Although the Toronto Blue Jays tendered all of their arbitration-eligible players on Friday, other clubs around the majors took the opportunity to jettison under-performers, poor roster fits and guys with injury concerns.
That might not sound like an exciting player pool to go shopping in, but there is some intriguing talent that could make important contributions. The Blue Jays know as well as anyone that seemingly small moves can pay off handsomely. Their 2025 pennant-winning squad didn’t lack for star power, but it also prominently featured players whose acquisition didn’t make waves at the time:
|
Player |
How acquired |
2025 fWAR |
|
Ernie Clement |
2023 minor-league free agent |
3.2 |
|
Tyler Heineman |
2024 waiver claim |
2.1 |
|
Nathan Lukes |
2021 minor-league free agent |
1.8 |
|
Myles Straw |
Trade (TOR received compensation for taking on his contract) |
1.8 |
|
Eric Lauer |
2025 minor-league free agent |
1.4 |
|
Brendon Little |
Trade (for cash considerations) |
1.3 |
|
Braydon Fisher |
Trade (for a player TOR had DFA’d) |
0.8 |
|
Tommy Nance |
Trade (for cash considerations) |
0.8 |
That cohort significantly supplemented the Blue Jays’ core, providing 254 innings of 2.90 ERA ball and providing a slightly above-average .269/.321/.397 line in 1,499 plate appearances with excellent defence.
All of this is to say that the players who became available on Friday may not seem exciting on first glance, but may have the capacity to surprise. Here are a few that could make sense for the Blue Jays:
Ramón Urías
Age: 31
Position: 3B/2B
2025 team: Houston Astros
2025 stats: .241/.297/.384 line in 391 PA with 11 HR for 1.1 fWAR
The fit: The way the Blue Jays roster is constructed, the team needs another infielder. If Bo Bichette does not return, Urías could fill something like the role Isiah Kiner-Falefa held for Toronto in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
Urías lacks Kiner-Falefa’s defensive abilities, but he plays the same positions and offers far more offensively. The 31-year-old has a career wRC+ of 104, and 2025 was the first time that number dropped below 98 in a season. The veteran has tended to provide solid offence with a little bit of pop and neutral platoon splits that make him serviceable in most matchups.
He’s not someone you’d pencil into an opening-day lineup, but he could be a credible everyday player for weeks at a time if an injury arose, which is more than can be said for most utility infielder types.
The risk with Urías is that his 2025 offensive struggles are the start of a trend rather than an anomaly. His defence has generally graded out as below average — although Statcast thought highly of it last season — and needs to hit to provide value. It’s fair to expect a bounce-back considering his prior consistency and the fact that his 2025 bat speed and exit velocity are right in line with his career norms. That suggests he hasn’t totally lost what made him a good hitter as recently as 2024.
Age: 31
Position: RP
2025 team: Los Angeles Dodgers
2025 stats: 9.53 K/9, 3.18 BB/9, 0.00 HR/9 in 5.2 IP for a 0.00 ERA, 2.22 xERA, and 2.08 FIP
The fit: The Blue Jays could use some bullpen help, and it makes sense to turn to a player who produced a 2.21 ERA in 179 innings between 2022 and 2024, ranking sixth among all relievers in fWAR (4.6).
Phillips has also accumulated plenty of experience in a closing role for the Dodgers. His big-game pedigree is beyond reproach, considering he hasn’t allowed a run in 15 playoff appearances.
The catch here is that the veteran right-hander had Tommy John surgery in June and wouldn’t be available until the latter stages of the 2026 season. It’s conceivable that he misses it entirely.
That doesn’t mean he isn’t worth pursuing, particularly on a creative multi-year contract that ensures Phillips is well compensated to rehab in 2026, but the team enjoys his services for a relatively cheap rate in 2027 (and possibly beyond).
Aggressively pursuing Phillips would be a gamble. He could provide the Blue Jays with a high-end leverage arm at a relatively low price point or have them reliving the Chad Green experience.
Age: 34
Position: RP
2025 team: New York Yankees
2025 stats: 10.06 K/9, 3.17 BB/9, 0.93 HR/9 in 48.1 IP for a 4.84 ERA, 3.72 xERA, and 3.52 FIP
The fit: As a rule of thumb, you generally don’t bring back pitchers who posted a 13.50 in their first tenure with your team, but Leiter has come a long way since appearing in eight games with the Blue Jays back in 2018.
More recently, he’s become one of the most consistent bat-missers in the game. Since the beginning of 2023, his 11.44 K/9 ranks 22nd among the 195 relievers who’ve pitched at least 100 innings over the last three years. His ERA in that span (4.22) is less impressive, but he might be getting a little bit unlucky. His xERA has been below four in each of the last two seasons, and in 2025, his hard-hit rate allowed and average exit velocity were each in the 90th percentile or better.
Leiter features a nasty splitter that has generated 102 strikeouts in the last two seasons and a developing curveball that’s earned a whiff rate above 50 per cent in each of those years. He also experienced a significant velocity bump on his sinker in 2025, going from a well below-average 91.5 m.p.h. up to 93.7 m.p.h.
Although Leiter struggled to keep runs off the board in a Yankees uniform, his underlying skills are solid. There’s a reason FanGraphs’ Steamer projection system sees him shrinking his ERA a full run in 2026, down to 3.84.
Age: 30
Position: RP
2025 team: Pittsburgh Pirates
2025 stats: 6.31 K/9, 5.61 BB/9, 1.40 HR/9 in 25.1 IP for a 7.01 ERA, 5.70 xERA, and 5.86 FIP
The fit: Holderman is coming off a truly dismal year. There’s no way around that, but that doesn’t mean he’s not an intriguing arm.
Although 2025 was a disaster, the 30-year-old managed a 3.52 ERA in 107.1 innings between 2023 and 2024, missing plenty of bats along the way (9.56 K/9).
Holderman features a power sinker that averaged 97.4 mph last season, which helps him keep balls on the ground and occasionally creeps into triple digits on the radar gun.
His ground-ball rate has topped 50 per cent twice in his four-year career and he’s been above that metric in each season except 2024. He also has a surprisingly deep arsenal, with six different pitch types used in 2025.
There are undoubtedly some interesting ingredients here, even if they simply did not come together last season. A change of scenery and some new pitching coaches could get him the reset he needs. The Blue Jays probably wouldn’t be able to turn him into a relief ace, but he’s the sort of player who could likely be had on a minor-league deal, providing a little more upside than the average depth reliever.
