As the pre-lockout MLB free agent market opens, the Toronto Blue Jays are likely to be busy, and there will be no shortage of speculation on their possible targets.
Recent history suggests the team will pursue players at the top of the market and bring in established veterans to bolster a team that fell well short of expectations in 2026. That doesn’t mean they won’t address needs by bringing back players who’ve helped the team in the past, whether they wore a Blue Jays uniform in 2026 or prior seasons.
Below is a summary of former Blue Jays who are available and whether they are logical fits to be future Blue Jay
2026 Blue Jays with legitimate 2027 reunion chances
Players who were with the Blue Jays through all of 2026 and have a logical roster fit for 2027.
Shane Bieber, SP: When a shoulder injury cut Bieber’s 2026 short, he was in the midst of a seven-start stretch with a 2.84 ERA and his elite command seemed to be returning to him. It’s difficult to know if that run was indicative of what he’d offer in 2027 and beyond, considering his other four starts were rough enough that his full-season stats (4.37 ERA with a 5.97 xERA) were far from encouraging.
At 31, Bieber should theoretically have plenty of good innings left in his arm, but he’s only logged 114.2 innings over the past two seasons, including post-season action. In that time, his ugly HR/9 number (1.65) suggests that when he’s working with a minuscule margin for error, every accidental meatball is a threat to leave the yard. At the same time, his overall ERA is respectable (4.01), and he could reasonably be seen as a back-of-the-rotation option with significant upside. It’s possible that as he gets healthier and further removed from his Tommy John surgery, his corner-painting capabilities will return to him. It looked like he was close to his old self midway through 2026, after all.
The Blue Jays enter 2027 with three rotation spots filled barring injury (Dylan Cease, José Soriano and Trey Yesavage) and another option they can feel cautious optimism about (Cody Ponce). Beyond that, more help is needed. Asking Bieber to function as a fourth or fifth starter doesn’t seem like too much to ask, and the right-hander has indicated an openness to return. Still, if Toronto is looking for certainty in its rotation, the club is likely to look elsewhere.
Myles Straw, CF: Although the Blue Jays just declined Straw’s option for 2027, his departure is far from a certainty. There is a difference between not valuing a player at a particular price (in this case $8 million) and not wanting them on your team.
Straw’s overall value is limited by a low offensive ceiling, but his elite speed and base-running ability give him utility in several in-game situations off the bench. In his two years with Toronto, Straw ranks 71st among all MLB position players in games played despite the fact that 252 hitters have more plate appearances than him. There’s often a spot in a game where Straw’s abilities come in handy.
The veteran is also known as an important clubhouse figure for Toronto. It’s unclear if that will be enough for the Blue Jays to make him an offer he’s inclined to accept, but a contract with slightly less heft than his option could conceivably work for both parties, particularly if Toronto plans on deploying a starting outfield that skews left-handed, especially in the middle. If the team wants to roll out Brett Bateman as Plan A in centre field, for instance, retaining Straw might be more appealing.
Other former Blue Jays who might fit in 2027
Players who’ve spent some time as Blue Jays who make sense as free-agent targets for the team now.
Kevin Gausman, SP: The idea of a Gausman returning to Toronto is logical on multiple fronts. After a season when the Blue Jays used 16 different starters, adding a pitcher who’s made at least 31 starts in six consecutive seasons could certainly appeal to the club.
Gausman might be more of an innings eater than a top-of-the-rotation stud at this point in his career, but even his worst season in years yielded 3.1 fWAR, and his FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching: 3.74) and xERA (4.02) were significantly lower than his ERA (4.51), suggesting his 2026 wasn’t as bad as it seemed at times. Toronto wouldn’t necessarily need the right-hander to be a difference maker on a per-inning basis, as he could slot behind Cease, Soriano and Yesavage to give the team stability at the back of the rotation.
The 35-year-old has also been on record about his affection for Toronto, and was even spotted in a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey this Halloween. It’s impossible to know exactly how much that matters, but Gausman has always given every indication that he’s embraced the city. For some players, that can be enough to direct their movement. For others, it’s only important to break ties between offers. None of it matters unless the Blue Jays front office is interested, but it’s still noteworthy.
Matthew Boyd, SP: Boyd pitched just 6.2 innings as a Blue Jay before the team traded him in the David Price deal 11 years ago, but he technically fits this category.
