Blue Jays Widen Gap on Rays With Strong Free Agent Addition to Bullpen

The Toronto Blue Jays continued spending spree has widen already sizable gap with the Tampa Bay Rays.

Aug 17, 2025; Williamsport, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Tyler Rogers (71) throws a pitch against the Seattle Mariners in the ninth inning at Journey Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

In need of some offensive upgrades, the Tampa Bay Rays added veteran outfielder Cedric Mullins to handle some reps in center field. They also brought back Jake Fraley on a more affordable deal after non-tendering him a contract.

The Rays are also one of the teams involved in the Ketel Marte sweepstakes. A deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks isn’t going to be cheap, but he would be a sizable upgrade to a lineup that desperately needs help.

With Brandon Lowe already in the lineup at second base, it would be interesting to see how Tampa Bay would make things work. Having both players of that caliber in the mix would certainly help the Rays, especially with their division rivals continuing to upgrade their rosters.

The Toronto Blue Jays struggled in years past to get players to take their money in free agency, but things started to change ahead of the 2025 campaign. Their run to the World Series has only solidified their standing as an elite squad, which has even more talented players heading to the franchise.

Blue Jays add another major piece to bullpen with Tyler Rogers

Sep 18, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Tyler Rogers (71) pitches against the San Diego Padres during the sixth inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Tampa Bay’s lineup is going to find it even more difficult to score runs against the Blue Jays late in games with their latest addition.

As shared by Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, via Theo DeRosa, Toronto has agreed to a contract with right-handed relief pitcher Tyler Rogers. A three-year, $37 million deal was agreed upon, which includes a vesting option that could bump it up to $48 million over four years.

Arguably the most unique pitcher in baseball with his submarine style, Rogers has been elite coming out of the bullpen in recent years, proving to be one of the most reliable relievers in the sport.

In 2025, between the San Francisco Giants and New York Mets, he made a career and MLB-high 81 appearances. His 1.98 ERA, 203 ERA+ and 0.94 WHIP were all single-season bests as well.

Tyler Rogers is as reliable, productive as any reliever

Aug 2, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Tyler Rogers (71) pitches against the San Francisco Giants during the seventh inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Since 2020, there hasn’t been a player who has made more appearances than Rogers, with 403. The next closest pitcher has 30 fewer than he does.

Armed with a sinker/slider arsenal, he has the lowest average fastball velocity in baseball. His slider was an elite offering, with MLB’s statcast grading it as the second-highest run value of a pitch with +18, behind only Cristopher Sanchez of the Philadelphia Phillies and his +19 changup.

But that doesn’t stop him from generating a ton of success, because he is looking to induce as much soft contact as possible and succeeds. His 2.1% barrel rate and 2.3% walk rate are both in the 100th percentile.

Adding Rogers to a group that also includes Jeff Hoffman, Louis Varland, Mason Fluharty and Brendon Little provides manager John Schneider with a strong core of relievers to work with.