Opinion | Marcus Semien for MVP. Robbie Ray for the Cy Young. MLB award finalists highlight Blue Jays offseason challenge

CARLSBAD, CALIF. – Based solely on the year-end awards, one might believe that the Blue Jays were one of the mighty teams in Major League Baseball in 2021.

The Blue Jays had two of the top three winners of votes for the AL MVP award in Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Marcus Semien. They also had the presumed Cy Young favorite in veteran lefty Robbie Ray.

The only potential snub, if you really want to call it that, since Monday’s announcement by the Baseball Writers Association of America was that, unlike a year ago, Charlie Montoyo did not finish in the top three as manager of the year. Instead, it was Tampa Bay’s Kevin Cash, Houston’s Dusty Baker and Seattle’s Scott Servais who got the honors.

Less surprising was Alek Manoah’s landing outside of the top three for the AL rookie of the year. Manoah had numbers that deserved consideration, including a 3.22 ERA in 111 2/3 innings, but his case was hampered by the fact that he didn’t make his debut until late May. Tampa Bay’s Randy Arozarena is the favorite over his teammate Wander Franco and Houston’s Luis Garcia, and the winners will be announced next week.

While the postseason teams are typically the ones with that many top prize contenders, the Blue Jays finished a game behind the Boston Red Sox for the second wild card. Now general manager Ross Atkins faces the daunting task of improving a roster as he faces the possibility of losing two of his biggest contributors.

Semien and Ray, who received qualified offers from the Blue Jays on Sunday, will be a major topic of conversation as the annual general managers meetings begin here Tuesday. Neither is expected to sign anytime soon, but Semien has already been linked to the Seattle Mariners and it shouldn’t be long before sales prices are known. Both will be expensive.

Ray, who went 13-7 with a 2.84 ERA last season, plans to land a four- or five-year deal with projections ranging from $ 105 million to $ 130 million (US). On November 17, he will likely surpass Gerrit Cole of New York and Lance Lynn of Chicago for the Cy Young.

Semien will be online for a similar period after hitting a career-high 45 home runs in 2021, with estimates ranging from $ 95 million to $ 140 million. He is expected to finish third in the MVP voting, behind Guerrero and big favorite Shohei Ohtani.

Considering those eye-catching salary figures, it seems nearly impossible for the Blue Jays to sign both, but they should be among the top contenders for at least one. The GM meetings will provide Atkins with some clarity on who will be his main competition, while also presenting an opportunity to lay the groundwork for viable alternatives through free agency and trade.

The free agent market probably won’t see much movement until a new collective bargaining agreement is signed, but the trades should be a different story.

As early as Monday, news was leaked via MLB Network’s Jon Heyman that Cincinnati will take calls to ace Luis Castillo, while a host of other big names will be added to the list in the coming days.

Players expected to be available this offseason included Jose Ramirez of Cleveland, Sonny Gray of Cincinnati, Matt Chapman and Matt Olson of Oakland, Byron Buxton of Minnesota, Ketel Marte of Arizona and Josh Donaldson of Minnesota. The free-agent class is deeper than it was a year ago, and it looks like the commercial market could be, too, which bodes well for buyers like the Jays.

Atkins has plenty to check off his to-do list this offseason, and GM meetings are as good a place as any to start.

Whether it’s re-signing Semien or Ray, or finding replacements, the end-of-year awards show the Blue Jays have big shoes to fill next year, regardless of who ends up taking their money.