The Toronto Blue Jays can add some more thump to their lineup in the absence of Anthony Santander.
Despite all that has gone right for the Toronto Blue Jays, their offseason acquisition of Anthony Santander has been arguably the biggest free-agent bust in baseball this year.
The switch-hitting slugger was inked to a five-year, $92.5 million deal after hitting 44 home runs with the Baltimore Orioles in 2024, but launched just six longballs in 50 games before landing on the injured list with shoulder inflammation. The Blue Jays have been able to overcome his absence thanks to a .264 team average that leads Major League Baseball, but their 117 home runs rank in the bottom half of baseball and behind every team currently in the American League playoff picture.
Though most of their attention will be on upgrading their pitching staff, the Blue Jays could still benefit from adding some more thump in their order, particularly someone who could form a platoon with their collection of young left-handed outfielders. Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter believes they can find a match in Atlanta Braves slugger Marcell Ozuna.
“With Dalton Varsho and Anthony Santander both sidelined, the Blue Jays have been forced to lean more heavily than expected on guys such as Joey Loperfido, Myles Straw, Davis Schneider and Alan Roden in the outfield,” Reuter wrote. “Ozuna has a 112 OPS+ with 14 home runs and 44 RBI, and he could be reinvigorated with a change of scenery.”
As Reuter points out, the 2025 season has not been kind to Ozuna, who has seen his playing time gradually decrease and his OPS drop 171 points from 2024. While he may not be the hitter he once was, the 35-year-old still draws walks at an elite rate and has posted an .804 OPS against left-handed pitchers. Ozuna would represent an immediate upgrade over current reserve outfielder David Schnieder and allow the team to sit Alan Roden (.553 OPS vs lefties) more frequently against same-side arms.
In exchange for Ozuna, Reuter proposes that the Blue Jays send back shortstop prospect Josh Kasevich, who is ranked 11th in their system by MLB Pipeline. Though a back injury has limited him to just eight games and his ceiling is capped by limited power production, the 2022 second-round pick has plus defensive and hit tools and would represent a solid return for a pending free agent.
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