Blue Jays bolster pitching staff but don’t add premium talent
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Wow, what a trade deadline!
We saw big names changing teams. The price of impact bullpen help was astounding. So too was the price for players with years of control. Some clubs were willing to surrender top prospects, while others refused to part with future assets.
Jays’ general manager Ross Atkins was active and improved the club. He didn’t acquire any premium talent, but neither did the Yankees, Red Sox or Rays.
Atkins improved the bullpen with the trade for Seranthony Dominguez from the Baltimore Orioles and Louis Varland from the Minnesota Twins. Both have big arms with fastballs in the upper 90s and get swing-and-miss with their arsenal. That is critical in the game today. The best teams in baseball make more contact than average, so strikeouts matter.
Dominguez is a free agent at the end of the season, so, he is a rental. Varland, however, is under control through the 2030 season. At 27 years old, that is a real value as he could be a bullpen solution for several years.
Toronto’s bullpen is improved, although not as much as it could have been if Atkins had acquired Jhoan Duran from the Twins, Ryan Helsley from the Cardinals or Mason Miller from the Athletics.
Duran went to the Phillies, Helsley went to the Mets, and Miller went to the Padres. The prices for the Big Three were significant and likely beyond the depth of the Jays’ farm system. I would have preferred a ninth-inning option for Toronto to push closer Jeff Hoffman to the eighth inning, but that wasn’t likely realistic.
I’m a Belieber
Shane Bieber Cleveland Guardians
I’m a big fan of Shane Bieber, who came over in a deal from the Cleveland Guardians. Bieber won the American League Cy Young Award in 2020. When healthy, he has been a very effective, and at times, a dominating starter.
Bieber is recovering from having Tommy John surgery in April of 2024. He has made four rehab starts totaling 11.1 innings, allowing seven hits and one walk while striking out 21 batters. He has been a strike-throwing machine on his rehab assignment, which is exactly what he is when he is healthy and in top form. He probably needs one or two more starts in the minors before he is ready to be activated at the major-league level.
I would prefer to see the Jays go with a six-man rotation once Bieber is ready to be activated with the big club. It would protect 41-year-old Max Scherzer, keeping him fresh and sharp. The extra rest would also benefit every other starter. The goal is not only to get to the playoffs, but to win once they get there. This is the Jays’ best shot.
Bieber not only protects the depth of the Jays’ starters, but he also has the potential to start a playoff game. The final two months of the season will not only be a runway for the Jays to get to the playoffs. It’s also an audition to see who starts if and when they get there.
Bieber has a player option for $16 million for 2026. The best-case scenario for the Jays is that he throws well enough to be worth the $16 million and worthy of an additional year or two without testing free agency. He is just 30 and should have more than a few good years remaining.
Where does France fit?
Ty France Minnesota Twins
The Jays also acquired first baseman Ty France in the deal with the Twins. Honestly, it is a bit unclear to me how he fits the club.
He is a right-handed hitter who can only play first base and designated hitter. I can’t imagine Vladimir Guerrero Jr. needing enough days off over the last two months to justify carrying a player with such positional inflexibility.
The Jays did trade Will Wagner to the Padres for organizational depth at catcher, so they need depth at first base. But Ernie Clement can play the position, and he is also a right-handed hitter. If France crushed left-handed pitching his inclusion in the deal would make more sense, but that’s not the case.
AL contenders load up for playoff push
Camilo Doval Giants
The Jays are improved, there is no debating that, but all of the playoff contenders got better to some degree.
The Yankees added three quality relievers (David Bednar, Camilo Doval and Jake Bird), a right-handed hitting outfielder (Austin Slater) and protection at shortstop (Amed Rosario and Jose Caballero) for a struggling Anthony Volpe. The Red Sox added a starting pitcher (Dustin May) and a lefty pitcher in Steven Matz who can serve as a reliever or starter. The Rays bought and sold at the deadline, to, at best, a net zero. The Jays should be able to maintain their stronghold over the division.
In the AL Central, the Detroit Tigers improved at the deadline but only marginally. Their front office was timid, avoiding going all in on the best starters and relievers. The Guardians sold more than they bought, while the third-place Royals added two starters from the Padres (Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek), one from the Pirates (Bailey Falter) and an outfielder (Mike Yastrzemski) from the Giants. The Royals are better, but didn’t improve enough offensively, which is their biggest deficiency.
In the AL West, the Seattle Mariners improved the most. They added first baseman Josh Naylor and third baseman Eugenio Suarez from the Arizona Diamondbacks. They also added quality lefty reliever Caleb Ferguson from the Pirates. They addressed their biggest needs in an impactful way. The Houston Astros brought back infielder Carlos Correa from the Minnesota Twins to play third base while adding infielder Ramon Urias from the Orioles. They also added left-hand hitting outfielder Jesus Sanchez from the Marlins, who has the potential to be an offensive force. They are better but needed to add a starter and didn’t.
Despite the improvements of others, no team made enough upgrades in the American League that improve them beyond the Blue Jays. The runway is there for the Jays to still win the AL East and, if all goes well, the AL pennant.
A.J. Preller does it again
Mike Shildt A.J. Preller San Diego Padres
Although the American League is still the Jays to be had, the National League’s best teams are all still better than the Jays on paper.
The New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are all better than the Blue Jays, but anything can happen in postseason baseball.
The Padres had the best trade deadline performance. They added one of the best relievers in baseball in Miller from the Athletics. They also added a starting pitcher, JP Sears, in the deal. The Padres addressed their need for a left fielder by adding Ryan O’Hearn and Ramon Laureano in a deal with the Orioles. They replaced the starters they moved in a deal to acquire catcher Freddy Fermin from the Royals with lefty Nestor Cortes from the Brewers.
Padres general manager A.J. Preller filled every need he had and further fortified the strength (bullpen) of his team. The Padres have a chance to chase down the Dodgers with their improvements.
This is it. Teams are who they are from this point forward. There is nowhere to go to improve themselves. May the best teams win.