The Blue Jays were one of the kings of the rumor mill this winter, seemingly linked to just about every notable name on the free agent market. was one of those targets, and sheds some light on the Jays pursuit in his notes column today while also countering his own past reporting on the matter. Back in December, Nightengale that the Jays and Giants offered Burnes more than the six-year, $210MM he received from the Diamondbacks. Burnes himself described Arizonas offer as by far the best offer that we had , as Nightengales latest report notes that the Giants pursuit of Burnes stopped before it really got started. As for Toronto, Nightengale now writes that the Jays offer was not only low, but was 75% deferred. While the exact dollar figures arent known, it seems po sible that the Blue Jays might have technically offered more than $210MM, yet the heavy amount of deferred money involved lowered the contracts current value to below what Burnes got from the DBacks. It should be noted that Burnes Arizona deal also involves , and the fact that Burnes can opt out of his deal after the 2026 also impacts the financial structure. was another name on the Blue Jays target list, yet Nightengale writes that they didnt make a single offer to Bregman, let alone engage with him. The Jays entered the offseason without a clear answer Ed Davis Jersey at second or third base, so it made sense on paper that Toronto would at least check in on Bregman as a solution to the need at the hot corner. Instead, the Jays acquired to become the new everyday second baseman, and stuck with internal options (i.e. , ) to split time at third base. One free agent Toronto did sign was , who inked a one-year, $15.5MM contract. Unfortunately, the longtime stars Jays debut ended after just three innings due to continued i sues with his right thumb, leading to a trip to the 15-day injured list. The righty just under two weeks ago, and Jays manager John Schneider told and other reporters that a fresh set of imaging tests taken Friday didnt reveal any damage. While this represents some good news, both the team and Scherzer remain in day-to-day mode as they try to figure out the injury that has now bothered Scherzer for the better part of a year. Scherzer is playing catch and throwing off of flat ground for now, but has yet to bump up his throwing program to prepare for a return to action. Moving onto some more injury updates, will start playing in full extended Spring Training games this coming week. Varsho underwent rotator cuff surgery last September and began the season on the 10-day injured list as he continued his rehab work. Throwing remains the final step in the proce s, as Varsho has yet to start making full throws from the outfield, but presumably hell check that box before returning to proper game action. Despite his semi-injured status, Varsho still got a good deal of work in during the Jays actual Spring Training, as he had 37 plate appearances as a designated hitter. The fact that Varsho has been able to partake in other baseball activities beyond throwing could mean that it might not take him long to get fully ramped up for his eventual return to the Blue Jays active roster. Hell still surely need a Triple-A rehab a signment, but it appears as though Varsho is on pace to meet his expected timeline of an IL activation before the end of April. is also on the road to recovery after a median nerve entrapment in his right arm led to a season-opening stint on the IL. Swanson will face live hitters this week and is expected to then start a minor league rehab a signment. threw a bullpen se sion yesterday, in the latest step of his rehab after he also started the year on the 15-day IL due to shoulder fatigue. Jeff Green Jersey