Preseason Preview Day 8: Toronto Blue Jays & Miami Marlins

Toronto Blue Jays

Have we ever seen a team ‘come in second’ when trying to sign big name free agents as much as the Toronto Blue Jays over the last few seasons? First, there was a leak that Ohtani would be signing there only to then blindside them and sign with the Dodgers like hours later. Then, there were reports that they were in on Soto, so much so that they were willing to continue matching the highest bid until Soto told them to stop wasting their time. They were in on Alonso until recently, tried to sign Kershaw a year ago, among others.

This Blue Jays team has been such a disappointment, especially when you consider the core they were building around having the aspirations of taking over the AL East. Between Vlad Jr., Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, George Springer and some other young talent, the Blue Jays were ready to dominate the AL for years to come. They went out and signed free agents to bolster their rotation to the likes of Chris Bassitt, Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, just to name a few. For whatever reason, this team has not done anything. They cycled through and are on their third manager in a few short years, Vlad and Bichette can’t seem to produce at the same time, Cavan Biggio never panned out and is gone, and George Springer got old - fast.

With the writing on the wall that Vlad and Bo are going to walk in free agency, you would think the front office would do the smart thing and try to trade these guys for something in return in an effort to springboard their imminent rebuild. Instead, and I guess I kinda respect it, they have put the pedal down and swung big to try and salvage some sort of run out of these guys before they are gone. While missing on Soto and Ohtani in recent years, they were able to bring in Anthony Santander, who is coming off a 40 homer season, as well as add first ballot hall of famer Max Scherzer to an already strong starting rotation. Rumor has it he may see some time in the bullpen, which I guess makes sense given their rotation depth and Scherzer’s recent injury history.

Draftkings has the 2025 Blue Jays’ win total at 78.5. I’m having a hard time deciding where to take this one, as a team that somehow still has as many ‘names’ on paper as the Blue Jays do, you can’t just write them off as a bad team. If I had to choose, I’d take the under on this, simply based off the fact that every other team in the division has improved to some degree. If I am a decision maker within that building, I have to take a look in the mirror and heavily consider trading away EVERYBODY if the season gets off to a rocky start. Toronto isn’t exactly a destination amongst MLB players historically, so you need to find a way to replenish all the talent that will be leaving you in the coming few years.

Miami Marlins

I don’t even think the Marlins deserve a preview, but here I am, here we are. I will keep it short and sour - there is not much to get excited about when reviewing the 2025 Marlins. They have some promising young talent that has been acquired via trade recently, however it is talent that is still not major league ready.

With Sandy Alcantara coming back from Tommy John, I think the one and only bright spot on this team will be the starting rotation. Between Sandy, Ryan Weathers, Edward Cabrera and Eury Perez, the Marlins have - dare I say - a pretty legit rotation. After that, the bullpen is depleted. The lineup will feature some young, promising palyers like Connor Norby, Kyle Stowers and Griffin Connine. Augustin Ramirez, who was acquired in the Jazz Chisholm deal with the Yankees, is also primed to make a debut in 2025, and has shown some promising pop that may translate to the big leagues.

Draftkings has the Marlins win total at 63.5, out of respect for not wanting any fanbase to watch that happen, I will take the over by a small amount. If their rotation and young offensive core can stay healthy, they may be able to play some respectable baseball especially early on in the season.