Hoffman back where it all started in Toronto

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TORONTO -- Jeff Hoffman has taken a long road back to the Blue Jays.

Speaking with reporters Wednesday for the first time since signing his three-year, $33 million deal to replace Jordan Romano as the club’s closer, a frame with a Blue Jays logo hung on the wall over Hoffman’s right shoulder. In the frame was a card and some memorabilia from the 2014 MLB Draft, when Toronto selected him in the first round, ninth overall.

The decade since has seen Hoffman traded as a prospect in the Troy Tulowitzki deal, struggle to become a starter and eventually break out as a reliever, which earned him this contract. Free agency wasn’t simple, though.

Prior to signing with the Blue Jays, it was reported that the Orioles had a deal in place with Hoffman until concerns arose from his physical. Later, the same news came out of Atlanta regarding a potential deal with the Braves. Wednesday, Hoffman had no problem addressing those issues and appeared completely at peace with how the process played out.

“All of the flagged physical stuff was as big a surprise to me as anybody,” Hoffman said. “You can check my track record over the past few seasons. I’ve been as healthy as anybody. It’s a non-issue for me. It’s just something that they wanted to bring up, but the Blue Jays see me for what I am. I’d rather be in a place like that anyways.”

Physicals are, essentially, a risk assessment. The Blue Jays felt comfortable with their evaluation, evidently, and Hoffman liked that the organization was involved from the very beginning and stayed in.

Enough about MRI machines, though. On the mound, Hoffman has been one of the game’s premier relievers over the past two seasons, and he immediately elevates the Blue Jays’ bullpen after a dreadful 2024 season. He’s fresh off a 2.17 ERA with 12.1 K/9, and all of his advanced metrics paint the picture of a dominant closer.

Replacing the beloved Romano is no small task, but with one of their highest-upside pitching moves in years, the Blue Jays have set themselves up well for the ninth inning.

“I was itching for that opportunity in the previous season,” Hoffman said. “To know that I’ll have that opportunity, it’s definitely a driving force with my mentality. I feel like that’s what I’m meant to be, meant to do. That’s the part of the game where I come in and find comfort in the chaos.”

This hasn’t always been Hoffman’s path, though. He eventually came up with the Rockies after the Tulowitzki deal in 2015 and was hit hard there, posting a 6.40 ERA over parts of five seasons. Flashes of his first-round talent were still there, but the numbers were downright ugly at times. A move to the bullpen, however, and a significant shift in his mental approach has changed everything.

“Something I’ve done more recently in my career is to drop the whole mechanical conversation,” Hoffman said. “I’m truly out there now just moving in space the way my body wants to move. There’s not really any mechanical cues or thoughts going through my head at any given time. I’m out there just doing what the task is and not really thinking about anything other than that.

"I’ve been able to simplify and just focus on competing. The consistency, you can see it in the numbers. It’s been a life-changing, career-changing choice to drop all of that stuff and just be me.”

This is a common refrain from pitchers who have taken a hard road to success later in their careers. Think of someone like Kevin Gausman, a former top prospect himself who was eventually designated for assignment and had to rebuild himself.

Within those struggles, pitchers are forced to adapt. Many fail to do so, but those who find their way back, like Hoffman, return with an excellent understanding of their own deliveries and how it feels to be “off” or “on."

The Blue Jays still need to address this bullpen further, but landing Hoffman took care of most of that work itself. It allows Yimi García, Erik Swanson and Chad Green to slide into more comfortable spots in the bullpen and leaves the Blue Jays just a piece or two away from a solid group.

It all leads to Hoffman, though, who can be one of the game’s best closers if the Blue Jays can figure out how to hand him enough late leads.