Lets take a look at what Jeff Hoffman brings to the Blue Jays table.
Photo credit: Philadelphia Phillies
After a very quiet off season the Toronto Blue Jays have added a significant piece in Jeff Hoffman to their beleaguered bullpen. It's a three-year deal that guarantees Hoffman $33 million.
The CAA client reportedly receives a $5MM signing bonus and can earn another $6MM in incentives.
He'd unlock $500K for reaching each of 60, 70, 80 and 90 innings pitched in all three seasons.
He'll make a $6MM salary next season followed by $11MM annually from 2026-27.
Hoffman, who turned 32 on Wednesday, returns to the organization that drafted him more than a decade ago.
The righty was the Blue Jays 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.
Hoffman didn't spend long in the Toronto system. One year after the draft, the Jays dealt him to the Rockies as part of the return in the Troy Tulowitzki deadline blockbuster.
Unfortunately for Hoffman, he struggled (as many pitchers do) at the hitter-friendly Coors Field, with his ERA never lower than 4.88.
His numbers with the Cincinnati Reds weren't at the elite level either, but he did manage to bring his ERA and WHIP down to 3.83 and 1.41, respectively, while transitioning from a starter to a bullpen arm.
He eventually landed with the Minnesota Twins on a MiLB deal to start the 2023 season but opted out of the contract when he wasn't going to make the Opening Day roster.
He signed with the Phillies on a minor league deal coming out of Spring Training in 2023. Hoffman had the best two seasons of his career in Philadelphia.
He made the big league roster in early May of the first season and turned in 52 1/3 innings of 2.41 ERA ball.
Hoffman posted even better numbers during his second season at Citizens Bank Park. He worked 66 1/3 innings with a 2.17 ERA while striking out more than a third of opposing hitters.
Over his tenure with the Phils, Hoffman turned in a 2.28 earned run average with a 33.4% strikeout percentage.
He kept his walks to a modest 7.4% clip and held opponents to a .180/.249/.295 slash in 473 plate appearances.
"For Blue Jays fans who aren't familiar, the Jays selected Jeff Hoffman 9th overall in 2014. Since then, he's become one of MLB's most dominant relievers. Sits 97, strikes out 1/3 of the hitters he faces, Savant page looks like this. Will make late innings far easier to navigate." - Ben Nicholson-Smith
Jeff Hoffman's potential role in Toronto's bullpen
Right now, Hoffman is one of the better relievers in the Blue Jays bullpen and should slot into the back end of the rotation alongside Yimi Garcia, Chad Green, and Erik Swanson.
Right now, Hoffman is one of the better relievers in the Blue Jays bullpen and should slot into the back end of the rotation alongside Yimi Garcia, Chad Green, and Erik Swanson.
García had a strong year split between Toronto and Seattle (mostly with the Jays though), authoring a 3.46 ERA, .90 WHIP and 3.73 FIP in 2024.
Veteran right-hander Chad Green will also split some late-inning relief with García and Hoffman if he is also able to replicate his past season's records (3.21 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 4.29 FIP) and stay healthy as well.
However, since Green has largely struggled to have cleaner innings in 2024, his high-leverage duties could be redistributed to any other relievers who can prevent players from reaching base while generating more swings and misses.
It's also worth noting that Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins told Keegan Matheson that the 32-year-old will get an opportunity to close games for Toronto this season.
«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. Jeff will get an opportunity to close games for us." - Ross Atkins
The returning Blue Jay will potentially come in for eight and ninth-inning saves in the upcoming season and even tackle high-leverage situations if the team needs cleaner innings.
In other words, Hoffman is the most likely to replace former Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano's role should his pitching continue to excel.
With Toronto's focus on rebuilding the relief pitching core, the team made several moves such as a reunion with García and a trade for Nick Sandlin while letting Dillon Tate, Genesis Cabrera, and Jordan Romano all hit the open market.
The Blue Jays' deal with Hoffman is likely the turning point for the front office to slow down on the free-agent push for relievers and focus more on potential offensive upgrades.
Toronto is still exploring a potential signing with free-agent outfielder Anthony Santander.
According to RosterResource, Toronto's luxury tax number is up to roughly $239MM. That puts them within a few million of the $241MM base threshold.
The Jays narrowly dipped below the CBT line last season. They'd need to be willing to exceed that marker if they're going to make a notable offensive upgrade beyond Andres Gimenez.
Hoffman's reunion with the Blue Jays now serves as an inflection point as the team seeks a potent bat that can complement first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s offence.
Toronto's focus will now be on anything other than pitching, at least on the free-agent front.
| POLL | ||
JANVIER 11 | 194 ANSWERS Lets take a look at what Jeff Hoffman brings to the Blue Jays table. Do the Blue Jays need to add another piece to the bullpen in addition to Jeff Hoffman? | ||
| Yes | 172 | 88.7 % |
| No | 22 | 11.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
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