5 moves the Blue Jays must make immediately after missing out on Shohei Ohtani

After all the hype, secrecy, and drama built up surrounding the Toronto Blue Jays in their pursuit of two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, it has finally come to a heartbreaking conclusion. The Blue Jays came up just a bit short as Ohtani has joined the Los Angeles Dodgers on a 10-year, $700M deal, setting the record for the largest contract in MLB history.

With the Japanese superstar now officially off the board, the dominoes should begin to fall for the rest of the players in the free agent market. As a result, the Blue Jays should ramp up the action soon before they start missing out on other important pieces that could bolster their roster for the coming years. In such case, what should be the next immediate steps for the Blue Jays to undertake as they look to contend in the 2024 MLB season and beyond?

Here, we take a look at 5 moves the ballclub should make right away to make up for the lost opportunity in signing perhaps the best ever free agent in MLB history.

Extend both Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

This counts as one, because it is now more important than ever for the Blue Jays to keep the core together. After seeing what the lucrative amounts of money the organization was willing to shell out to sign Ohtani, it has become crucial now that if the Jays intend to have both Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in their future plans, they must act now with their extensions. That way, not only does it show that the organization is committed to success and winning in the long run, but it gives both superstars the vote of confidence by reassuring them that they are still the top priorities in the organization and represent the faces of the franchise going forward despite the recent happenings.

In addition, it would ensure that the top two star players on the team are locked in to provide a longer, competitive contention window for the ballclub. In doing so, the fearsome dynamic duo would become the backbone in the Jays’ heart of their order for many years to come. More importantly, if the Jays don’t offer the extensions soon enough and both Bichette and Guerrero end up thriving in response to the events that took place this offseason, they could eventually price themselves out of town, leaving the team in perhaps a worse state than it began with.