A certain stigma has always hung over the Toronto Blue Jays—intensified by a growing concern that playing in Canada has more downsides than upsides. For years, players have been concerned with one particular term: Taxes. But looks like the Blue Jays’ pitcher Chris Bassitt is here to dispel all the rumors. But before we get to that…

What is this all about? Well, the gist is that playing for a Canadian team has too many complexities, from international travel to adjusting to a completely different lifestyle in a foreign country, and not to mention the supposedly high income tax that players have to pay the country. I mean, who doesn’t remember the Josh Donaldson, Jose Bautista and Russell Martin fiasco?

The trio was entangled in a lengthy legal battle with the Canada Revenue Agency, where the latter reportedly disallowed “$16 million in deductions from Bautista’s income through contributions the seven-time All-Star made from 2014-17 — claiming his RCA is “not a ‘pension plan’ or ‘retirement compensation arrangement’” that adheres to the country’s Income Tax Act,” as reported by the New York Post.

Now, what is RCA, you ask? As per the National Post, the Retirement Compensation Agreement is reportedly used by high-earning athletes and top executives recruited by Canadian organizations to defer tax payments and income. “The taxpayer is allowed to contribute a “reasonable” amount to their retirement every year, but the CRA withholds half of it in a fund that cannot be invested. When an RCA holder retires or loses their job, the pension account will begin paying out, at which point the money will be taxed, presumably when they are in a lower tax bracket. The CRA will then also refund the 50-per-cent portion of all contributions that it withheld.”

As for Martin, as per the CRA, a staggering amount of $7 million was supposed to be deducted from the player’s $20 million salary. Martin argued that the figure should be $5.5 million instead. While a Tax Court ultimately ruled in favor of the players, reducing Martin’s taxable income by roughly $4 million (2015-2017), and Donaldson’s by $2.6 million (2016-2017), calling the CRA’s calculations “faulty” in December last year, the legal battle still set an unfortunate precedent for athletes aiming to play for the country.

“Canada’s high-income tax rates can deter professional athletes from joining teams based in Canada. The ability to defer tax is often at the forefront of these discussions because this may permit Canadian teams to attract talent by reducing income tax rates to a level similar to those enjoyed by members of US-based team,” a tax attorney had noted. Gloomy, right? Well, if you ask Bassitt (who joined the Blue Jays ahead of the 2023 season on a three-year, $63 million deal) things are not as bad as they sound…

On January 30, Bassitt appeared on the JD Bunkis podcast where the host asked him, “It was a frustrating year [for the Blue Jays], and I’m curious for you. When all this was happening, the trade deadlines, all of this stuff [was] transpiring with the team…they’re taking that step back, and again, it was always with the promise of stepping forward. Did you ever question whether or not you were going to want to stay here?”

To this, the 35-year-old elaborated, “Not at all. Not even a little bit. I know there was a lot of things wrote and there was a lot of talk…I’m definitely not one to run away from a so-called tough environment. I’m definitely not one to run away from any challenges, so to speak. I understand the business. I understand kind of how media works and things like that. But I’m very, very happy with being in Toronto. I’m very, very happy with my family being in Toronto. And obviously I’m happy enough to tell my friends to come here to help us win a championship. All the negativity, I think, the majority of it is all just media-related.”

Well, that certainly doesn’t sound like a man plagued by any issues from playing in a foreign country. Having said that, the player dived deeper after Bunkis asked, “Can you speak to that a little too? You hear this from guys…Like, I remember Justin Turner. There was a moment last season…He was talking about how easy the Blue Jays make it for guys that do come there with families…I don’t know how familiar the average American baseball player is with some of the differences of coming and living in Canada. So for you, your family..Is there a way that you’re able to kind of communicate, ‘Hey, these are the types of things that are going to make it easy for you, and these are the kinds of things that actually make it first class?'”

Bassitt: “I think the whole Canada thing is just completely overblown now. I think you have 29 other teams just trying to use it against Canada and it’s just not the reality anymore. It may have been the reality 10, 15, 20 years ago, but that’s just not the reality of the world anymore. How they treat family is the best in the big leagues. If it’s not hard to get in and out of the country, it’s, obviously, one of the prettiest cities in all of North America. So yeah, I think all that’s just overblown.”

While Bassitt didn’t really dwell upon the tax factors, his description still throws the Blue Jays in quite a positive light…

Then what about those tough environment rumors? He doesn’t buy into them. He mentioned that he happily told his friends in MLB to come to Toronto and help him win a championship. Well, major spoiler—he did pitch Max Scherzer!

Chris Bassitt’s key role in landing Scherzer

There is big news for the Blue Jays fans—Max Scherzer is coming to Toronto. The franchise announced that they signed the veteran pitcher to a one-year deal for $15.5 million. Well, he and Chris Bassitt go way back; they shared the mound when they were in the New York Mets in 2022. This dynamic duo combined for 40% of the team’s 101 wins that season. And now about the coming of Max Scherzer to Toronto, Bassitt didn’t shy away from admitting that he might have played a role.

On the JD Bunkis podcast, Bassitt revealed, “But I mean, the reality is, I and Max are good friends, and (I) put in a good word of just telling him how good Toronto is, so to speak.” However, he did mention that most of the credit lies with the front office, which got this deal to fruition. But he did put in a good word about how fantastic life in Toronto really is. He really does seem to be loving living in Canada!

But it wasn’t just the perks of Toronto that Bassitt talked about. He also praised Scherzer’s impact on and off the mound, “Max is one of the best pitchers of all time.” And it’s easy to understand why he feels so. His leadership along with experience is unmatched. Plus, Bassitt thinks that Scherzer’s knowledge of the game is simply out of this world and will be key for the pitching staff.

With Scherzer joining the Toronto Blue Jays, the season is looking more promising than ever. How do you think the team will do?