With the MLB trade deadline now just a mere two days away, the pressure is on Toronto Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins to do what he can to bolster his club's roster for the stretch run of the season.
Atkins has already watched as Toronto's AL East rival in the New York Yankees acquired Andrew Benintendi from the Kansas City Royals. On the other hand, the Seattle Mariners, who sit right below the Blue Jays in the AL wild-card standings, went all out to haul in Luis Castillo from the Cincinnati Reds.
The Blue Jays approach the trade deadline with multiple glaring needs. Among them, they are quite desperate for any bullpen reinforcements. Their bullpen ERA sits at a 3.91 mark in the campaign, which ranks at 14th in the majors. Their relievers have tallied for a collective 1.0 fWAR.
Atkins may find himself in bidding wars for some of the top available relievers in the majors today, including Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Gregory Soto. However, if he decides to part ways with multiple coveted prospects in the organization to bring in a standout hitter or starting pitcher, he may not have much to then trade for a prized reliever. In the case that this comes to fruition, he could at the least look toward these low-risk, high-reward options for the bullpen.
2 sneaky MLB trade deadline targets for Blue Jays
Jarlin Garcia
The San Francisco Giants may not completely wave the white flag on their campaign in the coming days, as they sit at a mere 4.5 games back of the Philadelphia Phillies for the third wild-card spot in the National League. At the least, Atkins should make a notable effort to complete a move for reliever Jarlin Garcia.
As has been the case for several other relievers on the Giants roster, Garcia has so far regressed a bit on the mound. Opponents have hit .400 against Garcia with runners in scoring position this season, which comes after he notched a .191 batting average in such in-game situations in the 2021 campaign.
However, Garcia can prove to be an X-factor for the Blue Jays in situational at-bats, such as when they are in need of a crucial out against a left-handed batter. The veteran reliever has held lefties to a .225 batting average this season.
Considering that Garcia is under team control for one more year, Atkins may need to orchestrate a quality trade package in order to soon see him don a Blue Jays jersey. Nonetheless, the lefty hurler can add another dimension to Toronto's bullpen.
Anthony Bass
If the Blue Jays prefer not to offer up much for a relief pitcher, they could look toward a reunion with Miami Marlins’ Anthony Bass, who is set to become a free agent later this year.
At the age of 34, Bass has so far orchestrated the most formidable season of his career in the majors. He has posted career highs across the board, from ERA+ (290) to strikeouts per nine innings (9.1).
Bass has continued to enjoy success with his wipeout slider, but his rejuvenated sinker has upped the quality of his overall pitch arsenal. He has been able to muster up a 5.8 percent swinging strike percentage against his sinker pitch — his highest such mark in six seasons. More so, he has held opposing batters to a .196 batting average off of the pitch.
Bass has proven over the years that he can be a workhorse reliever out of the bullpen, and the Blue Jays should consider bringing him back ahead of the trade deadline.
In the big picture, both Garcia and Bass do boast keen swing and miss pitches, which is what Atkins is eyeing in the coming days.
“It’s not just about power,” Atkins said last week. “Swing and miss is definitely effective. I think that would be the one area where, if we could add more swing and miss, that would be a positive. Right-handed or left-handed is really going to depend on other things we do.”
In the case that the Blue Jays opt to shy away from adding a reliever, Atkins does at the least see “potential options” on the roster who could be provided with more of an opportunity to find a role out of the bullpen.
“There are some other guys in our system that we’re thinking about as potential options,” Atkins said. “I’d rather not name them and increase the pressure on certain individuals, but we do feel pretty good about some depth options that we have throughout our system.”
The Blue Jays have been quite active in previous trade deadlines, and now much attention is set on whether they will soon make any notable moves.
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