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.

Sign Cody Bellinger

Now that the Jays missed out on the biggest fish of the offseason, a great consolation prize for the club is to go out to get the next best offensive free agent in outfielder Cody Bellinger. That way, it sends the right message to both the Jays’ players and fanbase that the organization is committed to winning and long-term success by focusing their efforts on top-of-the-crop free agents.

During this offseason, the Jays had lost one of their key signings from the last year in defensive stalwart Kevin Kiermaier to free agency. What better way to find his replacement than to bring a former Gold Glove and NL MVP winner to town. Despite putting up consecutive mediocre years in his previous three seasons, Bellinger has apparently regained his dominant form with a huge bounce-back season this year with the Chicago Cubs. For the 2023 season, Bellinger hit .307 with an .881 OPS, 95 runs scored, 29 doubles, 26 home runs, 97 RBI and 20 stolen bases.

His return to star-calibre level of production would ensure that the Jays will get plenty of offensive output from the young 28-year-old heading into his prime. For a team that often struggled with offence and producing in clutch situations this past season, Bellinger also provides the exact remedy with his strong .323 batting average, .898 OPS and 71 RBI hitting with runners in scoring position in 2023. In addition, he may not be at Kiermaier’s elite level in terms of defence, but he can still provide steady defence in the outfield at the same time, which should be more than sufficient with Daulton Varsho available to be his partner in crime. With the Jays previously strongly rumoured to be in on Bellinger, it is time to make it come to fruition.

Sign Yoshinobu Yamamoto

After missing out on perhaps the best baseball player ever, the Jays should turn their attention to the next best thing coming out of Japan in pitching phenom Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto has been a hot commodity this offseason with many teams in hot pursuit of the 25-year-old sensation, including the Jays themselves. He is also believed to be the backup plan of many other teams after their own failed attempts in signing Ohtani.

Last season while playing in the Japan Pacific League for the Orix Buffaloes, Yamamoto led the league in multiple pitching categories by posting an incredible 16-6 record, 1.21 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, giving up just 22 earned runs with 28 walks and 169 strikeouts in 164 innings pitched. More impressively, he has actually maintained that level of dominance ever since breaking into the league in 2017 as an 18-year-old. Just in the past three seasons alone, Yamamoto has captured the Triple Crown title by a mile over his competitors. For his seven-year professional baseball career, he has compiled a 75-30 record with a 1.72 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 986 strikeouts in 967.2 innings of work in 188 games played.

However, how Yamamoto’s actual game will translate in North America remains to be seen. But he certainly showed that he could be among the best with his strong showing in the recent World Baseball Classic when he helped Japan capture the championship title. In addition, with a curveball that has been deemed comparable to the legendary Clayton Kershaw's, it speaks volumes of the potential stuff he has to offer. As a result, among all the gambles the Jays have made with Japanese pitchers in the past, this should be one that is worth it.

Sign Jorge Soler

Had the Jays signed Ohtani, he would have been a premium upgrade for the ballclub at the designated hitter position over the departed Brandon Belt. However, with the two-way superstar now out of the question, the Jays must turn to second-tiered options to fill their DH role with Jorge Soler being among the top of that list. Soler bounced back with a huge season in 2023 with the Miami Marlins after enduring a mediocre 2022 that saw his season end prematurely with back spasms.

For the 2023 season, he amassed a .250 batting average with an .853 OPS, 128 OPS+, 77 runs scored, 24 doubles, 36 home runs and 75 RBI in 137 games played. More importantly, he produced those big numbers for the Marlins while batting in the top part of their lineup, leading them to their first playoff berth in three years. 

We had actually previously suggested that the Jays should have traded for Soler at this year’s trade deadline, as well as targetting him as an ideal free agent this offseason to pursue to inject some power and production into their lineup. Well, now is the best time to make that potential dream a reality. Especially with the Belt situation still uncertain with a quiet offseason to date from his camp, the Jays can’t afford to take the wait-and-see approach with him. As a result, they need to act now to get the potent bat they desperately need before it is too late.

No matter what ends up happening, the Jays will need to do something quickly and wisely at the same time to at least give everyone a glimmer of hope heading into 2024.