Fastball

Toronto Blue Jays Insider Says It's Not "Especially Likely" That Team Lands Corbin Burnes

One week we hear that the Jays are the favorites for the former Cy Young winner, the next they aren't really in the running. What's the truth?

Brady Farkas

Baltimore Orioles pitcher Corbin Burnes (39) looks on during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Sept 8.
Baltimore Orioles pitcher Corbin Burnes (39) looks on during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Sept 8. / Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images
In this story:

According to Toronto Blue Jays reporter Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet, the Jays are not seen as likely to land free agent superstar Corbin Burnes this winter.

Nicholson-Smith wrote the following at the conclusion of the winter meetings this week.

Put simply, the Blue Jays are well aware they need more help. They continue talking to prominent free agents, with some appearing more realistic than others (Teoscar Hernandez and Joc Pederson certainly have their supporters within the organization, while Corbin Burnes doesn’t seem especially likely)...

The Burnes news is disappointing considering that some reports had the Jays as favorites not even a week ago. If the team misses out on Burnes, that means they will have missed out on Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto and Burnes in the last two offseasons. They also were in the running for Max Fried but never made a formal offer.

Toronto has five starters on paper (Chris Bassitt, Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, Yariel Rodriguez and Bowden Francis), making Burnes more of a want than a need, however, if they were to land him, they could move Rodriguez to the bullpen and help an ailing group down there.

Burnes just went 15-9 with a 2.92 ERA for the Baltimore Orioles. A four-time All-Star and a former Cy Young winner, he's spent six years with the Milwaukee Brewers and one year with the Orioles.

The Blue Jays went 74-88 this past season, finishing last in the American League East and missing the playoffs. The organization made the playoffs in both 2022 and 2023.

Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.

Published
Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

Home/News