The Toronto Blue Jays are off to a bit of a slow start this season, and it can be traced back to several injuries to their starting pitchers. Trey Yesavage is returning on Tuesday and will make his anticipated season debut. Jose Berrios is also set to begin a rehab assignment soon, as he’s still dealing with an elbow injury.
However, one starter the Blue Jays do have is Kevin Gausman, and he’s been pretty effective to start the season, but his name has still surfaced in trade conversations. Could the Blue Jays think about trading Gausman? A recent trade proposal by SI.com’s Ryan Shea features the Blue Jays trading Gausman to the San Diego Padres.
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Blue Jays Trade Prediction Offloads Kevin Gausman to Padres
GettyKevin Gausman of the Toronto Blue Jays could be on the trade block this season.
The Padres are one of the best teams in MLB right now, and one of their biggest needs is a frontline starter.
However, the thought of the Blue Jays trading away Kevin Gausman is a bit asinine. He’s off to a strong start this season, and is the anchor of Toronto’s rotation.
But Shea proposes this package as one that could potentially get a deal done:
“Blue Jays Acquire: RHP Tucker Musgrove, RHP Jaxon Dalena, RHP Kannon Kemp
Padres Acquire: RHP Kevin Gausman”
Gausman has made six starts this season and has a 2.57 ERA over 35 innings with 38 strikeouts. The Blue Jays inked him to a five-year, $110 million contract a few seasons ago, and he’s set to be a free agent after the season ends, which could be the reason Shea is proposing this deal now.
As for San Diego, this would be a good trade for them, and AJ Preller has been known as a guy who will trade several assets of the Padres’ farm system to address team needs.
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Would the Blue Jays Consider Making This Deal?
If the Kevin Gausman trade buzz is actually real, the Blue Jays will likely want to wait it out for as long as possible before making a decision on his future with the team.
Given that the rotation is so beat up right now, Toronto needs Gausman for the time being, and his success as a starter is vast.
He’s a 14-year MLB veteran and is one of those starters who has found his stuff late in his career.
Over the last five seasons with Toronto, Gausman has made 31 starts and has an ERA of 3.44 with 831 strikeouts over 730+ innings.
And if the Blue Jays do trade him, they may be asking for a better package that includes MLB-ready players, instead of just a prospect haul. While it’s a strong return package proposed by SI.com, it may not be one the Blue Jays want to entertain right now.
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Blue Jays Predicted to Trade Away $110 Million Pitcher to Padres for Strong Prospect Package