Former Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Chris Bassitt seems to have found new contract in AL Central

Newsweek reported Saturday that Bassitt is in talks with an American League rival, with Detroit named as the club on the phone.

The reporting trail matters here. Newsweek attributes the Tigers connection to Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon, framing it as discussions, not a done deal.

From Toronto's side, you can see why this door is open. The Blue Jays already spent big on Dylan Cease, and they later added Cody Ponce to an already deep rotation.

Bassitt's own Toronto deal was three years and $63 million, which comes out to a $21 million average salary. That contract was a clear bet on steady innings, and it mostly paid off.

He turns 37 in February, and Spotrac lists him as a 2011 White Sox 16th-round pick, the kind of late bloomer teams love when they need reliability.

Honestly, Jays fans can live with losing a free agent, but watching Bassitt wear another AL cap would sting in a very specific way.

The 2025 line is still sitting there in ink. Bassitt went 11-9 with a 3.96 ERA, struck out 166, and logged 170 1/3 innings, which both Reuters and ESPN line up on.

Go back to 2023 and the story gets louder. He tied for the AL lead with 16 wins, threw 200 innings, and even finished 10th in Cy Young voting.

The postseason wrinkle is real, too. MLB.com noted Bassitt wasn't on the ALDS roster but was added for the ALCS, and multiple reports from that run described him shifting into bullpen work.

That role change can cut both ways on the market. Some teams see «starter,» others see «multi-inning weapon,» and Detroit's interest reads like a club hunting for flexibility behind its top arms.

The Tigers' budget angle is part of the reporting, too. Rosenthal and Sammon's note about Tarik Skubal's arbitration numbers showed up in both Newsweek and the MLB Trade Rumors writeup.

For Toronto, the hard part is emotional, not mathematical. Bassitt gave them innings and edge, and if this is the end, the next milestone is simple, where he signs, and how loud Rogers Centre gets when he comes back.

Source: NewsWeek
Blue Jays Free Agent Chris Bassitt In Talks with AL Rival: Report