A look at potential Jays trade targets
Published
TORONTO — With all of the roster work on the horizon this winter for the Toronto Blue Jays, it seems highly unlikely they’ll be able to stick solely to free agency when it comes to acquiring players.
That’s where the trade market comes in, and the Jays may actually have some chips that intrigue potential trade partners.
Maybe not at the blockbuster level, but swaps that can at least help.
One of the benefits of falling out of the race early and peddling off veteran assets was it gave the front office and coaching staff a good, long look at a number of prospects of different profiles and pedigrees.
Some performed, some didn’t, but it’s turned into a redundant group with similar skillsets and positions.
From high-contact, lefty swingers like Will Wagner and Spencer Horwitz, to glove-first middle infielders Leo Jimenez and Ernie Clement, who had a 2.2 fWAR season in his first real run as a major leaguer, to the high-upside power allure of Orelvis Martinez and Addison Barger, to forgotten man Davis Schneider — there’s no shortage of names in the mix.
Would one of these players bring you a controllable reliever back and, in turn, help de-clutter what’s likely to be a second base competition in spring training?
Time will tell, but here are some options to talk about:
Relievers
Unlike the free-agent target lists, I’m going to put two groups of players together that are most likely to be trade targets.
While they certainly could add a starting pitcher via trade, with the amount of quality arms available in free agency it seems like signing one of them for nothing but money would make sense.
That leaves relievers with years of team control remaining, who rebuilding teams should always be cashing in on in off-season trades, and some well-paid bats to target.
Here are the four best relievers deemed to be somewhat available at this point:
RHP Ryan Helsley, STL, age-30
RHP Devin Williams, MIL, age-30
RHP Ryan Pressly, HOU, age-36
RHP Calvin Faucher, MIA, age-29
This is the upper class of late-inning relievers who could be available, but there’s a chance none of these names move in the end.
The Cards and Brewers are both pseudo contenders in a wide open division, so both will have to be blown away to trade their all-star level closers, even if they’re both heading into their final year of team control.
They’d be a seamless replacement for the recently non-tendered Jordan Romano, but both will cost a lot to trade for, too.
Pressly and his $14-million salary for 2025 would be cheaper to trade for as the Astros look to shed some payroll, but calling the 36-year-old a surefire closer these days might be a stretch.
Faucher, 29, is the most unavailable of this group as the Marlins really have no reason to rush to trade a player not even arbitration eligible until next year, but the righty started to put it all together in the second half of last season with a 31.8 per cent K-rate and his value may never be higher.
Here are a few under-the-radar names that would fit:
RHP Camilo Doval, SF, age-27
RHP David Bednar, PIT, age-30
RHP Robert Suarez, SD, age-34
LHP Yuki Matsui, SD, age-29
Doval and Bednar are both former high-end arms who struggled mightily this past season.
One year after a 2.93 ERA, Doval posted a 4.88 mark and lost his job. Bednar was even worse, struggling to a 5.77 ERA.
Suarez and Matsui are two arms with closer stuff on a team potentially looking to trim some salary.
Finally, here are three players that I’d trade for in a heartbeat but are probably not available:
RHP Jhoan Duran, MIN, age-27
RHP Matt Brash, SEA, age-27
RHP Seth Halvorsen, COL, age-25
Duran is arbitration eligible for the first time, which means he’s slowly getting more expensive. Too expensive for the Twins? You never know, but it would take multiple top prospects to pry him away.
Brash, the Canadian kid, is on his way back from TJ surgery early next season, so he’s likely not going anywhere, but these teams have hooked up on multiple trades recently.
The Rockies have no reason to trade Halvorsen, so consider this just a fantasy heads up that he’s the best arm in that bullpen.
The Bats
If you look around baseball right now there aren’t a lot of teams that are undergoing full-scale rebuilds, and the ones that are aren’t exactly overflowing with talent to trade away.
Take the American League for example.
In the AL East, no one is rebuilding. You can make the case the Jays are the ones that need to be, while the Rays are always toeing that line.
In the AL Central, it’s the lowly White Sox with their bare-bones roster. The four other teams are all on the upswing and spending.
Amazingly, out west, no one is tearing down after the Sac-Vegas A’s just handed out their biggest contract ever to Luis Severino and the Angels have been one of the most active teams to start the off-season.
In the National League, you can fairly peg the Nationals, Marlins and Rockies as teams that are rebuilding, while a handful of others are trying to balance things out, like the Padres, Cardinals and Brewers.
In other words, obvious trade targets are few and far between.
The Jays need help in three areas: third base, left field and likely some sort of DH type.
Here are a handful of hot-corner options who could be or seem to be already available:
3B Alec Bohm, PHI, age-28
3B Nolan Arenado, STL, age-34
3B Ryan McMahon, COL, age-30
3B Ke’Bryan Hayes, PIT, age-28
3B Brett Baty, NYM, age-25
Bohm and Arenado are fully available and would fill the Jays’ need for a third baseman who can hit in the middle of the lineup, but neither is a perfect fit skills or contract wise, respectively.
Bohm needs more power, while Arenado is owed $74 million through 2027.
The Rockies will probably just keep McMahon in an effort to win 70 games, for whatever reason.
Baty would fit nicely after Mark Vientos’ emergence, while Hayes hasn’t fulfilled expectations up to this point and is signed to a long-term deal.
And, finally, a group of players at other positions who would be fits:
1B/DH Josh Naylor, CLE, age-28
LF/DH LaMonte Wade Jr., SF, age-31
LF Lane Thomas, CLE, age-29
LF Cody Bellinger, CHC, age-29
C Christian Vazquez, MIN, age-34
Naylor is a local left-handed hitter who fits in every way except for the position he plays, but splitting Naylor and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. between first base and DH doesn’t seem like the worst plan ever.
Wade is an on-base machine who would help a bit, while Thomas and Bellinger would be clear upgrades on anything the Jays have in left field.
Vazquez, 34, is owed $10 million in the final year of his contract, but if the Twins paid that down to backup catcher money he’d be a perfect veteran caddy for Alejandro Kirk.
Backup catcher is quietly an important hole to fill, too