Atkins: Jays don't have big holes to fill leading up to deadline

Toronto Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins told reporters Wednesday he plans to upgrade the team before the Aug. 1 trade deadline.

He just isn’t sure how much work actually needs to be done.

“The challenge now is we don’t have the holes,” Atkins told reporters prior to Wednesday’s loss. “We have really, really good players at every position. Some of them may not be performing to their [expected] levels, but there’s not a position where we’re looking and saying we really need to fill that void.”

Atkins said he knows he has to make improvements in any way possible and not only rely on the players already on the team, but pointed out not having a glaring need is a good spot to be in.

“You would rather be in that position where it is harder to make your team better,” he said.

MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson and Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star each point out the Jays could be in the market for a right-handed bat as both Brandon Belt and Daulton Varsho have struggled mightily this season against lefty pitchers. Toronto also lost a pair of established righty bats this off-season when they traded Teoscar Hernandez to the Seattle Mariners and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

"We believe in this group so much that making it better, we have to work to do it without some level of subtraction," said Atkins. "We do think there's a way to add a little bit of offence to the team without having to subtract anyone."
Another variable the Jays will need to sort out over the next week and a half is the starting rotation.

Alek Manoah was roughed up by the Padres Tuesday in his second start since being demoted to the minor leagues at the end of May. He has a 6.18 ERA for the season in 15 starts. Hyun Jin Ryu has impressed in rehab starts while recovering from Tommy John surgery and reliever Chad Green is also set to begin a rehab assignment as he works his way back from the same procedure.

"We feel very strongly about their track records, some of their playoff experiences, some of the just overall experiences as very, very good performers," Atkins said. "We're certainly optimistic that we're going to have them as options, but we also have to plan if someone has a setback, performance issues, or injury.

"But that's the case for everyone. You can never have enough pitching as they say, so we have a contingency plan but having that as a starting point is a good place to be."

If Ryu continues to progress and returns to the team with the rest of the rotation still intact, Atkins said the team could opt for a six-man rotation.

"There's some reason to consider that. Without the off days, I think we have 17 in a row and so [a six-man rotation] is something we're talking about," said Atkins. "There's a lot of variables but having that as an option would be a good thing."

Toronto begins play Thursday second in the American League Wild Card standings and third in the American League East, five and a half games behind the division-leading Baltimore Orioles. They will wrap up their three-game set Thursday with the Padres before heading to Seattle to take on the Mariners over the weekend.