LAS VEGAS — Media availabilities at MLB’s GM Meetings are a little like cocktail parties — that is, if no drinks were served, lanyards were mandatory and certain guests weren’t permitted to leave.
Those attendees include many of MLB’s highest-ranking team officials, and for one hour each November, they stand in a large hotel boardroom and answer question after question after question.
From his spot along one wall at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Ross Atkins covered a lot of ground in conversation with dozens of media members Wednesday afternoon. Among the preferred topics were Bo Bichette (“great player”), the importance of making contact (a valuable skill but not one Atkins will prioritize above all others) and the Blue Jays’ interest in the Japanese player pool.
On that last point, Atkins’ answers were notable considering the expected arrivals of corner infielders Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto, right-handed starter Tatsuya Imai and others.
“It’s a good crew,” Atkins said. “Maybe not quite as high of an impact as there’s been the last year or two, but there’s some depth to it. Some exciting players with really good experiences that could complement the Blue Jays well and will seemingly be great stories in the coming year.”
Earlier Wednesday, just outside of the boardroom containing team executives, agent Scott Boras said Imai will be posted on Nov. 19. Given that starting pitching appears to be the Blue Jays’ priority this winter, Atkins’ thoughts on Imai are particularly notable.
“A good player with a really interesting arsenal that had an incredible year,” Atkins said of the 27-year-old who posted a 1.92 ERA in 163.2 innings this past season. “So we’ve done the (background) work and we have some more work to do on that front, but I’m glad that he’s going to be an option for the industry.”
Some executives predict Imai will earn over $100 million — maybe far more — but he’s not expected to land Yoshinobu Yamamoto money ($325 million), and it may take a while to see just how much. Boras has positioned the 45-day posting period to end in early January, after domestic free agents such as Dylan Cease, Ranger Suarez and Framber Valdez may have signed.
With Kevin Gausman and Shane Bieber set to hit free agency following the 2026 season, there’s certainly an opening for the Blue Jays to add a longer-term starter to a rotation that will presumably include Jose Berrios (who may have to prove himself to the Blue Jays again next spring) and Trey Yesavage. At the same time, the right short-term deals could appeal to the Blue Jays, too.
“We’re open to either,” Atkins said.
Simply put, it’s too early in the off-season to rule anything out. It’s all on the table now, from Kyle Tucker (some plugged-in people say the Yankees seem far more likely than the Blue Jays to blow him out of the water) to a high-end reliever (they’ve liked Ryan Helsley in the past) to a trade (a logical way to complement the expected free-agent additions).
Of course, it all takes time, and this is still early in the off-season.
“You start to cut to the chase a little bit,” Atkins said. “But there’s still a lot of dialogue (yet) to happen.”
One area the Blue Jays are less likely to worry about is their bench, “because of the progress of our system (and) the progress of players internally, that’s not going to be a priority for us out of the gates,” Atkins said.
In other words, expect Tyler Heineman (“he’s been awesome”), Davis Schneider and Myles Straw back on the bench with some flexibility around how the final spot is used. Of course, some of that will depend on whether the Blue Jays re-sign Bichette, spend on another free-agent position player or (not optimal but possible) stay relatively quiet on the offensive front while focusing mostly on pitching.
“We’re fortunately in a strong position in that we have some versatility across our position-player group that will allow us to acquire players that could play multiple positions or just different positions, if that’s what we decide to do,” Atkins said.
Ultimately, the Blue Jays’ roster is good enough that they don’t have to be desperate. They can spend, certainly, and eventually they will. But their resources aren’t infinite, even after a World Series run, so they’re balancing priorities just like any team not named the Mets or Dodgers.
As Atkins said at one point Wednesday, “it always comes down to opportunity cost.”
Not exactly life-of-the-party type stuff, and probably not the words of an executive who’s about to throw discipline aside in favour of a World Series-inspired spending spree the likes of which we’ve never before seen, but by reaching Game 7 of the World Series, the Blue Jays showed their way of doing things can pay off, too.
