Blue Jays trade deadline primer - History, team needs and potential targets
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It’s all right there in front of the Toronto Blue Jays.
They will begin the second half of the season on Friday, 14 games over .500 and leading the American League East division by two games. It's the most wins they've had at the All-Star Break in franchise history and the latest they've held a divisional lead since 2016. They have a talented roster that’s played well, but can still improve in key areas, and have the resources to add to what’s already there at the trade deadline.
It’s refreshing for a team and fan base that came into the year with a ton of uncertainty. Those open-ended questions remain, but now they have an air of positivity to them.
With the Jays set to make their first meaningful stretch run since 2023, here is everything you need to know about what they’ve done at the deadline in years past, where their biggest holes are and who are some of the potential acquisitions they may show interest in.
Recent deadline history
Jose Berrios Toronto Blue Jays
If history says anything, the Jays are going to be active leading up to the deadline the evening of Thursday, July 31. It doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll take a big swing, but you can bet on some form of reinforcements arriving.
The Jays have gone into the trade deadline as clear buyers five times with Ross Atkins working as general manager under Mark Shapiro. His most active year was in 2016 when the Jays swung five different trades leading up to the cutoff. Four of those deals were to bring in pitching. In fact, pitching depth has been something the Jays have prioritized, completing at least two deals for arms leading up to each of the deadlines they’ve been competitive under their current management.
In their “ahead of schedule” 2020 campaign, the Jays made trades for Taijuan Walker, Robbie Ray and Ross Stripling. Walker was lights out down the stretch of the pandemic-shortened season, Ray re-signed and won the Cy Young Award the following year and Stripling pitched two additional seasons in the Jays’ rotation.
Toronto took their biggest deadline swing since the 2015 David Price-Troy Tulowitzki acquisitions in 2021, bringing in Jose Berrios from the Minnesota Twins for Austin Martin and Simeon Woods-Richardson, who were each well regarded prospects at the time. They signed Berrios to a seven-year, $131 million contract a few months later.
Whit Merrifield was the big get in 2022 when they landed him just minutes before the deadline bell tolled, and Toronto rebuilt the back-end of their bullpen the year after in 2023 when they brought in Genesis Cabrera and Jordan Hicks in separate deals with the St. Louis Cardinals.
In list form, here’s every trade made under Atkins and Shapiro leading up to each of the deadlines the Jays have been in win-now mode:
2016 – 59-46 entering Aug. 1 deadline
TOR acquires RP Joaquin Benoit from SEA for RP Drew Storen and cash.
TOR acquires OF B.J. Upton from SDP for P Hansel Rodriguez.
TOR acquires RP Mike Bolsinger from LAD for RP Jesse Chavez.
TOR acquires Scott Feldman from HOU for P Lupe Chavez.
TOR acquires P Francisco Liriano, C Reese McGuire and OF Harold Ramirez for SP Drew Hutchison.
2020 – 18-14 entering Aug. 31 deadline
TOR acquires SP Taijuan Walker from SEA for player to be named later.
TOR acquires SP Robbie Ray from ARI for RP Travis Bergen.
TOR acquires SP Ross Stripling for two players to be named later.
TOR acquires INF Jonathan Villar for player to be named later.
2021 – 51-48 entering July 30 deadline
TOR acquires RP Brad Hand from WSH for C Riley Adams.
TOR acquires RP Joakim Soria from ARI for two players to be named later.
TOR acquires SP Jose Berrios from MIN for SP Simeon Woods Richardson and OF Austin Martin.
2022 – 57-45 record entering Aug. 2 deadline
TOR acquires P Mitch White and INF Alex De Jesus from LAD for P Moises Brito and P Nick Frasso.
TOR acquires RP Anthony Bass, RP Zach Pop and a player to be named later from MIA for INF Jordan Groshans.
TOR acquires INF Whit Merrifield from KCR for P Max Castillo and UTL Samad Taylor.
2023 – 59-48 record entering Aug. 1 deadline
TOR acquires RP Genesis Cabrera from STL for C Sammy Hernandez.
TOR acquires RP Jordan Hicks from STL for P Sem Robberse and P Adam Kloffenstein.
TOR acquires INF Paul DeJong from STL for P Matt Svanson.
Team needs
Ross Atkins Mark Shapiro Toronto Blue Jays
Atkins told reporters on June 30 he believed the Jays were one of five to 10 teams in position to make significant moves ahead of the trade deadline. He didn’t point to anything overly specific, but indicated the club could look to target pitching, as well as a right-handed bat.
"Adding a right-handed hitter to our team is something we've been trying to do internally and considered external alternatives, as well. But on the run-prevention side, it's probably going to come from pitching, as good as our defence has been,” Atkins said.
The Jays have actually excelled from the right side of the plate this season, posting a .755 OPS, the fourth-highest team total in all of baseball. From the other side of the plate the Jays are 20th with a .697 OPS.
