After getting to Game 7 of the World Series in 2025, the Toronto Blue Jays are one of the favorites to represent the American League in the World Series in 2026. Armed with valuable playoff experience and an expensive crop of fresh free agents, the optimism is understandable even though the Jays play in the toughest division in the American League.

While no one expects the Blue Jays to just crater, there's always a chance that things don't go quite according to plan. So, what are the things that give us a little bit of pause heading into spring training, which opens up later this week? 

This goes without saying, so I'm not even going to spend much time on it. Health is a concern for every single team in the league and it can undo any season.

The Blue Jays have created an organization full of depth, so they can certainly overcome some attrition to their roster, but there's always a point where it becomes too much.

Is George Springer the guy we saw in 2025, or the guy we saw in 2024? Is Ernie Clement the playoff hero who helped carry the offense for all of October, or is he the guy who had a sub-100 OPS+ in the regular season?

And how about Addison Barger? Is he the guy who stunned in the playoffs, or is he the guy who had just a .301 on-base percentage in the regular season? 

After losing Bo Bichette in free agency - and after missing out on Kyle Tucker - the Blue Jays clearly need some offensive help in 2026. Some of that can come from guys like Clement and Barger, who are expected to hold their levels from the 2025 playoff run. Some of that will come from the signing of Kazuma Okamoto, who was one of the best sluggers in Japan for years.

But some of it should also come from Anthony Santander, who signed a five-year deal before the 2025 season. He hit 44 homers for Baltimore in 2024 and clearly has that power in him. If he's that guy? The Jays offense will be just fine. If he's the guy who hit sub-.200 and played only 54 games in the regular season because of injury, the questions about the lineup will persist.

We covered this fully on Saturday, but simply: Are the Blue Jays in love with the daily grind again in 2025, or are they trying to fast forward to October? When you do that, you have a tendency to lose yourself along the way.

Only the eight month journey ahead will tell. 

Former Blue Jays player and manager Buck Martinez announced his retirement from broadcasting on Friday. He will not broadcast the 2026 season and will be missed.

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