Blue Jays expected to be buyers at Thursday's trade deadline

Globe and Mail

7 days ago

The Toronto Blue Jays are the best team in baseball with a 63-43 record heading into Monday night's game in Baltimore against the Orioles. According to BaseballReference.com, that gives Toronto a 97.3 per cent chance of making the post-season and an 8.6 per cent shot at winning the World Series.
Major League Baseball's trade deadline is Thursday at 6 p.m. ET and, with the Blue Jays in a great position to win the American League East, they are expected to be buyers as they try to gear up for a deep post-season run.
Here are five things to consider heading into the deadline.
Some of the best teams in Blue Jays' history took shape at (or in one case, slightly after) the trade deadline. Mookie Wilson (1989), David Cone (1992), Rickey Henderson (1993), Edwin Encarnacion (2009) and David Price (2015) all had various degrees of success in Toronto after joining the team via trade midseason.
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Notably, Cone — who was dealt by the New York Mets to Toronto in August after the non-waiver trading deadline — was instrumental in the Blue Jays 1992 post-season run, pitching four games in the playoffs. He earned no decisions in Games 2 and 6 of Toronto's first World Series championship. Henderson struggled after breaking his hand early on in his tenure in Toronto but was on base when Joe Carter hit his walk-off home run to win the 1993 World Series.
Although the rotation's core of Jose Berrios, Chris Bassitt and Kevin Gausman have been reliable for most of the year, the Blue Jays' starting pitchers have a collective 4.39 earned-run average, 24th in all of MLB.
Eric Lauer — who signed a minor-league deal in December after a season in Korea — has been a pleasant surprise but surefire Hall of Famer Max Scherzer has struggled as inflammation in his right thumb has been a persistent problem. Alek Manoah is building up to return to Toronto's major league roster in August, but if he or Scherzer have a setback, the Blue Jays would value an extra pitcher capable of starting.
Possible targets: Sandy Alcantara has told the Miami Marlins that he'd like to be traded and media reports say Toronto is a possible destination. He has muddled to a 5-9 record with a 6.66 ERA so far this season. Media reports also say that the Athletics, temporarily playing in Sacramento, Calif., will be looking to trade some of their veteran starters like lefties JP Sears (4.98 ERA), Jeffrey Springs (4.13 ERA) and righties Osvaldo Bido (5.86 ERA) and Luis Severino (4.95 ERA).
Toronto's bullpen has been a strength all season, with a collective 3.66 ERA, seventh best in MLB. The Blue Jays' relievers have a 29-14 win-loss record through Sunday's 10-4 loss to the Tigers in Detroit. Still, bullpen depth is a must-have for any long post-season run and there are still some gaps, like Chad Green. The veteran right-hander has been used sparingly this season as he has struggled to a 4.85 ERA.
Potential targets: Pete Fairbanks, the closer for the Tampa Bay Rays the past three seasons, has a 2.84 ERA and 17 saves over 38 innings and has a reasonable US$3.67-million contract this season with a club option for 2026. Felix Bautista has 19 saves and a 2.60 ERA for the Baltimore Orioles this year but as he's on a two-year deal worth US$2-million, he'd get the Blue Jays a lot of bang for their buck.
Switch-hitting slugger Anthony Santander, along with Scherzer, was one of the Blue Jays' biggest off-season acquisitions when he signed a five-year, US$92.5-million contract on Jan. 20. He's been a disappointment, however, with a .179 batting average, six home runs and 18 RBIs over 50 games before Toronto put him on the injured list on May 30 with left shoulder inflammation. He was then transferred to the 60-day IL on July 4. When he will return and what he can contribute are two unknowns, so another reliable bat could be an asset.
Possible targets: St. Louis Cardinals slugger Nolan Arenado could be available but he comes with a hefty price tag: He has two years and US$42-million remaining on his contract beyond this season, earning US$27-million in 2026 and US$15-million in 2027. Arizona Diamondbacks power hitter Eugenio Suarez would also add some pop to Toronto's lineup — he already has 36 home runs this year — and will become a free agent this winter.
Any trade the Blue Jays make will likely involve one of their prospects. Toronto general manager Ross Atkins has spent the past couple of years restocking the organization's minor-league system, but it will still be a fine line to walk trying to win now but also save for the future.
Shortstop Arjun Nimmala is considered the top prospect in the Blue Jays' organization, currently playing for the single-A Vancouver Canadians. It's unlikely that the 19-year-old would be traded as he will be Bo Bichette's replacement if the former all-star gets traded or decides to sign elsewhere when his contract expires this off-season. According to MLB, Toronto's next highest-ranked prospects are all pitchers: right-hander Trey Yesavage (AA), lefty Ricky Tiedemann (AAA), southpaw Johnny King (A) and righty Khal Stephen (AA).