Wes Parsons 'may be an option for starting depth', J.D. Davis signs with the Athletics, and more!

Last season in Triple-A, Parsons made 17 starts and had a 4.52 ERA and a 4.72 FIP in 81.2 innings pitched. He also had MLB experience prior to pitching with the Jays last season, as he spent 39.2 innings in the bigs with Atlanta and Colorado in 2018 and 2019. In total, he has a 7.01 ERA and a 7.04 FIP in 43.2 innings pitched, with nine of his 34 earned runs coming in the 162nd game last season.

There’s some merit to him staying on the 40-man roster though, as Thomas Nestico’s tjStuff+ model has him tied for the 10th highest stuff+, behind Bowden Francis who ranks eighth, and former Blue Jay farmhand Josh Winckowski.

Who knows, maybe there’s something in Parsons.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa has an extremely player friendly deal

In a recent article by Fansided’s Robert Murray, he reported that multiple agents and executives believes that Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s deal was the best for any player.

The Jays signed Kiner-Falefa early in the season to a two-year, $15 million deal with an average annual salary of $7.5 million. It’s a common talking point, but Kiner Falefa makes just $500,000 less than Gio Urshela, Amed Rosario, and Tim Anderson combined, and all three are better offensive options.

It’s been a rough off-season, but jumping the gun to land Kiner-Falefa, who does have value, tied the Jays hands. Not being able to match the Giants’ offer for Matt Chapman is also questionable.

Either way, the 2024 season, no matter what they did off-season, hinged on George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, Daulton Varsho, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. having better seasons than they did in 2023.

Michael A. Taylor signs with the Pittsburgh Pirates

The Blue Jays were linked to Michael A. Taylor earlier this off-season, but with the re-signing of Kevin Kiermaier, it all but took them out of the race to land the defence-first outfielder.

Well, he signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday according to Jeff Passan. It’s a one-year, $4 million deal for a Gold Glove winner who also had a career-high 21 home runs in 388 plate appearances last season.

Still, Kiermaier is probably the better option as he’s one of the greatest defensive centre fielders in the history of the game, and even proved useful with the bat last season.

Adam Duvall signs with the Atlanta Braves

For the past few seasons, the Blue Jays have lacked a right-handed batting outfielder that mashes left-handed batting. They had one in Randal Grichuk, but moved him prior to the 2022 season and have yet to replace him.

One option who has been available the last two off-seasons is Adam Duvall, but like Taylor, he signed on Friday with the Atlanta Braves, his third such stint.

Due to it being so late in the off-season, Duvall signed a one-year, $3 million deal, which is absolutely affordable for the Jays. Not just that, but Duvall slashed .247/.303/.531 with 21 homers in 353 plate appearances for the Boston Red Sox in 2023 for a 1.9 fWAR.

He would have been a good addition to a team that really doesn’t have an actual fourth outfielder still.

J.D. Davis signs with the Oakland Athletics

As you may know, the San Francisco Giants signed Matt Chapman to play third base in 2024 and potentially beyond, meaning that they designated third baseman J.D. Davis for assignment.

Well, according to Robert Murray once again, the Oakland Athletics have signed him. Ken Rosenthal later stated it was a one-year, $2.5 million deal, meaning that there’s a good chance he could be traded at this season’s trade deadline.

Still, the hot corner is an area of need for the Blue Jays, and Davis could have been a very cheap option to play there for the Jays this season. Last season, he slashed .248/.325/.413 with 18 homers in 546 plate appearances, along with a 9.5 BB% and a 27.8 K% for a 104 wRC+.

His home run total was the second most of his career (22 in 2019), but his 104 wRC+ was the second lowest of his career with 100 or more plate appearances. The 30-year-old right-handed batter is a career .261/.343/.432 hitter with 68 home runs in 1985 plate appearances.

Really wish the Jays went out and got him, because there’s a pretty glaring hole at third base.