The Toronto Blue Jays could soon have a surplus of outfield help.
The Blue Jays have shown interest in signing star free agent outfielder Kyle Tucker, who recently visited the team’s spring training facility. If Toronto does land Tucker, the team could look to move on from an outfielder.
Currently, the Blue Jays have Daulton Varsho, Nathan Lukes, Anthony Santander, George Springer, Addison Barger, Davis Schneider, and Joey Loperfido, who could all play the outfield. Although Barger and Schneider could be more infielders in 2026, while Springer is more of a DH.
However, adding Tucker to that list makes Toronto’s outfield even more crowded. With that, Blue Jays reporter Mitch Bannon of The Athletic predicted Toronto will trade Lukes, a fan-favorite, to the Pittsburgh Pirates for pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski.
Lukes is under team control through the 2030 season, which gives the Pirates some flexibility in the outfield. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh is looking to add a bat to the lineup, and Lukes showed he can be an everyday outfielder with a good bat this past season.
The Blue Jays, meanwhile, would get Mlodzinski, who’s a swingman but would likely be in Toronto’s bullpen and be a bulk-inning pitcher. The 26-year-old went 5-8 with a 3.55 ERA in 34 games, including 12 starts last season.
Toronto could use some more help out of the bullpen, and Mlodzinski would be a middle-leverage arm for John Schneider to use. He’s under team control through the 2029 season.
Analyst Explains Trading Lukes
Although Lukes was an impact player for the Blue Jays last season, and was a key reason for them getting to the World Series, he could become expendable.
If the Blue Jays sign Tucker, Toronto has a surplus of outfielders, and Lukes could land them an arm, which is an area of need.
“Tucker, who visited Toronto’s development complex in Florida on Wednesday, has been worth at least 4.6 WAR the last five seasons, per Baseball Reference,” Bannon wrote. “He could be the elite left-handed bat the Jays would love to pair with Guerrero at the top of their batting order. Tucker’s addition would also allow the Jays to move an outfielder like Nathan Lukes, traded in this example offseason for further pitching depth.”
Lukes hit .255 with 12 home runs and 65 RBIs last season with the Blue Jays, which was his first full season in the MLB. In the playoffs, the outfielder hit .274 with 8 RBIs in 17 games.
Toronto Has ‘Legitmate’ Chance to Land Tucker
Tucker is the top free agent available, and the Blue Jays are interested in signing him.
MLB insider Jon Morosi was on MLB Network and said there’s a legitimate chance the Blue Jays do land the marquee free agent.
“I think there is a legitimate possibility for Kyle Tucker and the Toronto Blue Jays,” Morosi said on Thursday. “One of the reasons, by the way, it’s just a 23-mile drive from Plant High School in the great city of Tampa, Florida, to the Blue Jays spring training complex in Dunedin.
“For Kyle Tucker, that’s just around the block. This is his hometown, and you could see how the fit would be a good one. You have the reigning American League Champions, the team that is clearly committed to winning.”
Tucker is a four-time MLB All-Star. He’s also a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner and a one-time Gold Glove Award winner.
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