Are the Toronto Blue Jays Willing to Enter a Bidding War for Zack Greinke?

Earlier this week, rumours swirled that the Toronto Blue Jays were preparing an offer to Zack Greinke, or at the very least, considering making an offer to Greinke.

With a budget ranging from $130 to $140 million, the Toronto Blue Jays can certainly afford to make an offer to Greinke.

For the sake of this analysis, though, let’s say the Blue Jays have a budget of $140 to $145 million.

That would mean after the projected figures, which include, $71 million in guaranteed contracts, $33 million in arbitration deals, and $5 million in league minimum salaries, the Blue Jays would have already spent roughly just shy of $110 million. That would leave them with roughly $30 to $35 million to spend on free agents. (If you’re interested in a more thorough breakdown of Greinke and a $140 million budget, check out Keegan Matheson’s great piece on JaysJournal.com)

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While I don’t doubt the Blue Jays are going to at least make an offer to Greinke at some point, like TSN’s Rick Westhead suggested, I do doubt whether they are actually serious about it.

Bottom line to me is this: unless the Blue Jays are willing to enter a bidding war for Greinke, they have zero chance at landing him.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have what feels like an infinite bankroll, and they want to bring Greinke back. The San Francisco Giants love Greinke, have lots of money to spend, and seem to be on the verge of cashing in large on a real estate deal, which would essentially give them an infinite bankroll like their NL West rival south of them in LA.

Those two teams are undoubtedly the Blue Jays biggest competition for the 32-year-old ace, which doesn’t bode well financially.

Keep in mind that Greinke is opting out of a guaranteed $71 million over the next three seasons to become a free agent. Do you really think he’s going to settle for anything less than $25 million a season over a long-term period?

I highly doubt it.

Nov 2, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Toronto Blue Jays new president Mark Shapiro speaks to the media during an introductory conference at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

So if the Blue Jays budget is around the $140 million mark, do you think the team would spend the majority — if not all — of their free agent money on Greinke?

It seems unlikely.

Which is why unless the Blue Jays are willing to enter a bidding war for Greinke, I doubt he comes to Toronto.

Plus, Greinke is an extremely savvy baseball mind. He scouts for fun in his free time and is very conscious of what every team is doing, including who is in their farm system, front office etc. He also apparently enjoys life on the west coast, and had this to say when asked earlier this year if he would trade a top prospect in the Dodgers system, like Julio Urias, for a pitcher like Johnny Cueto.

“For half a year of someone, no,” Greinke said. “I don’t care who it is. I would never do that. It’s not like this is the last season the Dodgers are ever going to play, so you’ve got to think about beyond just who they could bring in for this year’s benefit.”

Although Alex Anthopoulos is no longer in the fold, you can bet that Greinke certainly noticed what the Blue Jays did this season. Whether he is fan of it or not is debatable. But based off those comments, I’d assume that he isn’t a fan of the what the Blue Jays did this year, which would again lead me to believe that unless the Blue Jays throw a ton of money his way, Greinke isn’t coming to Toronto.

The harsh reality for Blue Jays’ fans isn’t the idea of not landing Greinke, though. It’s the idea of the Dodgers or Giants possibly signing Greinke AND David Price. Both teams are rich, and both players are going to command top dollar on the open market.

Next: Blue Jays Reportedly Close to 2-Year Deal with Marco Estrada

Unless the Blue Jays are willing to pony up the dough and give Greinke or Price a lot of Benjamin Franklin’s, or Robert Borden’s here in Canada, I’d expect both players to land elsewhere this offseason.

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