Toronto Blue Jays met with Houston Astros two-time all-star

This Friday, it was reported Toronto checked in on Valdez early in the offseason, with Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith noting the sides met in person at the GM Meetings in Las Vegas back in November.

That nugget lands differently because the Jays have already gone hard on pitching, yet they keep sniffing around another front-line arm anyway.

Dylan Cease is in on a seven-year, $210 million deal, and Shane Bieber opted in for 2026 at $16 million, so the rotation obsession isn't exactly subtle.

Honestly, it's exhausting to watch Toronto keep shopping for run prevention when the lineup still feels like it's missing a real punch.

Valdez is 32, a true left-handed workhorse, and the 2025 line still plays even if it wasn't his sharpest year: 192 innings, 3.66 ERA, 187 strikeouts.

That's not peak-Framber, but it's stability, and stability has value when October games turn into five-inning sprints.

The Jays angle is obvious, too.

Valdez is a ground-ball machine, and pairing that sinker-heavy profile with a strong infield is basically a cheat code if the gloves are legit behind him.

MLB.com has leaned into that exact identity, strikeouts when he needs them, grounders when he wants them.

But there's a price, and it's the kind that forces a real choice.

Valdez turned down Houston's one-year qualifying offer, meaning he's hunting term, and the market chatter around him has lived in that $150 million neighborhood for a while.

So here's what I can't shake: the timing.

Toronto just missed on Kyle Tucker, who reportedly agreed to a four-year, $240 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and then watched Bo Bichette land with the New York Mets on three years, $126 million.

If you're the Jays, you can't pretend that doesn't leave a hole in the middle of the order.

Signing Valdez might make the 2026 Jays a nightmare to score on, but it also risks turning every 3-2 loss into the same old story.

Pitching can carry you, sure, but in the playoffs you still need a couple guys who can change a game with one swing, and right now Toronto feels like it's trying to win with stress.