4 offseason decisions the Blue Jays are paying for right now

After getting a taste of playoff action this past season, albeit for only two games, the Toronto Blue Jays looked for ways to help improve the team during the 2022-23 offseason to make them that much more competitive for the coming 2023 season. Among them were moves that have helped the team so far this year, as well as some that have definitely put the team in a bind at times, ultimately affecting their performance and eventual outcomes.

For those moves that have worked, replacing the departing Ross Stripling with Chris Bassitt was a great move by Jays’ GM Ross Atkins, as Bassitt has provided the stability needed for their starting rotation while Stripling has been struggling with the San Francisco Giants for the majority of the season thus far. In addition, to improve the defensive play of the ballclub that was often at times nerve wracking the previous year, defensive stalwarts Daulton Varsho and Kevin Kiermaier were brought in to be a part of the Jays’ revamped outfield to help limit opposition damage due to bad reads/routes and errors. In doing so, they have done quite well in that category, being in the upper echelon of the league with respect to DRS and errors committed as a whole. Also, Erik Swanson has definitely been a solid addition to the relief corps.

However, the overall change in the makeup of the ballclub, along with some apparent issues that weren’t seriously addressed during the offseason, has affected other aspects of the team with respect to their performance and success. Here, we take a closer look at four offseason decisions that has unfortunately had a significant effect on the current squad, for better or for worse, limiting their utmost potential.