Blue Jays Met With Framber Valdez In November

"Fresh off a run to the World Series, the Blue Jays have been very active on the free agent market. They signed top free agent starter Dylan Cease to a seven-year deal and also brought in Kazuma Okamoto, Tyler Rogers, and . The past few days have not gone in their favor, though. Toronto was one of the top suitors for Kyle Tucker and offered him $350MM over ten years before he signed with the Dodgers."

"After coming up short on Tucker and Bichette, it's plausible the team could shift their focus back to adding more pitching. Lefty Framber Valdez remains available, and Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports that the Blue Jays met with him at the GM meetings back in November. Nicholson-Smith clarifies that the meeting was before Cease's signing, but there was mutual interest between the two sides at the time."

"Valdez has so far been publicly linked to the Orioles, Giants, Mets, and Red Sox. The Orioles' interest was reported even after they signed Pete Alonso for $155MM over five years. The Giants are more interested in a short-term deal, while the Mets reportedly prefer to add pitching via trade. The Red Sox also Met with Valdez in November, but they may no longer be a fit after signing Ranger Suarez and trading for and Johan Oviedo."

"As for the Blue Jays, their current interest in Valdez is unclear, as is their ability to fit him into the payroll. RosterResource has their 2026 payroll at $282MM and their CBT payroll at $310.5MM, which puts them over the maximum luxury tax line of $304MM. While their offer for Tucker would have carried a $35MM AAV plus a $31.5MM luxury tax bill, he may have been a special case as the clear top hitter on the market."

The Blue Jays signed Dylan Cease to a seven-year deal and added Kazuma Okamoto and Tyler Rogers after a World Series run. They pursued Kyle Tucker with a reported $350MM, ten-year offer and attempted to re-sign Bo Bichette, but lost both targets. Left-hander Framber Valdez remains available and previously met with Toronto in November, with mutual interest before Cease's signing. Valdez has been linked to the Orioles, Giants, Mets, and Red Sox, and was projected as a five-year, $150MM free agent. Toronto's projected 2026 payroll and CBT totals would place the team above the luxury-tax line, complicating a potential Valdez signing.

Read at MLB Trade Rumors