When it comes to the free-agent starting pitching market, the Toronto Blue Jays might be the most intriguing power broker.
The Blue Jays view themselves as long-term contenders, but they’ve got three starting pitchers headed to the open market — Shane Bieber, Chris Bassitt and Max Scherzer. Bieber seems like the most logical candidate to stay, but there’s no guarantee any of them do.
If the Blue Jays can’t retain Bieber, they’ll have to find someone with similar credentials to replace him. Or maybe, they think there’s a pitcher out there who can replace him and even provide a little more impact.
Mitch Bannon of The Athletic discussed the Blue Jays’ free-agent candidates on Thursday, and one name seemed to float to the forefront of the insider’s list: San Diego Padres 29-year-old right-hander Dylan Cease.
“One positive for Toronto is the depth of pitching likely available in this year’s free-agent class — it’s the clear strength of the market,” Bannon wrote. “A reunion with Bieber would fill a hole, but other top options for the Jays include San Diego Padres (righty) Dylan Cease.
” … Though Cease struggled this year, he has Cy Young upside. His inning-hauling durability fits the Jays’ big-ticket pitching signing trend, too.”
While Bannon went on to mention a few other names as fits (Padres teammate Michael King, Texas Rangers righty Merrill Kelly and Arizona Diamondbacks righty Zac Gallen), it was clear from the details that the insider views Cease as the most intriguing name.
Spotrac currently projects Cease for a six-year, $156 million contract. That’s a lot to gamble on a pitcher with a 4.81 ERA, but as of Thursday, Cease is also just 10 strikeouts away from becoming the only pitcher in the majors to punch 200 tickets in each of the last five seasons.
Huge gambles pay off sometimes. Are the Blue Jays going to place one on Cease?
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