Rays can’t catch a break as former Orioles Silver Slugger signs with Blue Jays

Rays fans will probably want to look away for this breaking news. The Toronto Blue Jays have signed Anthony Santander to a five-year, $90 million contract. The Blue Jays finally got their guy to escalate their offense. Santander will join four-time All-Star Vladimir Guerrero Jr, two-time AL hits leader Bo Bichette, and former World Series MVP George Springer. There's no doubt this squad has the potential to put up crooked numbers each game, but where will the former Oriole fit into their lineup?

Primarily filling in at the clean-up spot for the Orioles the last few years, MLB Network projects that the 30-year old will remain in that location of the Toronto lineup. Therefore, the top four hitters for the 2025 Blue Jays will be very difficult to face with George Springer, Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr, and Anthony Santander leading off games for this Canadian club. The bottom of the lineup doesn't look close to as fierce, but it will include former Guardians infielder Andres Gimenez, who had a ton of success against Tampa pitching in 2023.

Now, clearly not much is changing for the Rays due to this deal because they have had to game-plan for Santander for the past eight seasons. However, they may want to adjust their approach to the powerful switch-hitter.

Since 2022, Anthony Santander has accrued eight home runs and driven in 17 runs against Rays pitching. This production will not be profitable for the Rays in 2025, especially because it is likely to improve. Tampa Bay will play half of their games at the Yankee Stadium doppelganger, George Steinbrenner Field, so their opponents could also benefit from the short right field wall. Santander slugged 32 of his 44 home runs from the left side of the plate. The pull-happy outfielder could have a field day if Rays pitching isn't careful.

All-in-all, we should've known that the Blue Jays would eventually triumph in gaining a perennial free agent after losing out on Juan Soto, Roki Sasaki, and Corbin Burnes. This shouldn't come as a shock for anybody and certainly shouldn't raise any alarms. The Blue Jays will be a better team in 2025, but the Rays are used to the competitive nature of the dense American League East division.