Former San Diego Padres starter Dylan Cease is signing a seven-year, $210 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, USA TODAY Sports’ Bob Nightengale reports.
Cease, 29, joins a Blue Jays squad hungry for a title after falling short in the 2025 Fall Classic in seven games to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Blue Jays do have some key departures from their AL pennant-winning team, including starters Chris Bassitt and Max Scherzer. The addition of Cease fills what could have been a massive hole in the middle of the Blue Jays’ rotation and turns it into a strength.
Dylan Cease stats
Cease had a breakthrough in 2022, finishing second in AL Cy Young voting as a member of the Chicago White Sox. He joined the San Diego Padres ahead of the 2024 season and finished fourth in NL Cy Young voting his first year with the Friars.
In 2025, Cease struggled a bit, posting a 4.55 ERA across 168 innings pitched, but his 3.56 FIP indicates that Cease was rather unlucky last season.
Cease boasts remarkable strikeout potential, leading all of MLB in strikeout rate, whiffing 11.5 hitters per nine innings. Cease has maintained a strikeout rate over 10.0 in each of the last five seasons.
Blue Jays free agent targets
With the addition of Cease, the Blue Jays have filled a sizable hole in their rotation with both Bassitt and Scherzer potentially leaving the team. The two pitchers accounted for 255.1 innings pitched during the regular season and 23 innings pitched during the 2025 postseason. Cease has pitched at least 165 innings each of the last five years.
Next on the Blue Jays’ agenda is likely bringing back shortstop Bo Bichette. Bichette is widely considered the biggest middle infield free agent of the offseason, and will command a hefty price in free agency.
Other targets may include closers Robert Suarez or Edwin Diaz. Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman struggled his first season north of the border. While he did record 33 saves, he posted a 4.37 ERA and had big trouble with the long ball, giving up two home runs per nine innings pitched, his worst mark since 2019 when he played in Colorado. Furthermore, the Blue Jays could use additional bullpen help with 2025 midseason acquisition Seranthony Dominguez still unsigned.