About the Off-Season: Different Responses

About the Off-Season: Different Responses

By Tim Kabel

February 12, 2026

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Last year, the Yankees went into Spring Training as the defending American League champions. They had a very poor showing against the Dodgers In the 2024 World Series and 2025 was a chance for them to fine tune things and return to the World Series, where they would hopefully win.

That didn't happen. The Yankee suffered major injuries in Spring Training and early in the season to Giancarlo Stanton, Clarke Schmidt, Gerrit Cole, and Luis Gil. They had originally been considering banishing Marcus Stroman, but he became an important part of the rotation early on. They even had to rely on Carlos Carrasco for a while. Although Luis Gil and Stanton did eventually return, Cole and Schmidt never did. As many people have noted, the Yankees wound up tied for the best record in the American League.

However, as I have stated many times, they don't give trophies for that. They also don't have tickertape parades for that. The Yankees lost the season series to both the Red Sox and the Blue Jays and were soundly beaten by the Blue Jays in the ALDS.

This season, the Blue Jays are the defending American League champions. They lost the World Series in seven games to the Dodgers in 2025. The Blue Jays have made many improvements to their roster. However, now it is their turn to suffer injuries. On Tuesday, Blue Jays manager John Schneider announced that pitcher Bowden Francis would be undergoing UCL reconstruction surgery and would be out for the year. He also announced that Anthony Santander would be undergoing left labral surgery and would be out for five to six months. He will miss most of the season. Shane Bieber will have his ramp up delayed due to forearm fatigue.

Let's take a closer look at those injuries. Francis was not a key member of the Blue Jays staff, and his injury should be fairly easy to overcome. Santander hit 44 home runs in 2024 with Baltimore and signed a five-year $92.5 million contract with the Blue Jays prior to last season. His first year with Toronto was not great. He was limited by injuries and ineffectiveness and batted just .175 in 54 games. He hit 6 home runs and had 18 RBI. His defense, as always, was abysmal. Although he is under contract with the Blue Jays, his absence will probably not be devastating to them since he hardly played it all in 2025 when they made it to the 7th game in the World Series. Shane Bieber’s forearm fatigue may become problematic, but it could just as easily be resolved in a week or so. We will have to see.

The point is that I firmly believe the Blue Jays will handle their injury woes much differently than the Yankees did. The Yankee solution was and is to find players off the scrap heap just to hold things together. The Yankees address holes in their roster the same way Ralphie’s father addressed holes in his tires in A Christmas Story. They slap another patch on it and hope to make it home. I do not believe the Blue Jays will do the same thing. I don't think Carlos Carrasco will be heading to Toronto. I think if the Blue Jays have needs, they will acquire significant players to fill those spots. The Blue Jays seem committed to returning to and winning the World Series.

As of late, the Blue Jays do not take half measures. The Yankees only take half measures. I don't know exactly what the Blue Jays will do but I can guarantee you they will not be bumping into Brian Cashman at the scrap heap trying to pick up spare parts.

I think we will learn a lot about the difference between the Yankees and the Blue Jays, and many other teams, when we see how the Blue Jays are affected by their slew of injuries at the beginning of the 2026 season as compared to how the Yankees handled things at the beginning of 2025. Now, the severity of the injuries and the actual players involved need to be factored in.

The main point is that the Yankees are now coupon cutters who visit the thrift shop and wear hand me downs. The Blue Jays are not. The proof is in the pudding as they say, and we will see what happens by the end of the season, but the future still looks brighter for the Blue Jays in 2026 than it does for the Yankees.