The Toronto Blue Jays have rebuilt their rotation, which means Chris Bassitt likely won’t be returning.
Toronto signed Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce to bolster its rotation this offseason, while Bassitt remains on the open market. However, the right-hander has plenty of interest. MLB insider Jim Bowden of The Athletic linked him to Toronto’s division rival, the Baltimore Orioles.
“Bassitt is the most underrated starting pitcher left on the open market,” Bowden wrote. “He has made 30 or more starts in each of the past four seasons. Throwing a minimum of 170 innings in each of them. He has also won at least 10 games each of the past six full seasons and kept his ERA under 4.00 every season except one since 2018.
“If I’m a contending team looking for back-end rotation depth, I’m jumping all over him. His best fits could be the Padres, Orioles or Tigers. I also think he could help a rebuilding team such as the Athletics, Marlins and Angels and give them an asset come the trade deadline.”
The Orioles have been linked to adding more starting pitching depth, and Bassitt makes a lot of sense. He’s a perfect No. 4 starter for the time being. And he showed during the Blue Jays playoff run that he can go to the bullpen and be an effective high-leverage reliever.
Bassitt completed his three-year, $63 million deal.
Bassitt Unlikely to Return to Blue Jays
Toronto entered the offseason intending to upgrade its pitching staff, and that is what they did.
However, due to the signing of Cease and Ponce, a reunion with Bassitt seems unlikely. Although Bassitt said he wanted to return, Blue Jays insiders Ben Nicholson-Smith and Shi Davidi poured cold water on a reunion back in December.
“The 36-year-old Bassitt was an essential part of the club’s rebound from worst to first last season and still wants to start. Despite some intriguing post-season work out of the bullpen,” the article read. “He’s believed to have enough interest from other clubs to find such an opportunity.
“At the same time, he’s beloved within the Toronto clubhouse so if he wanted to return later in the off-season and there was a need, it likely wouldn’t take much to start a serious discussion.”
Bassitt went 11-9 with a 3.96 ERA in 32 games, including 31 starts, this season with the Blue Jays. In the postseason, he worked as a reliever and had a 1.04 ERA in 8.2 innings over 7 games.
Orioles Looking for Pitching Help
The AL East is one of the toughest divisions in all of baseball. The Orioles are looking to keep pace with the Blue Jays, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Tampa Bay Rays.
Baltimore signed Pete Alonso this offseason. Now, the team is expected to land one of the top free agent starters available.
“Rival executives expect the Baltimore Orioles to be the next team to pluck a front-line starter from the free agent market now that the New York Mets are out of the mix after acquiring Freddy Peralta,” Bob Nightengale wrote on X.
The Orioles have been linked to Bassitt and Framber Valdez.
Blue Jays Fan Favorite Linked to Signing With Division Rival