Blue Jays Have Separated Themselves From Rest of AL East So Far This Offseason

With the offseason rolling on, the Toronto Blue Jays have separated themselves from the rest of the AL East.

Nov 1, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) walks to first base in the third inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during game seven of the 2025 MLB World Series at Rogers Centre. | John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

It has been a very successful winter for the Toronto Blue Jays so far, and the team has positioned themselves well in the American League. However, should they be considered the team to beat?

Coming into the offseason, the Blue Jays were focused on getting better and building on a very successful 2025 campaign. This was a franchise that was so close to beating the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, and they now know what it takes to win it. 

Despite a great October, the team wasn’t perfect, and they did have some flaws. So far in free agency, they have done a nice job of addressing some of those issues with a few notable additions. 

While winning the World Series is the ultimate goal, the first thing that they will have to do is to handle their business in the American League East. This was a division that sent three teams to the playoffs, and it is shaping up once again to be one of the best divisions in baseball. However, Toronto might have an edge over the competition so far. 

Thomas Harrigan of MLB recently wrote about the Blue Jays being the team to beat in the AL East as of now. 

Toronto Has Separated Themselves 

Matt Marton-Imagn Images

So far this winter, the AL East has had an interesting offseason overall. It was expected that some of the teams were going to be aggressive in their pursuit of some of the top free agents, but that hasn’t entirely been the case. So far, the Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles have both improved and are having successful winters. 

However, what is really shocking is that both the Yankees and the Red Sox have been mostly quiet. Each team has a top player from 2025 who is still a free agent, and neither has replaced that production either. There certainly feels like a bit of a standstill right now with some of the best free agents, but that is dangerous for both teams to wait too long. 

For the Blue Jays, even though they have already arguably had the best offseason in the division with their moves to improve, they might not be done yet. They still appear to be the front-runner for Kyle Tucker in free agency, and they could also look to pivot back to Bo Bichette or Cody Bellinger, even if they missed out on the top prize. 

While a World Series can’t be won during the winter, Toronto has positioned itself nicely for success and should be considered the team to beat in the AL East. 

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