Baltimore Orioles Ace Corbin Burnes Reportedly Met With Toronto Blue Jays

Baltimore Orioles free agent pitcher Corbin Burnes has reportedly met with the Toronto Blue Jays as he continues his free agency.

May 13, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Corbin Burnes (39) throws a second inning pitch against the Toronto Blue Jays at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

Baltimore Orioles ace Corbin Burnes is arguably the best starting pitcher left on the market with MLB experience following Blake Snell’s agreement to a deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Orioles, who acquired him in a trade from the Milwaukee Brewers last offseason, are going to face a lot of competition on the market to retain him. Plenty of teams have money to spend and are in need of a top-of-the-rotation arm.

One of the teams they have to pay close attention to is the Toronto Blue Jays.

Their American League East rivals are in desperate need of making a splash. Something has to give as important pieces, such as Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and team president Mark Shapiro are entering the final years of their respective contracts.

If moves aren’t made to improve their odds of making the postseason, an overhaul will occur sooner rather than later.

The Blue Jays have been connected to Juan Soto, who could land a contract north of $600 million. Now, it sounds like they are setting up contingency plans in case he opts to sign elsewhere.

According to Jon Morosi of MLB Network, Toronto recently held an in-person meeting with the Baltimore ace. After being linked to Burnes earlier this offseason, the news of an in-person meeting is significant as they are stepping up their pursuit of him.

He would be a massive addition to what is already a strong starting rotation. Kevin Gausman, who is signed through 2026, Chris Bassitt, who is a free agent after the 2025 season, and Jose Berrios are currently locked into the top three spots.

Adding Burnes to the top of that group would give the Blue Jays one of the best quartets in baseball, with Bowden Francis or Yariel Rodriguez taking the fifth spot.

The 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner is one of the most reliable workhorses in baseball. He has thrown at least 193.2 innings in three straight campaigns and has recorded an ERA under 3.00 in four out of the last five since becoming a full-time starter.

There were some concerns with his drop in velocity and strikeouts in 2024, as it was the first time since becoming a starter that he failed to record at least 200 punchouts. But it didn’t hurt his overall production, as he went 15-9 with a 2.92 ERA across 194.1 innings atop the Orioles rotation.