Those numbers might actually suggest the Jays could use some left-handed hitter help at the deadline, but they might getting it anyway. Both Daulton Varsho and Anthony Santander are on their way back from injury, which should at the very least give a Jays lineup that’s been one of the best in baseball over the last few months more depth.
Varsho is battling a hamstring strain and has not played since May 31. The 29-year-old has been running the bases and appears close to beginning a rehab assignment.
Santander’s return is a bit more up in the air. Manager John Schneider told reporters earlier this month he’ll start hitting again “hopefully soon” as he battles a shoulder injury. But he’s currently on the 60-day injured list, which means he can’t be activated before the end of July.
It’s cliché in baseball circles, but getting these two back should serve as enough of a boost to the lineup where Atkins and Co. don’t need to overpay for another bat on the trade market.
As for the pitching staff, it feels like that’s the area where the Jays could improve most ahead of July 31. The starting rotation is 25th in team ERA at 4.60 and the bullpen feels one key injury away from being incredibly vulnerable at the back end. TSN Baseball Insider Steve Phillips listed some possible pitching trade targets for Toronto in his column on Friday. Let’s take a quick look at each of them.
Possible targets
Zac Gallen Arizona Diamondbacks
The starting rotation
Zac Gallen – Arizona Diamondbacks
2025 stats: 5.40 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 115.0 IP, 110 SO
Gallen may carry a front-line starter’s price given his success in past years, but his ERA sitting north of 5.00 might cause some concern in the market. He’s scheduled to become a free agent after the season and with the D-Backs 5.5 games out of a Wild Card spot, this one could come right down to the wire.
Merrill Kelly – Arizona Diamondbacks
2025 stats: 3.34 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 116.0 IP, 113 SO
If the D-Backs are going to sell, presumably Kelly and Gallen will each become available. Kelly has had a far better 2025 than Gallen and almost as much of a track record to make an acquiring team believe his success is sustainable.
Adrian Houser – Chicago White Sox
2025 stats: 1.59 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 57.2 IP, 39 SO
Houser has emerged out of virtually nowhere to become an intriguing trade chip for the White Sox. He joined the Texas Rangers as a free agent this past winter and had a 5.03 ERA at Triple-A Round Rock before being released in mid-May. Five days later, he joined the Southsiders and owns a 1.56 ERA in nine starts. Go figure.
2025 stats: 2.34 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 77.0 IP, 56 SO
Mahle has been successful in 2025 but comes with a couple warning labels. First off, he’s currently working his way back from a rotator cuff strain and hasn’t pitched in over a month. He’s also expensive. The 30-year-old is in the final year of a backloaded two-year deal which sees him making $16.5 million this season with another $5 million available in incentives.
The bullpen
Emmanuel Clase - Cleveland Guardians
2025 Stats: 2.91 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 43.1 IP, 42 SO
Clase remains one of the better closers in baseball and is under club control for a few more seasons. But the Guardians seem to trade everyone – not named Jose Ramirez – eventually, so if they continue to sit well back of the playoff picture as the deadline approaches, you never know.
Ryan Helsley - St. Louis Cardinals
2025 stats: 3.27 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 33.0 IP, 36 SO
This month’s deadline represents the St. Louis Cardinals’ last chance to trade closer Ryan Helsley with him set for free agency this winter. Except the Cardinals, who essentially punted on the off-season, have been surprisingly good this year. It’s always tough for a team in the race to trade key pieces, even if it means they might walk for nothing as free agents a few months later.
2025 Stats: 1.66 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 43.1 IP, 49 SO
The Twins are four games out of a playoff spot and have virtually no hope of winning the division with the Detroit Tigers out to an 11.5-game lead. Duran is arbitration eligible in 2026 and 2027, so the Twins shouldn’t feel any pressure to deal him. But if they make him and his 1003. mph average fastball available, teams will be calling.
2025 Stats: 3.92 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 41.1 IP, 66 SO
Like Duran, Jax is under contract for two more seasons after this one. He had 10 saves in 2024 and could prove to be a much more budget friendly option from the Twins’ crop of trade chips.
Dylan Lee - St. Louis Cardinals
2025 Stats: 2.55 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 42.1 IP, 45 SO
Lee is a reliable left-hander that’s combined for a 2.50 ERA the past four seasons. Brendon Little has been great, but southpaw supply is thin behind him in the Toronto bullpen. Lee or another lefty that could be used comfortably in high-leverage situations could plug multiple holes.
Hunter Gaddis - Cleveland Guardians
2025 Stats: 3.69 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 39.0 IP, 44 SO
Counting the postseason last year, Gaddis has appeared in 127 games since the start of 2024. He’s a bullpen workhorse who doesn’t give up a ton of hard contact and isn’t fully arbitration eligible until 2027. Interested in years of control, anyone?