Toronto Blue Jays looking at former Padres 3x all-star to bring in offense

Arraez hits like it's personal.

The ball gets put in play, the count gets worked, and pitchers don't get that easy exhale after two foul tips and a punchout.

He's reaching free agency for the first time, and MLB.com nailed the argument, he's either «the best contact hitter alive» or a player teams can't quite price.

Here's what's real, even if it's messy. Arraez is 29 in April, and 2025 was his roughest year by his standards, a .292 average and a 99 OPS+, basically league average offense.

But then you see the strikeouts, and you blink. He ran a 3.5% strikeout rate, which is cartoon stuff in today's game, and Statcast backs up how extreme his profile is, elite bat-to-ball, minimal thump, almost no barrels.

The Jays, on paper, don't «need» more hitting.

They led MLB in hits, and posted a .265 average with a .333 OBP, that's a serious offense already.

So why bother? Because October isn't about your season totals, it's about whether you can grind a monster reliever into one mistake, then punish it.

That's Arraez's whole vibe, make the pitcher throw one more pitch, then one more, then one more.

Honestly, I'd love the feeling of watching him foul off 98 until the stadium starts laughing.

Fit matters too. Toronto just brought in Kazuma Okamoto on a four-year, $60 million deal, and that kind of move screams «keep the window open.»

Arraez can slide around the dirt, second base, first base, some DH, and that flexibility plays in John Schneider's world.

It also keeps Ernie Clement doing what he does best, popping up everywhere, patching holes, stealing innings, staying hot.

The pushback is obvious, and it's fair. Arraez doesn't hit the ball hard, his 2025 hard-hit rate sat in the basement, and you're not signing him to mash.

That's why the contract part matters.

Reporting around the market has pointed to shorter, cheaper projections, basically two-year ideas in the $17 million to $30 million range, not a franchise-altering swing.

If the price stays there, Toronto should be all over it.

Not because Arraez fixes everything, but because he adds a skill the Jays can lean on when the games get tight and the strike zone gets stingy.