The Toronto Blue Jays were close to snatching Shohei Ohtani away from the Los Angeles Dodgers' grasp. They were unsuccessful, though, and now have to turn to other free agent bats to supplement their offense. It didn't take long for them to move on, as they appear to be contenders for free agent outfielder Cody Bellinger.
MLB insider Bob Nightengale shared that tidbit in his weekly notes column for USA Today.
Toronto is in a weird position right now. It has qualified for the postseason three times in the last four years. In each of the last three full seasons of play, the team has registered at least 89 wins, including two 90-win campaigns. Despite all that, the Blue Jays haven't won a single postseason game.
That's right — they've been swept out of October three straight times, all of which happened in the wild-card round. So they have enough talent to qualify for the dance, but the Jays have been told quite consistently to take a seat soon after entering.
This is likely part of the reason why they made a real push to acquire Ohtani before he signed with the Dodgers. Nabbing Bellinger and inserting him into Toronto's lineup would be pretty good, too.
The 2019 NL MVP Award winner experienced three tough years between 2020 and 2022 with the Dodgers before getting a fresh start with the Chicago Cubs in 2023. In 130 games played and 556 plate appearances, the sweet-swinging left-handed hitter slashed .307/.356/.525 with 26 home runs, 29 doubles, 97 RBIs, 95 runs scored and 20 steals.
Unsurprisingly, the Scott Boras client is looking to cash in after rebuilding his value during that one-year "prove-it" deal in the Windy City. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported on Dec. 14 that Bellinger's camp is looking for at least $200 million in his next deal.
At the moment, two teams appear to be competing for the outfielder. The Jays are joined by the Cubs, who also whiffed on a potential Ohtani signing. So, we'll see if Boras can once again put together a good old-fashioned bidding war for his client's services.
