Despite being 10.5 games back of the Red Sox in the AL East, the Toronto Blue Jays are buying at the MLB Trade Deadline. On Thursday, they went out and added lefty reliever Brad Hand from the Washington Nationals, according to Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post.
Update: A deal to send Brad Hand to the Blue Jays is finished, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The selling begins for Washington.
— Jesse Dougherty (@dougherty_jesse) July 29, 2021
Even though the Blue Jays sit in 4th place in the AL East, they have a record of 50-48 and could track down one of the wildcard spots in the American League with a late push down the stretch.
The offense has never been a question this year and has really carried the load for Toronto. The bullpen however, has been a disaster. The Blue Jays' bullpen has a collective ERA of 4.06 and they've had their fair share of troubles closing out late leads. Now, they get Brad Hand, a great option on the backend.
In 42.1 innings for the Nationals this year, Hand has 42 strikeouts, and ERA of 3.59 and a WHIP of 1.14. Although the strikeout numbers are down and the walks are up for Hand, he still provides a clear upgrade for the Blue Jays out of their bullpen.
It wouldn't be a surprise to see Toronto target a starter or another bullpen arm as the trade deadline starts to wind down. They clearly are in buy mode as they try to catapult themselves into the postseason hunt. They'll have to leapfrog a couple of teams in their own division and elsewhere to do so but with their offense, it's certainly possible. Now, they have another bullpen arm to help as well.