town by Daulton Varsho. Popular theories amongst Jays fans revolve around Kiermaier walking, Varsho sliding over to center field, and the club bringing aboard a slugger to play left field. The more I've thought about it, the more I like that idea and could legitimately see it happening. Let's roll with that.

Alek Manoah

This one might be the closest to "hot take" territory we get here, but it feels like Alek Manoah has already thrown his last pitch in a Blue Jays uniform. The right-hander was easily the club's best arm in 2022, finishing third in the AL Cy Young voting with a sparkling 2.24 ERA, but regressed in a major way this year.

The 25-year-old managed to make just 19 starts for the Blue Jays before things really began to go wrong. When he was demoted to the Florida Complex League, it felt like that was the best move for him, as it gave him an opportunity to rebuild his value and retool his mechanics outside of the spotlight. He made just one start there and one in Double-A before he was thrown back out on a big league mound. This was a major mistake by the Jays, and when he was demoted to Triple-A a few outings later, his season practically ended then and there.

Upon his second demotion of the season, Manoah "stayed behind in Toronto to undergo some medical tests" rather than immediately reporting to Triple-A Buffalo. BNS has a story out on some of the actual events that transpired, and multiple sources close to the situation have also confirmed to Jays Journal that this story was fabricated by the organization and was entirely untrue. In reality, Manoah essentially left the team hanging, disappearing without any contact with the organization and effectively refusing to report to the minors again. The general concensus inside the organization is that he felt he was "too good" to waste away in the minor leagues.

Is there really any more to say on this? Multiple players I have spoken to about the situation have danced around any real answers, not directly saying they approve or disapprove of Manoah's antics, but one would think that most of the players on the Buffalo Bisons would be frustrated hearing that someone feels they're above playing at the level they've been busting their butts off all year in. Furthermore, Manoah's representation politely declined my request for comment on the situation, so this story is going to be labeled with a big question mark for the foreseeable future.

Whit Merrifield

On JD Bunkis's podcast, Ben Nicholson-Smith said that he did not believe Merrifield would come back. Based on some of the player's comments on John Schneider's handling of José Berríos in the Wild Card Series, this feels like an obvious one. Merrifield said he "hated the move", carrying a tone that sounded like the words were being spoken by a player happy to be on his way out.

In about a year and a half of games on the Blue Jays, Merrifield was an extremely valuable asset who filled a variety of different roles. He led off, he stole bases, he played all over the field and he provided the club with another experienced, level-headed veteran who would serve as a mentor to some of the team's younger players.

In a total of 189 regular season games for the Blue Jays, the speedy veteran combined to hit 32 doubles and 16 home runs with 83 RBI. On the other end of that, he was caught stealing a career-high 10 times this past season and somehow did not hit a single triple. Sure, Rogers Centre is not exactly a triples haven, but the fact that he failed to hit a single one is surprising.

Even before Merrifield's comments after the Wild Card game, it felt like he was not likely to return. With the emergence of Davis Schneider as the club's second baseman of the future and Addison Barger on-hand as another INF/OF option, there appears to be better internal options. Look for Merrifield's expensive team option to be declined.

Hyun Jin Ryu

Ryu wound up spending parts of four years in a Blue Jays uniform before returning to free agency. His career in the States has been mired by injuries and his Jays tenure proved to be no different. In fact, he made over 30 starts with the club just one time and missed practically an entire season's worth of starts thanks to his second Tommy John surgery.

For the most part, the southpaw was as efficient as they come when he was healthy. In a total of 60 starts for the Blue Jays, he went 24-15 wtih a 3.97 ERA and 110 ERA+. Those numbers don't quite match where he was at with the Dodgers, but he served his purpose, and then some.

After returning from TJS, Ryu was a consistently strong weapon for the Jays this year, posting a 3.46 ERA in 11 starts. Once he was added back to the rotation picture, he could routinely be relied upon to go five or so innings and keep the Jays in the ballgame.

Looking ahead to next season, it's not that there won't be interest from the Blue Jays to bring the 36-year-old back. He may have had some durability questions, but he remains a strong starting pitcher that could easily replicate his 11-start stat line next year. The fact that he did well to rebuild his value a bit suggests that the Jays will be far from the only team targeting. There are going to be many teams around the league interested in bringing in a veteran presence, possibly even including another AL East team in the Baltimore Orioles.

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