Why slugging Santander, Toronto could be ideal match

This story was excerpted from Keegan Matheson’s Blue Jays Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

TORONTO -- Welcome back from the holidays. Thankfully, you didn’t miss much.

The Blue Jays have stayed fairly quiet since their trade for Andrés Giménez nearly a month ago at the MLB Winter Meetings in Dallas. Spring Training is creeping over the horizon, though, with just over five weeks until pitchers and catchers report to Dunedin, Fla.

Anthony Santander is now the focus. Santander began the offseason as a logical fit for the Blue Jays, who need to add power and balance to their lineup, and the fit has only grown more obvious as other names fall off the board. While the Red Sox, Yankees, Angels and Tigers have also been linked to Santander, most eyes in the industry rest on the Blue Jays.

The term of a potential Santander contract feels most important here, particularly if he would be willing to sign a four-year deal at a slightly higher annual value than a five or six-year deal. Since George Springer signed his six-year contract for a club-record $150 million before the 2021 season, the Blue Jays have mostly patched things together with one-year signings on the position player front, but they’re long overdue to dip their toe into the deep end again.

For the sake of round numbers, a tidy five-year, $100 million deal has been a good jumping-off point when discussing Santander. Would something in the range of four years at $88 million land the 30-year-old? Here’s a look at the fit and factors:

Offensive fit:

Timing is everything, and Santander certainly picked the right time to hit a career-high 44 home runs. Coming off totals of 28 and 33 the two seasons prior, his power is legitimate and that is a clear need in this lineup. Since the Blue Jays put together that incredible lineup in 2021, featuring an MVP-caliber Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and a brilliant season from Marcus Semien, this organization has underwhelmed with power.

Santander’s fit with the Blue Jays, or at least his fit with what this front office wants from a hitter, goes a few steps beyond his raw power. Let’s compare him in that regard to former Blue Jay Teoscar Hernández, who signed a three-year, $66 million deal to stay with the Dodgers.

While Hernández’s raw power is exceptional -- his rounds of BP always rivalled Vladdy’s in Toronto -- he was also prone to some swing-and-miss. Santander isn’t an on-base machine by any means, but he puts the ball in play more consistently than Hernández. Removing the nostalgia involved with Hernández, who is rightly beloved in Toronto, Santander’s profile is closer to the Blue Jays’ "type."

Santander’s ability to switch-hit matters here, too. General manager Ross Atkins has said several times that he wants to balance the lineup and find better ways to deploy hitters, particularly when it comes to matchups and platoon advantages. The Blue Jays need to give opposing pitchers something to worry about beyond Vladdy.

Defensive fit:

This isn’t Santander’s calling card. He’s been a below-average defensive outfielder while mostly playing right field, which is Springer’s position for the next two seasons. If the Blue Jays were to land Santander, a split between the corner outfield and a majority share of DH days feels like the cleanest fit.

The odd day at first base would help, though Santander has very limited experience there in the big leagues. If the Blue Jays want to chase offense again, it continues to be very tempting to increase the number of days Vladdy starts at third …

The big picture:

There’s a reason free agents aren’t tripping over one another to come to Toronto. The Blue Jays are coming off a 74-win season and Guerrero, along with many of this club’s established players, could be out the door soon. From the outside looking in, a veteran free agent would have some questions, and understandably so.

The Blue Jays need to find someone to take their money eventually, though, and with each week this offseason stretches on, Santander looks like a cleaner fit.

This all brings us back to the question of what this organization looks like in 2026 and beyond, especially if Guerrero and Bichette depart in free agency. Whether it’s a true rebuild or a quick retool coming, the Blue Jays will likely look drastically different in the near future. Players like Santander don’t need to be the face of that -- that’s a job for the next Vladdy or Bo -- but this organization needs some veteran talent signed long-term.