The 12-year veteran is the same age as Gausman but has a profile that is the opposite of the longtime Blue Jay in some ways. Boyd is a left-hander coming off a season with a solid ERA (3.91), but underlying numbers that poke holes in it (4.64 xERA, 4.21 FIP) and he’s only made 30 or more starts three times in his career. The Blue Jays tend to prefer a better track record of durability, but in the last two seasons Boyd has pitched 306.1 innings over 53 starts (with a solid 3.50 ERA to show for it).
Boyd would give the Blue Jays a different look in the rotation, wouldn’t be exorbitantly expensive, and the fact that his fastball velocity in 2026 (92.9 m.p.h.) is better than his career average (92.2), and he had three secondary pitches with a whiff rate above 25 per cent in 2026, suggests his stuff hasn’t fallen off a cliff.
Randal Grichuk, Corner OF/DH: Grichuk is a name unlikely to excite many Blue Jays fans, but the team struggled to find right-handed outfield platoon options in 2026, and the 35-year-old has been excellent in that role recently.
The former Blue Jay has hit .290/.343/.536 in 545 plate appearances against southpaw pitching in the last three seasons and is coming off a season with an overall wRC+ of 140. While Grichuk’s athleticism has waned somewhat in his mid-30s, he’s still an approximately league-average runner (47th percentile sprint speed) who won’t embarrass himself in an outfield corner. His bat speed and contact quality have also remained stable as he’s aged.
Grichuk only fits in a role where there are consistent at-bats for him against left-handed pitching, and he isn’t required to provide any centre-field innings or start against righty arms. Whether the Blue Jays have a bench role like that available depends on how they handle other additions to the outfield, but a club that had MLB’s 28th-best wRC+ against lefties last season (85) ought to keep a player like Grichuk in mind.
Other notable former Blue Jays free agents (who don’t present a clear fit or upgrade and are listed here mainly for ‘remember some guys’ value): Chris Bassitt, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Robbie Ray, Daulton Varsho, Trevor Richards, Jordano Romano, Santiago Espinal, Luke Maile, Rowdy Tellez, Taijuan Walker, Eric Lauer and Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Possible retirees
Two players who’ve had extraordinary careers that are tough to imagine wearing Blue Jays uniforms again.
George Springer, DH: Springer hasn’t made his intentions clear yet, but a full-time DH isn’t a good fit on a roster with Anthony Santander, Kazuma Okamoto and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. If the man who sent the Blue Jays to the World Series in 2025 is hoping to extend his career, Toronto is unlikely to be his landing spot.
Max Scherzer, SP: Scherzer’s 114-pitch performance in the 2026 season finale was nothing short of legendary. That doesn’t mean his career will resume in 2027, or that he will pitch again for the Blue Jays. Toronto may need starting pitching, but a 42-year-old with a 5.46 ERA over the past two seasons doesn’t seem like the first port of call for addressing that need.
Depth pieces with expired contracts
Players in this category could conceivably return to the Blue Jays, but it seems unlikely. If they did, a minor-league deal with an invite to spring training would make more sense than a firm commitment.
Paul Sewald, RP: Sewald did an excellent job for Toronto down the stretch, allowing one earned run in 14.1 innings, but he’s also 36 and coming off a -0.5 fWAR season.
Luis Urias, 2B/3B: Urias played well for the Blue Jays in limited action, but he signed a minor-league deal before 2026 and his injury-marred season won’t increase his value.
Jameson Taillon, SP: Taillon is entering his age-35 season coming off a year where he posted a -1.0 fWAR — fifth worst among all MLB pitchers — and his durability has been on the decline in recent years.
Patrick Corbin, SP/RP: There were moments in 2026 when Corbin provided important innings for the Blue Jays, but the 37-year-old finished the year with a 5.51 ERA and a 5.51 expected ERA.
Michael Lorenzen, SP/RP: Some of Lorenzen’s ugly 2026 numbers (most notably his 7.21 ERA) can be explained by his work as a starter with the Colorado Rockies, but they didn’t improve as a reliever with Toronto, and there’s not much evidence he can keep runs off the board at this point.
Eloy Jiménez, DH: Jiménez put up below-average offensive numbers at both the Triple-A and MLB level last season and doesn’t have any defensive value.
Yimi García, RP: García’s age (36) and recent injury history make him a pure wild card at this point in his career.
