Blue Jays' front office not under significant pressure to make splash deal, Olney says
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The baseball world was stunned by the first landscape-altering deal of the 2025 season earlier this week, when the Boston Red Sox shipped star third baseman Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants.
Not only have the Giants found their preeminent lefty slugger, but the deal also put the rest of the league on notice: Trade season is upon us, a month and a half out from the deadline at the end of July.
Trade season takes different shapes for different franchises, though, and as ESPN's Buster Olney notes, the upcoming deadline may pass quietly for the Toronto Blue Jays.
Olney joined First Up on TSN1050 on Tuesday to discuss the Devers deal, his expectations for the Blue Jays and more.
"I wouldn't have been surprised, if the Blue Jays had what was perceived to be the best offer, that [the Red Sox] would have traded within the division," Olney said of whether the Blue Jays could've acquired Devers in a trade. "I don't think the current Red Sox regime would have been afraid of that."
The trading of star players to division rivals rarely happens in baseball, due to the how often division rivals play one another and the natural rivalries or animosity that forms.
The Red Sox and Blue Jays completed a deal to send catcher Danny Jansen to Boston last year, but the last impactful trade between the sides came in 2018 - when the Blue Jays sent utilityman Steve Pearce to the Red Sox for second baseman Santiago Espinal and cash.
Pearce, a journeyman, had the season of his life to help lead the Red Sox to a World Series title - winning World Series MVP honours along the way. It was hardly the outcome anyone imagined.
Olney didn't think that a potential deal made sense for Toronto, even if the Red Sox were open to it.
"I think in a lot of respects the situation with the Blue Jays is already in place," Olney said. "Big and gaudy trades at the deadline [aren't likely], because they've done that already."
The Blue Jays have a well-rounded team: They've acquired different pieces on the roster through signings (pitchers Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassitt), developed stars from the minors (first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., shortstop Bo Bichette) and acquired important pieces through trades before the season (second baseman Andres Gimenez, relievers Nick Sandlin and Erik Swanson, pitcher Jose Berrios).
The team doesn't have any glaring holes after overcoming a slow start offensively, owning the fourth-most runs scored over the last 30 days (123) and 13th most runs allowed (103).
"I largely think when it comes to [team president] Mark Shapiro and [general manager] Ross Atkins that the die is kind of cast. They've got their team, according to FanGraphs they have a 56 per cent chance to make the playoffs as of this morning," Olney said.
That is in comparison to other teams around the majors that will need to make significant moves at the deadline to patch up holes on the roster - holes formed by injury or by poor roster construction.
"The team they have is going to make the playoffs or not make the playoffs based on what they've got," Olney said.