Toronto Blue Jays left-hander Robbie Ray and second baseman Marcus Semien have rejected qualifying offers, the team announced Wednesday.
Marcus Semien turned down the QO last week and, no surprise, Robbie Ray does so as well. Blue Jays will receive draft-pick compensation if they sign elsewhere. https://t.co/OQucvSM3aL
— Shi Davidi (@ShiDavidi) November 17, 2021
By rejecting the offers, both players become free agents.
The decisions do not come as a surprise after both players delivered career seasons in 2021.
By making qualifying offers, the Blue Jays ensured they will receive compensation if either player signs elsewhere.
Ray was up for the Cy Young Award on Wednesday night after leading the American League in ERA, starts, innings, WHIP and strikeouts.
Semien is one of three finalists for the AL MVP Award on Thursday. He hit 45 home runs — a record for a second baseman — and had 102 RBIs.
Semien also was a Gold Glove winner.
Meanwhile, first baseman Brandon Belt accepted an $18.4 million qualifying offer from the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday rather than pursue bidders as a free agent.
Belt was the only one to accept among the 14 free agents who received the offers from their former clubs on Nov. 7.
Players who turned down offers included first baseman Freddie Freeman (Atlanta), shortstop Carlos Correa and right-hander Justin Verlander (Houston), right-hander Raisel Iglesias (Los Angeles Angels), outfielder Nick Castellanos (Cincinnati), shortstop Trevor Story (Colorado), shortstop Corey Seager and infielder/outfielder Chris Taylor (Los Angeles Dodgers) and outfielder Michael Conforto (New York Mets).
Two of the players who received offers have finalized contracts with new teams. Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez left Boston for a $77 million, five-year contract with Detroit, and right-hander Noah Syndergaard left the Mets for a $21 million, one-year contract with the Angels.
— With files from The Associated Press
[relatedlinks]
COMMENTS
When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.