Report: Bautista, Blue Jays working on 1-year deal with mutual option

Jose Bautista appears close to returning to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2017, but he may already have an eye on next year's free-agent market.

Should the outfielder and the Blue Jays come to an agreement, it will likely be a one-year contract with a mutual option for 2018, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

A mutual option would essentially act as an opt-out for Bautista, who would likely decline his half should he perform to expectations in 2017.

Earlier Monday, Rosenthal reported that the deal was likely to be two years in length, and between $35 million to $40 million in value. Negotiations appear to have been fluid between the two sides, however, it appears that multiple scenarios - including both one- and two-year deals - have been discussed, per Sportsnet's Shi Davidi.

Bautista has been searching for a lucrative multi-year agreement, but his market dried up over the course of the offseason. In recent weeks, his camp has appeared to be more willing to take a one-year deal, on the condition that it was worth more than the $17.2-million qualifying offer he rejected from the Blue Jays in October.

Although he apparently received interest from multiple teams in recent days, Bautista's apparent desire to return to Toronto appears to have won out. According to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports, the 36-year-old will be declining multiple offers worth more money to stay in Toronto; it's not clear what teams may have made those offers, though Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported the Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Indians were both "in the bidding" for Bautista's services in recent days.

Related: Stroman 'couldn't be happier' about Bautista's reported return to Toronto

Bautista would fill a pair of needs for the Blue Jays in the form of a big right-handed power bat to offset the loss of Edwin Encarnacion, and as a corner outfielder whose presence would boost a sub-par group outside of Gold Glove finalist Kevin Pillar.

Since joining Toronto via trade in August 2008, Bautista's emerged as one of the most feared and controversial sluggers in baseball while becoming the face of the Blue Jays during the team's renaissance and return to the playoffs. He currently ranks in the top five of virtually every offensive category in Blue Jays history, and is only 71 homers shy of passing Carlos Delgado for the all-time franchise lead.

Other teams that have been linked to Bautista this winter include the Baltimore Orioles, Minnesota Twins, and Philadelphia Phillies.