The Toronto Blue Jays‘ 2026 season has not gone to plan.
Toronto made it to the World Series last year, but all signs point to the team missing the playoffs this season. The Blue Jays will be sellers ahead of the August 3 MLB Trade Deadline, but Toronto could also look to be buyers.
Blue Jays insider Mitch Bannon of The Athletic believes Toronto could look to acquire a controllable starting pitcher like Jose Soriano to help the 2027 team.
“The Jays will sell, moving significant pieces off the MLB roster, but still bring in a big-fish starting pitcher with multiple years of control. They need an addition like José Soriano, Reid Detmers or Nick Lodolo to compete in 2027, and can get some of that work done early,” Bannon wrote.
The Blue Jays adding a controllable starting pitcher makes a ton of sense. Kevin Gausman, Max Scherzer, and Shane Bieber could all be traded and are pending free agents, so replacing them makes sense.
And if Toronto deals some marquee names, the Blue Jays should be fine trading away some prospects to acquire a starter, as they will get some impact prospects back.
Blue Jays Wanted Controllable Pitching
Toronto was hoping to be a buyer ahead of the deadline, but that won’t be the case.
At the end of June, the Blue Jays were hopeful to add, but a month later, that won’t happen. However, a month ago, GM Ross Atkins said the team’s biggest need is controllable starting pitching, which is what Toronto still needs.
“It’s probably starting pitching, but it’s not as easy as just deciding to do that,” Atkins said. “Because we have five starters that we’re confident in. You can just never have enough.
“We’ve talked about that a lot over the years and over this year, specifically, as we started heavy in that category. We’re just always looking to support that. In an ideal world, it would be optionable starting pitching, one of the hardest things to acquire in baseball.”
Toronto lost Jose Berrios, Cody Ponce, and Bowden Francis for the season. So, there will be some question marks next year in the rotation, so the Blue Jays will need to add a couple of starters, so doing it now via trades makes sense.
Gausman Hopes to Not be Traded
As the deadline nears, Gausman’s name has come up in trade rumors.
Gausman is one of the top starters available, but he has expressed his love for Toronto and has said he hopes he doesn’t get traded but knows it is a business at the end of the day.
“I hope I don’t go anywhere. I don’t want to go anywhere. That would be my wish, and that would mean that we’re playing good baseball,” Gausman said after the loss. “But I also realize it’s a business. Whatever happens, it’s kind of out of my control.”
Gausman is in the final year of his five-year, $110 million deal, which is one of the best free agent signings in franchise history.
The right-hander is 4-10 with a 4.51 ERA in 22 starts.
Blue Jays Predicted to Make Surprising Move at Trade Deadline