Columnist image

| Archive

Mark Shapiro has promised the Toronto Blue Jays will be active in one way or another at the trade deadline.

That hasn’t amounted to much so far, but the rumour mill is still churning leading into Monday’s 4 p.m. ET cutoff for front offices around baseball to get their work done.

“Deadlines have a way of forcing activity, creating activity, so there’s a lot of conversations,” the Blue Jays president and CEO said this week. “The pace never really occurs the way you want it to and you never really know when things are going to come together.”

Defining the Blue Jays as buyers or sellers is just about impossible.

It’s evident the focus isn’t on adding or attempting to improve their minuscule 2017 chances, but as we’ve seen over the past week with a number of non-contending teams adding pieces in trades, there are many ways to attack the trade deadline.

“I think we’d be active no matter what,” Shapiro said. “Where we sit in the standings doesn’t affect our activity. It certainly affects what we’re trying to do. We objectively understand where we are. We also feel a commitment to the fans here to continue to give them reasons to cheer this team.

“The only thing that’s changed is that we’re not in the rental market, we’re not in the market for players that only impact the next three months. Other than that, we’re in an identical position.”

Rather than a full-scale rebuild, Shapiro and GM Ross Atkins have turned their attention to 2018, hoping a little bit of luck combined with a few savvy moves will get them back into contention next summer.

Beginning with most likely to be moved, all the way down to least likely, here are 10 potential Blue Jays trade chips to monitor as the team heads to Chicago to open up a three-game set with the rebuilding White Sox:

1—SP Francisco Liriano

His excellent start Saturday — Liriano cruised through five scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Angels before running into some trouble in the sixth — didn’t point his stock in one direction or the other, but teams are kicking the tires on the 33-year-old lefty as both a starter and a reliever. The Kansas City Royals have been linked.

2—RP Joe Smith

After missing a month due to a shoulder strain, Smith had appeared in three games since returning from the DL, and all three appearances were in the seventh inning. That changed Saturday when the 33-year-old right-hander was thrust back into his eighth-inning setup role and he proceeded to spin a scoreless frame. With a 3.28 ERA and 51 strikeouts in 35.2 innings, Smith could serve as bullpen depth for a contender.

3—SP Marco Estrada

Estrada has been a mess for two months now, posting an ERA of 9.11 in 27.2 June innings, which he’s followed up with an 8.50 mark in 18 innings this month. Like the two names above him on this list, Estrada will be a free agent at the end of the season and the Jays would love to get something, anything in return for a righty who could serve as a swingman or a backend starter on a contender for a couple of months.

4—OF Jose Bautista

The Bautista picture is clouded by his 10-and-5 rights, which allows the 36-year-old to veto any potential deal. There are so many questions when it comes to the former superstar who’s losing the battle with Father Time. Is he willing to move? Is he interested in a role that may not be of the every day variety? Are contenders even interested in the mercurial veteran who’s making $18 million this season and has a mutual option for 2018 with a $500,000 buyout? Considering he’s been below average with the bat this season (92 wRC+), the answer to the last question might be the only one that matters.

5—SP J.A. Happ

When it comes to Happ, there are two alluring aspects. One is that he’s a decent mid-rotation option, just below the top tier of arms available. The other is that he’s signed for 2018 at a very reasonable $13 million. The Jays have indicated they’d like to keep him around for the 2018 reboot — he slides in nicely behind Aaron Sanchez and Marcus Stroman in a healthy rotation next season — but they could get an offer they can’t refuse.

6—OF/1B Steve Pearce

Improving the outfield situation defensively is something the Jays need to do if they’re going to contend in 2018, leaving Pearce in an awkward position. First base and designated hitter are currently spoken for with Justin Smoak and Kendrys Morales, and Pearce in left field isn’t ideal. He’s owed $6.25 million next season in the final year of a two-year deal, but he’d be an interesting right-handed bench bat for a contender.

7—3B Josh Donaldson

We’re now into “probably not happening” territory. There’s little chance a deal of this magnitude comes together at the last minute, but you just never know. Donaldson was held out of Sunday’s series finale with the Los Angeles Angels — Bautista was, too — but the team claims it’s just a day off for a player who had started every game since the All-Star break. Donaldson, who’s making $17 million this season, will command a hefty salary in his final arbitration year before hitting the open market next winter.

8—RP Roberto Osuna

The package the Jays could command for Osuna would be huge, but there’s zero indication Shapiro and Atkins have even considered going that route. With a 1.44 FIP, Osuna is one of the premier closers in the game and you’d have to think every single contender would at least inquire if he were to be made available.

9—SP Marcus Stroman

A month ago, there were rumours that Stroman could be moved. That hasn’t come to fruition and the talk has quieted. If the Jays are trying to contend next year, he’s an important piece atop the rotation and his best years should be yet to come. As with Osuna, the sticker price on Stroman would be off the charts.

10—The contracts

Even less likely to be traded than Donaldson, Osuna and Stroman are the contracts of Troy Tulowitzki ($58 million owing through 2020), Russell Martin ($40 million owing through 2019) and Morales ($23 million owing through 2019). Unless the Jays are going to eat most of the money or take on a similarly bad contract in return, these three veterans will be around for the foreseeable future. Morales’ bat and switch-hitting ability might interest teams, but he provides zero value anywhere else and is strictly a DH, something not many teams are in the market for.