Free-agent right-hander Dylan Cease has agreed to a seven-year, $210 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, according to multiple reports on Wednesday.
The deal is contingent on a physical. It would also provide Toronto with another strong rotation arm after the Blue Jays reached the World Series last season and lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games.
Cease’s deal will be the richest the Blue Jays have ever given a free agent. The previous high was George Springer’s six-year, $150 million deal in 2021.
Cease spent the past two seasons with the San Diego Padres and tossed the franchise’s second no-hitter in 2024 when he went 14-11 with a 3.47 ERA in 33 starts. He struck out 224 and finished fourth in National League Cy Young balloting.
Last season, Cease’s ERA soared to 4.55 and he went 8-12 in 32 starts. He struck out 215 and served up a career-high 21 homers.
Cease, who turns 30 on Dec. 28, spent his first five big league seasons with the Chicago White Sox. He was the American League Cy Young runner-up in 2022 when he went 14-8 with a 2.20 ERA and a career-high 227 strikeouts in 32 starts.
Cease has fanned 200 or more batters in five straight seasons and is 65-58 with a 3.88 ERA in 188 career starts over seven seasons.
Cease has struggled in the postseason, going 0-1 with an 8.74 ERA in four starts and one relief appearance. He lasted just five total innings in two postseason starts with the Padres in 2024 and was pulled after 3 2/3 scoreless innings in his lone 2025 effort.
San Diego tendered Cease the one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer earlier this month and he declined it. That will give the Padres a compensatory draft pick now that Cease is joining another team.
Cease joins a right-handed heavy rotation likely to include postseason force Trey Yesavage and veterans Kevin Gausman and Shane Bieber. Another veteran, Jose Berrios, could return after losing his rotation spot due to injury last season.
Among the Blue Jays on the free-agent market is star shortstop Bo Bichette.
As for the Padres, right-hander Michael King also filed for free agency, meaning the franchise could lose two of its top starting pitchers.
–Field Level Media
