The Toronto Blue Jays’ second half of the season will be devoted to planning for the future.
Toronto will be playing out the string because of their losing record at the All-Star break, which puts them out of contention. Of course, there will also be intriguing moments.
The Blue Jays, who want to move stars like Yusei Kikuchi, Justin Turner, Kevin Kiermaier, and others, are expected to be major sellers at this month’s trade deadline.
Even though the games’ outcomes will not really matter, there will be personal reasons to play, particularly for young players like Spencer Horwitz, Davis Schneider, and Leo Jiménez who want to maximize their playing time in order to establish their viability as a member of the team going ahead.
And, naturally, when a season goes as sideways as the Blue Jays’ season has, jobs will be at stake.
On that note, let’s look at three storylines for the second half.
Who will the Blue Jays trade at the deadline?
It’s a foregone conclusion the Blue Jays will sell at the deadline.
But following this disappointing year, the team will probably want to immediately retool and try again the following year. It is therefore doubtful that Bo Bichette or Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who are under team control through 2025, will be traded by the Blue Jays.
Without a doubt, the Blue Jays will try to trade players like Kikuchi, reliever Yimi García, and position players Turner, Kiermaier, and Danny Jansen who are set to become free agents at the end of the season. Pitching is always in high demand at the deadline, so both Kikuchi and García (when he returns from the IL on Friday) could draw interest, while contenders may be interested in Turner and Kiermaier’s valuable playoff experience.
But the Blue Jays will not get a lot of money from rentals. Moving one or two controllable players could help if they actually want to start building for the future, even 2025, which is not too far off. Chris Bassitt, a starter who is signed until 2025 and will make $22 million, is enjoying yet another successful campaign. Because of his longevity and playoff experience, he might be a desirable trade target for a respectable return. Another controllable arm that Toronto may try to trade for more money is reliever Chad Green, who has a $10.5 million contract that runs through the following season.
Naturally, Guerrero and (even in a slumping) Bichette would yield the highest returns, but given the recent millions the Blue Jays have invested in the stadium and players, it seems unlikely they will want to gamble on next season.
Which prospects will be showcased in the second half?
Seeing youngsters get chances with the major-league club is something to look forward to in the second half. Aside from injuries, the Blue Jays might not have a lot of guys available.
Top prospect Ricky Tiedemann would have been the ideal candidate, but it is unknown how healthy he is now after the left-hander suffered another setback in his previous Triple A start. Prioritizing Tiedemann’s recovery and gaining additional experience will come before thinking about a possible call-up. A roadblock in the way of left-hander Adam Macko’s promotion to the majors is his injury. Macko is enjoying a strong season in Double A.
Horwitz and Jiménez have already made a seamless adjustment to the majors for the Blue Jays, and if the team lets go of some veterans in the remaining two months, they may get additional playing time.
The Blue Jays may call up who else? Addison Barger might play again, particularly in the event that Kiermaier is traded by the Blue Jays. Steward Berroa might potentially see an increase in playing time in that similar situation.
Elvis Martinez, who was given an 80-game suspension for using performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), is eligible to play in the Blue Jays’ last homestand, however it is not obvious if the team would do so for the remaining six games.
What will be the repercussions of the disappointing 2024 season?
With a franchise-high payroll heading into the current season and over $300 million invested in Rogers Centre upgrades, the Blue Jays were well-prepared. The team was expected to contend as one of the top in the American League and pursue their first division championship in the AL East since 2015.
As it stands, the Blue Jays will win 74 games, fail to qualify for the postseason, and take last place in the division. Professional sports are a profitable industry, hence it usually results in job losses for those at the top when a team performs this poorly. And who will have to pay the price at the end of the season for the poor outcome for the Blue Jays?
The front-runners are manager John Schneider, general manager Ross Atkins, and club president Mark Shapiro. This season, all three have faced criticism from supporters, but Atkins—who has served as general manager since December 2015—may have faced the most scrutiny.
Atkins is signed through 2026. Last year, after the Blue Jays were swept out of the postseason by the Minnesota Twins in self-inflicted and controversial fashion, Shapiro defended the job Atkins had done. “Ross needs to get better, but he has done a good job,” the club president said.
Since the 2016 season, Atkins has built four playoff clubs, though the team is 0-6 in their last three postseason appearances, having been swept from the wild-card round in all three of the years that the Bichette-Guerrero led teams made the postseason.
Since moving to Toronto from Cleveland in 2015, Shapiro and Atkins have formed a strong partnership. However, with the fan base’s growing dissatisfaction with the club, there are loud cries for changes to be made. The ownership of Rogers Communications will ultimately determine whether Atkins, Shapiro, or both need to be replaced. The question then becomes, will the new GM or president want to appoint their own manager? Schneider has a team option for 2026 and is signed until 2025, but if there are any changes at the top, his status may not be guaranteed.
All of this to imply, even if the Blue Jays are merely finishing up a run of meaningless games, their season may still end dramatically.
(Top photos of Guerrero and Atkins: Sergio Estrada, Mark J. Rebilas / USA Today)
