MLB rumors: Padres, Blue Jays make moves with potential Roki Sasaki implications

Major League Baseball’s offseason continues to tick down with spring training camps opening in less than a month. In just a few weeks, pitchers and catchers will report for duty. It won’t be long, then, until the exhibition starts before mercifully giving way to the regular season. (Although the Cubs and Dodgers will technically begin the season with a series in Japan, Opening Day is still being recognized as March 27.) Below, CBS Sports has compiled all of Friday’s most notable news, moves, and rumors for your convenience. 

Blue Jays acquire Straw, bonus pool money

The Blue Jays announced on Friday that they’ve obtained outfielder Myles Straw, cash, and international bonus signing pool space from the Guardians in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. According to Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith, the Blue Jays are believed to be gaining around $2 million. Nicholson-Smith warns that this trade does not necessarily mean that Sasaki has informed the Blue Jays of a decision on where he intends to sign. 

Shi Davidi adds that the Jays will receive $3.75 million in cash.  

Straw, 30, is a former Gold Glove Award-winning center fielder. He fell out of favor in Cleveland after hitting .229/.295/.284 (66 OPS+) over the last three seasons. Straw signed an extension with the Guardians in April 2022 that stipulates he’ll make at least $15.25 million more over the next two years (including buyouts on a pair of club options for the 2027-28 seasons). 

It’s to be seen if the Blue Jays will carry Straw on their roster, or if they view him as financial ballast.

Padres begin international signings

The Padres will sign left-hander and international amateur free agent Carlos Alvarez, according to The Athletic’s Will Sammon. That’s an intriguing development given that the Padres are considered one of the three finalists (alongside the Dodgers and Blue Jays) in the running for Japanese ace Roki Sasaki. 

Each of those teams had, through the first few days of the new international amateur signing period,  kept their powder dry and not finalized any agreements — the Dodgers had even allowed some players they had handshake deals with to sign elsewhere as they waited for Sasaki to make his decision. For the Padres to commit any money to Alvarez could be an indication that they don’t believe they’re winning the Sasaki sweepstakes since it means they’ll have less available funds to offer him. (“Could” should be considered the key word here.) 

Alvarez, 17, was ranked by MLB.com as the 39th best prospect in the class. Per their report: “Alvarez works consistently with his heater in the low 90s, while deftly deploying a biting slider and changeup with significant fade to make up his current arsenal. He has short arm action coming from a bigger frame, but it’s the raw stuff that excites evaluators at this early stage of his development.”