The Toronto Blue Jays were a team that many expected to reach the post-season again in 2026, but with the team struggling to find any momentum as of late, all signs are pointing towards them being sellers ahead of the 2026 trade deadline.
While they won’t be motivated to move every player of value, if the offers are there, it makes sense for Ross Atkins to gauge interest in most of their valuable pieces, and it could mean big changes for a team that was in the World Series less than 12 months ago. One player that could intrigue rival teams is reliever Jeff Hoffman, and now, he’s been linked to a team that’s looking to get themselves to the World Series in 2026.
Phillies Showing Interest in Blue Jays Reliever
GettyJeff Hoffman of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Unfortunately, Hoffman may have been a key piece in costing the Blue Jays a World Series ring in 2025, and as a result of this and his early struggles in 2026, he’s garnered plenty of hatred from the passionate Canadian fanbase. Since then however, he’s turned things around, with just three earned runs allowed across his last 17.1 innings, with the overall ERA on the season back down to 4.40, but given how Toronto as a whole have struggled this season, it makes sense to recoup some type of value now while he’s in great form.
Now, the Philadelphia Phillies are a team that reportedly like the idea of reuniting with Hoffman, with USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reporting that the team would ‘love to add’ a player like Hoffman, who has significant post-season experience.
They will also be in on SP market, including Tarik Skubal, Robbie Ray, Clay Holmes.
Between 2023 and 2024, Hoffman made 122 appearances for the Phillies, posting a 2.28 ERA across 118.2 innings of work in that time, and if he’s available, he’s the exact type of leverage reliever that Philadelphia should be looking at as they pursue a World Series appearance in 2026.
Should the Blue Jays be Sellers in 2026?
For months now, Blue Jays fans have been holding out on that one run that would catapult them back into post-season contention, but that just hasn’t happened, and now, the team are sitting at 47-56 on the season, good for last in the American League East with a six game gap and six teams sitting between them and the final Wild Card spot in the AL.
While the team wanted to be cautious sellers for a potential run, as of right now that simply doesn’t make sense, and while they aren’t going to trade Kazuma Okamoto, Trey Yesavage, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or any of their young players, taking interest in a 33-year-old veteran like Hoffman makes perfect sense. On paper, this should be a very good team, but they simply haven’t gotten past the disappointment of the 2025 World Series result, and while they may bounce back in 2027 and make a run at the post-season, if there is genuine interest in Hoffman from the Phillies, look for the team to cash in on the talented reliever.
NL Contender Would Love to Trade for Polarizing Blue Jays Reliever