Blue Jays fans react negatively on social media to Ross Atkins signing of Jeff Hoffman.
The Toronto Blue Jays announced the signing of Jeff Hoffman to a three-year, $33MM free agent contract on Friday night.
General manager Ross Atkins said in a statement that Hoffman «will get an opportunity to close games for us» (relayed by Keegan Matheson of MLB.com).
That suggests they're planning to keep the right-hander in the late innings.
"We are excited to add Jeff to our bullpen. His arsenal, strike throwing, and ability to miss bats against all types of hitters is elite and will undoubtedly make us better,» said Ross Atkins, EVP of Baseball Operations & General Manager. «Jeff will get an opportunity to close games for us this season. His track record, competitiveness, and experience make him a great complement to this group. We look forward to welcoming him, his wife Marissa, and their children Tytan, Houstyn, Jetsyn, and Lennyn to Toronto."
Hoffman returns to the organization that drafted him more than a decade ago.
The righty was Toronto's first-round pick (ninth overall) out of East Carolina in 2014.
He was a high-profile starting pitching prospect who landed among Baseball America's Top 100 prospects in each of his first three professional seasons.
in 2015 Blue Jays fans were upset that Hoffman was part of the trade that brought Troy Tulowitzki to Toronto and felt that Alex Anthopoulos gave up too much.
Fast forward to 2025 and Blue Jays fans are even more upset when they found out that Ross Atkins signed Hoffman after the Baltimore Orioles previously backed out of a $40 million agreement with Jeff Hoffman after a flagged physical.
Baltimore pulled out of the deal after because the physical revealed damage related to his throwing shoulder that concerned the organization.
Blue Jays fans were not happy and reacted negatively on X about the signing
"After acquiring Jeff Hoffman from the Phillies, apparently there are issues with his pitching shoulder. So essentially we got Dustin Hoffman." wrote one fan
Then the Blue Jays faithful quickly pivoted to the lack of movement on a long term deal with Vladimir Guerrero Jr and other stars Ross Atkins cant lockdown.
"Now keep Vladdy home for life!" another fan added."Sign Vladdy or f*** off, you have ruined this team," another fan posted.
"Now keep Vladdy home for life!" another fan added.
To say that Blue Jays fans are disappointed with this offseason so far is an understatement, if Ross Atkins wants to win back the support of this fanbase at minimum he needs to sign Vladimir Guerrero Jr long term.
For all your current Toronto Blue Jays and MLB baseball news check out BlueJaysCentral.com on Facebook, X and Blue Sky.
| POLL | ||
JANVIER 13 | 183 ANSWERS Blue Jays fans react negatively on social media to Ross Atkins signing of Jeff Hoffman. Do Blue Jays fans have the right to be angry with Ross Atkins decision to sign Jeff Hoffman after the Baltimore Orioles backed out over shoulder damage? | ||
| Yes | 79 | 43.2 % |
| No | 33 | 18 % |
| Absolutely | 57 | 31.1 % |
| It's Ridiculous | 14 | 7.7 % |
| List of polls | ||