The MLB trade deadline has come and gone and one of the teams that was heavily involved in making moves were the Toronto Blue Jays.
Our article will break down the Toronto Blue Jays days after the trade deadline.
This will include the state of their pitching and hitting, which players were acquired and traded away and discuss their playoff chances as we inch closer to the end of the season.
Simply put, the Blue Jays’ pitching staff has been a major flaw this season. As a group, the Blue Jays have a team earned run average of 4.64. This ranks among the worst in the league as they are 28th in this category.
To really highlight their struggles, all of Blue Jays’ starting pitchers have an ERA of 3.90 or higher. Their ‘best’ starter this season has been Jose Berrios, who has an ERA of 3.93 and has a record of 9-8.
Second is Chris Bassitt, who is currently 8-10 and has an ERA of 4.02. Third on the list is Kevin Gausman, who has a record of 9-8 and an ERA of 4.44.
Considering the state of the Blue Jays’ pitching, they will need to see a massive improvement over the next couple of months if they are going to have any chance of a postseason appearance.
To go along with the struggles of the Blue Jays’ pitching, their batting has been just as mediocre.
As a team, the Blue Jays are hitting .239, which ranks 19th in the league. Their biggest standout is Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who leads the team in batting average (.311), home runs (21), RBIs (70), and hits (130).
Other standouts include Dalton Varsho (13 home runs and 46 RBIs) and George Springer (13 home runs and 41 RBIs).
Toronto was very busy at the trade deadline, acquiring a total of 14 players, while trading away eight players.
Of all their acquisitions, Ryan Yarbrough is one of the standouts. The Blue Jays traded Kevin Kiermaier (Center-Fielder) to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Yarbough (Left-Handed Pitcher) in an attempt to bolster their pitching rotation. So far this season, Yarbough is 4-2 and has an ERA of 3.74.
In terms of players who were traded away, this includes Left-Handed Pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, Catcher Danny Jansen, Utility Player Isaiah Kiner-Falera, and of course, Kiermaier.
It is also worth noting that most of the players Toronto received were top prospects from other teams.
This gives them more hope for the future as these new acquisitions start to develop in the Minor Leagues.
The MLB season is well over halfway through, meaning the playoff races are starting to take shape.
As it stands, the Blue Jays are in a rough situation, currently sitting at 50-59 (5th in the American League East Division).
They are a full 15.0 games behind the Baltimore Orioles, making their chances to win the AL East miniscule.
When it comes to the American League Wild-Card, the Blue Jays are well off the pace as well, sitting 10 games behind the Kansas City Royals for the third and final playoff spot.
In terms of their odds for making the playoffs the Blue Jays are +2000 for the Yes and -20000 for the No.
The Blue Jays are simply average in most categories and it has shown on the field.
They have had trouble stringing together multiple wins and have not been able to keep pace with an American League East Division that has two of the league’s best teams in it.