PHOENIX – Late last off-season, once Shohei Ohtani had signed with the Dodgers, Joc Pederson’s free agent market finally started to take shape.
The Dodgers had told him they’d be very interested if Ohtani signed elsewhere, but having landed their target, they were out. The Angels were still in, though, as well as the Diamondbacks and another team that intrigued him, the Blue Jays.
Pederson liked what he’d heard about the Blue Jays’ Dunedin, Fla. spring training facility and he knew Rogers Centre was undergoing renovations, too. Plus, former teammate Ross Stripling had good things to say about his time with the Blue Jays, and there was also a personal pull to Toronto for Pederson.
“I love Canada,” he said. “I love Toronto. My dad (Stu) played for the Blue Jays in the minor leagues in Syracuse (from 1988-92). He was in the organization so every time I go back there I still know some of the visiting (clubhouse attendants).”
Having missed on Ohtani, the Blue Jays wanted a left-handed bat of their own, so they set up a FaceTime call with Pederson, GM Ross Atkins and manager John Schneider. Afterwards, Pederson’s interest was piqued – yet the momentum didn’t build the way he anticipated.
“They just I guess didn’t want me as bad as some other teams and weren’t able to really put together an offer when it was time for me to make a decision,” he said. “I was willing to, but I think I ended up in a great place and I’m enjoying it here. But I think Toronto’s also a really good place.”
Seven months later, Pederson doesn’t recall the exact details of those conversations with the Blue Jays. But he does remember being surprised that the Blue Jays didn’t pursue him more intently.
“From the conversations we had on the phone and how interested they were in adding a left-handed bat, their actions didn’t match their words, I guess you could say,” he recalled. “They said everything went really well and then didn’t want to offer what other teams did. So they didn’t make it that tough of a decision.”
In the end, Pederson landed with the Diamondbacks on a one-year deal that guarantees him $12.5 million and includes a mutual option for 2025. So far this season, the results have been excellent for Arizona, as the 32-year-old has 13 home runs with an .863 OPS in his usual role as a left-handed power bat.
The day after Pederson signed with Arizona, the Blue Jays signed Justin Turner on a one-year, $13 million deal, and so far this season, Turner has five home runs with a .690 OPS as the Blue Jays’ primary DH.
With both contracts likely to expire this off-season, the DH carousel will start moving again in a few months’ time. And while Pederson’s focus is now here in Arizona, he’s not ruling out future talks with the Blue Jays even if last winter’s conversations didn’t generate as much traction as expected.
“There are no hard feelings with any of it,” Pederson said. “I understand that every year, everyone has different needs with different financial spending abilities. Next year is a new year. I’m not really thinking about that right now, but yeah, I’m open to really any team that’s wanting to compete. I’ve only heard really good things about the Blue Jays.”