The Toronto Blue Jays could undergo a multitude of changes by the trade deadline. These 3 players won't be on the roster by then.
At 41-35, the Jays would be in a great spot in most divisions. Unfortunately, the AL East is not most divisions.
Toronto has a lot of work to do if they are to make the postseason, as they must overcome the Yankees and/or Orioles in their own division, and perhaps some other American League contenders to snag a Wild Card spot.
Some reliable starting pitching would help, and that's likely what the Jays will target first. But this team has plenty of roster holes to fill, and far too much talent to miss out on the postseason. Toronto third baseman Matt Chapman has essentially been holding this team together during what's been some tough times of late.
"If you want to be a true leader," Chapman said, per The Athletic. "it can't all just be about you showing up, doing your work. You have to be all-in on the team."
In times of strife this season — such as when Alek Manoah was sent down to get his groove back recently — Chapman was the first to speak up.
"It was good to hear in the moment," Manoah said. "Especially from somebody that everybody kind of holds his words with a lot of weight."
Players like Chapman — and the Vlad Jr.'s, Bo Bichette's and more — likely aren't going anywhere prior to the trade deadline Others, however, won't be as lucky.
Blue Jays who won't survive the deadline: Tyler Heineman
The Jays traded for Tyler Heineman, who spent some of last season with them, as catching help. Thanks to the Alejandro Kirk injury, Heineman has received more playing time than originally expected.
However, Heineman is merely a third catcher on this roster when Kirk is healthy, which is why he likely won't survive the majors on the big-league squad. He was only called back up from Buffalo a few days ago, and while he's a good story, he's not a long-term answer.
Kirk took a fastball off his right hand a few days back, which is why he was placed on the injured list to begin with. Nonetheless, he's expected back in a little over a week. Per MLB Trade Rumors, there isn't much room for Heineman on the roster when Kirk comes back.
"(Kirk) started the season well, putting up a .274/.418/.387 line through the end of April. Over the past month and a half, he's managed only a .241/.285/.302 showing. Jansen, who'll get the bulk of the catching reps while Kirk is out, has been on an opposite trajectory. He had a .179/.246/.375 slash through the season's first month-plus but has found his power stroke with a .235/.286/.506 mark going back to May 1."
Yes, Jansen started off the season rough, but if he's finding his stroke now, he's clearly a better option than Heineman.
Blue Jays who won't survive the deadline: Ernie Clement
Yes, this one isn't exactly shocking. Ernie Clement has just seven at-bats with the Jays so far, and he's hitting .429. Perhaps his best moment in a Toronto uniform came on the mound, though, as he saved the Blue Jays from exhausting their bullpen in a blowout defeat to the Miami Marlins. Clement brought out his best knuckler, and gave up three hits and a run.
Per Yahoo, "there was more to Clement's appearance than the box score reveals. It was made special by the fact he featured a 53.3 mph knuckleball. The pitch was not notably effective, but in 2023 it's remarkable to see an offering that has become unbelievably rare in recent years…Now, Clement's knuckler is not a pitch that could be described as an effective one. Of those 15 knuckleballs, 11 have been called balls, three have gone for hits — including a home run — and one resulted in a ground-ball double play."
So, Clement isn't about to become a two-way player anytime soon. He's a "break-glass-in-case-of-emergency pitcher," and most notably a third-string or worse infielder. Basically, there's not much room for him on the Toronto roster unless someone else is injured.
Clement is a journeyman, and the smart money is on him remaining that way after the trade deadline. The Jays have too much talent on their infield.
Blue Jays who won't survive the deadline: Alek Manoah
Toronto won't get much for Alek Manoah if they trade him right now, but he's been a downright disaster in 2023. Manoah isn't arbitration-eligible until 2025, which makes his contract attractive to certain teams which believe they can fix him.
The Athletic's Jim Bowden thinks a Manoah deal could be in the cards if Toronto gets the right offer: "The Blue Jays are focused on fixing the demoted Manoah, not trading him, but that doesn't stop teams from targeting the 25-year-old. He's not arbitration-eligible until 2025."
Manoah, who is just one year removed from an AL All-Star appearance, 16 wins and a 2.24 ERA, has tripled that mark this season. In his last start against the Houston Astros, he recorded just one out, giving up seven hits and six earned runs.
Former Blue Jays pitcher Ricky Romero, who followed a similar trajectory to Manoah before he mysteriously bottomed out, has sympathy for the current Toronto ace:
"I felt like I was letting them down if I went on the shelf, too. As time has gone on and the more I think about it, it probably wasn't one of the smartest things to do. I should have probably taken a little bit more caution with it, and I didn't. It's not like the team was battling for a playoff spot or anything like that, so I should have been smarter. A little bit of stubbornness and knowing how mentally tough I was, and I am, I wanted to just fight through the season," Romero said, per Jays Journal.
It's early, but Manoah has shown some improvement during his developmental stint. The Jays, though, could be better off shipping him away now for whatever value he does have, rather than waiting to find out if he's really made the necessary improvements to return to his 2022 form.
