Orioles, Blue Jays discussed franchise contracts with Corbin Burnes

Perhaps the most surprising deal of the offseason came together late last night when the Diamondbacks and the right-hander Corbin Burns reportedly agreed to a six-year deal that guarantees Burnes $210MM. It’s an agreement Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports quickly came together after Burnes’ camp expressed the right-hander’s desire to pitch in the desert. Before Burnes traded to Arizona, the three teams most often linked to the right-hander were the incumbent Orioles, their division rival Blue Jays and the Diamondbacks’ own division rival Giants.

USA Today’s Bob Nightengale previously reported that the Jays and Giants both offered Burnes more than he ultimately received from the Diamondbacks, but subsequent reports have shed more light on the offers Burnes received prior to signing, particularly from Baltimore and Toronto. Orioles, according to Danielle Allentuck of The Baltimore Bannermade a “competitive offer” for Burnes that ultimately fell short of the deal he signed in Arizona. The exact details of the club’s offer to Burnes are not entirely clear, but it is worth noting that Nightengale reported later that the Orioles and Blue Jays were both discussing franchise-record contracts with Burnes, while adding that an AL East club offered Burnes a seven-year, $250MM contract that didn’t come with an opt-out option. The New York Post’s Jon Heymanmeanwhile, described the Blue Jays, Orioles and another Eastern Division team as the top three bidders for Burnes. This report follows Nightengale’s reporting but conflicts with Allentuck’s as Heyman appears to suggest the Orioles are outbidding the Diamondbacks for Burnes’ services.

It’s unclear which AL East club made the said $250MM offer to Nightengale, and it’s worth noting that both the Yankees and Red Sox were considered serious contenders for Burnes’ services before swinging away from the right-hander to land Max Fried and Garrett crochet respectively. Both the Orioles and Blue Jays don’t need to have come close to the $250MM level to offer Burnes the largest contract in franchise history; Toronto’s current record for guaranteed money is the six-year, $150MM contract they gave the outfielder George Springerwhile the Orioles’ current record is held by the former first baseman Chris Davis and his seven-year, $161MM deal. Those relatively low benchmarks make offering Burnes a franchise-record guarantee a somewhat obvious move for either club to make, if at all serious about pursuing the right-hander, as he was wildly expected to land a deal in the $200MM range even from the start . of the offseason before the winter’s hot market for starting pitching came into focus.

Regardless of how competitive the offers Burnes received from Baltimore and Toronto ultimately were, both clubs will now have to turn their attention to other options as they look to bolster their rotations. The Blue Jays’ top priority is surely trying to get an extension with the star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. that will keep him in town beyond the 2025 season, when he’s currently scheduled to hit free agency. Aside from that, though, the club has expressed a desire to both bolster their starting rotation while bringing in a solid hitter who can help protect Guerrero in the lineup. On the rotation front, the club has reportedly shown interest in right-handed players Nick Pivettabut another option for the club could be to focus on adding a bat that Anthony Santander or Jurickson Profather and then focus on a lower level rotational signature Michael Lorenzen or Spencer Turnbull.

As for the Orioles, the club has already landed Tyler O’Neill and Gary Sanchez for its lineup earlier this winter and figures to focus entirely on replacing Burnes at the front of its rotation going forward. A reunion with Jack Flahertywho struggled with the club down the stretch in 2023 but looked much better with the Tigers and Dodgers this past season, has previously been floated as a possible backup plan. It’s also not hard to imagine the club opting to explore the trade market, as they did when they first landed Burnes last winter. Padres right-hander Dylan Hold up is available as a potential rental ace, mirroring last year’s acquisition of Burnes to a T, but it’s possible the Orioles would prefer to land a more controllable piece such as the Mariners right-hander Luis Castillowhich they have reportedly joined a number of teams in asking for this winter.