Short and long-term implications of Andres Gimenez's addition to the Blue Jays

On Tuesday, the Toronto Blue Jays made their first big splash of the offseason, but it sure wasn’t what most had expected. The Jays acquired infielder Andrés Giménez along with reliever Nick Sandlin in a trade with the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for Spencer Horwitz and minor league outfielder Nick Mitchell. There’s no doubt Giménez was likely the centrepiece in the deal for the Jays, but the trade sure came as quite the surprise.

That is because with all of the offseason talk focusing on the Jays’ needs for outfield and pitching help, the last thing one would have expected was getting more help for the infield. The Jays already have an infield logjam heading into 2025, with strong internal candidates including Horwitz, Will Wagner, Davis Schneider, and even top prospect Orelvis Martinez all considered a good fit for the second base role in the upcoming year.

For that same reason, there may not have been a spot for Horwitz next season, so dealing him when his value was at an all-time high made total sense for the Jays in capitalizing on the situation. But even with Horwitz now gone, you are practically replacing him with Giménez in the exact same spot, so it doesn’t exactly resolve the infield problem. So what makes Giménez still worth all the trouble for the Jays?

Addition of Andrés Giménez could have valuable short and long-term implications

For one, Giménez is only 26 years old and likely just heading into his prime years. Which means he could potentially be here for an extended run and have some long-term impact on the club going forward. Secondly, the huge upside of Giménez in all aspects of the game must have caught the eyes of the Jays’ brass.

He has captured the Gold Glove Award in each of the past three seasons, which means he will be a massive defensive upgrade for Toronto at second base. In terms of his speed, Giménez has tallied 30 stolen bases in each of the past two years as well, so he could be a terror on the basepaths. With respect to his offensive production, he can average double-digits in home runs along with 60+ RBI per season while batting close to .260 in the process.

But most importantly, the Jays still have a huge question mark heading into 2025 in Bo Bichette. For the past season, trade rumors had swirled around the star shortstop amid his struggles during the 2024 campaign. With any extension talks with Bichette practically absent from the Jays’ agenda in recent months, there is a high possibility that he will walk to free agency upon the conclusion of the 2025 MLB season. If such a scenario does comes to fruition, then Giménez would be the perfect long-term replacement for Bichette. With Giménez’s natural position being at shortstop, as well as having played there at the major league level during his first two years in the league, he should have no problems transitioning back into the position seamlessly.