The American League standings are beginning to gain some clarity when it comes to potential buyers and sellers. One team, the Toronto Blue Jays, will likely be a presence at the trade deadline. The Blue Jays are open to trading players who will be free agents after the season, sources told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. Toronto is 41-50 with less than a five percent chance of making the postseason. Multiple players including Yusei Kikuchi, Yimi García, Justin Turner, Kevin Kiermaier, Danny Jansen and Trevor Richards are some notable impending free agents. Despite being open to moving rental players, Toronto will not move players with control beyond this season, sources told Feinsand.
Blue Jays Trade Rumors: Toronto Could Be a Presence at Deadline
The Blue Jays are 9 1/2 games back of the AL Wild Card race with eight teams ahead of them in the chase for the three spots. Since June 17, the Blue Jays are 5-14, general manager Ross Atkins knows it would take a massive turnaround to stay in the hunt.
“We’ve dug ourselves into a hole and we recognize that getting back into the race is going to require a win streak and playing good baseball more consistnely,” Atkins said. “There’s still a little bit of time, nbut we recognize that’s running out. Right now we’re going day by day, inning by inning, and we will be ready to pivot in either direction.”
“I think that front office wants to win before they break up this group, and the window for them is closing,” a National League executive said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they give it one mroe run and possibly even add to their roster– unless the bottom completely falls out over the next few weeks.”
Blue Jays Impending Free Agents
Here’s the Blue Jays impending free agents and their salarys for the 2024 season.
- Turner, IF/DH ($13 million)
- Kiermaier, OF ($10.5 million)
- Kikuchi, LHP ($10 million)
- García, RHP ($6 million)
- Richards, RHP ($2.5 million)
- Jansen, C ($5.2 million)
Out of the six players, Kikuchi, García and Richards should bring back the best returns of that group. Feinsand noted that the Blue Jays may gave to pay down both Turner’s and Kiermaier’s contracts in order to trade them.
“I think they sell impending free agents, but nothing else unless they get blown away,” an NL executive said.
Blue Jays Controllable Players
Some of the Blue Jays controllable players have some household names.
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B ($19.9 million, arbitration eligble in 2025)
- Bo Bichette, SS ($12.083 million, $17,583 million in 2025)
- Chris Bassitt, RHP ($22 million in 2025)
- Chad Green, RHP ($10.5 million in 2025)
- Jordan Romano, RHP ($7.5 million, arbitration eligble in 2025)
Guerrero, Bichette Bassit and Roman will join George Springer, Kevin Gausman and José Berríos in 2025. That could give Toronto a strong core if they actually streghten their roster with some offseason acquistions.
“There’s some chance they run it back next year,” an AL exectutive said. “They should be so much better. It has to be extremly frustrating for them.”
This was supposed to be the core, with Guerrero and Bichette, to lead Toronto back to the glory days. However, it hasn’t panned out altogether. It was one of two roads the Blue Jays ended up on, the other being for hope that it would comess with success.
The overall consesus among many executives is that the Blue Jays will attempt to move most or all of their rential players. They need to work on adding prospects to a depleted farm system that is ranked in the bottom-ten by MLB Pipeline.
Main Photo: © Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports
