Blue Jays have considered signing Russell Martin

The Blue Jays have discussed the possibility of signing Russell Martin this offseason, Jeff Blair of SportsNet writes. The idea is that the Jays would then have Dioner Navarro, who's a decent hitter but not a spectacular defender or pitch framer, move to DH. The Jays recently exercised their option on backup Josh Thole, who would presumably continue to catch R.A. Dickey's knuckleballs. They probably wouldn't re-sign Melky Cabrera in such a scenario.

There's been at least some buzz about the Dodgers, Cubs and Tigers as potential suitors for Martin, and he'd make sense for the Rockies and probably other teams as well. Outbidding them all to re-sign him won't be easy.

The Pirates' decisions on qualifying offers are due later today. We already know they plan to extend one to Martin, as they certainly should. It's not clear whether they might extend one to Francisco Liriano as well.