The 2022 season is winding down quickly and with just over 50 games remaining, fans are left wondering if they Blue Jays did enough at the trade deadline to compete with the likes of the New York Yankees and the Houston Astros come playoff time. The past few years, General Manager Ross Atkins has made some large splashes at the deadline to acquire top-level talent to compliment the young core of the team. This year, however, Atkins and the organization were a little timid in their pursuit of the top-tier players available, opting for minor moves to address obvious weak areas. The moves made, albeit not jaw-dropping, were and will be beneficial for the team during the stretch run, throughout the postseason, and in the years to come without having to part with their top prospects in the system. The question remains though, is it enough to compete with the beasts of the American League come playoff time.
Pitching
The Toronto Blue Jays had high expectations coming into the 2022 season, quite notably their starting rotation seemed poised to be one of their stronger units in decades. Everyone knows this team can mash the ball on any given night with the likes of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, and George Springer leading the way but what was promising was their starting 5 arms on opening day.
Hyun-Jin Ryu, Jose Berrios, Alek Manoah, Kevin Gausman, and Yusei Kikuchi on paper looked like one of the strongest units in baseball but it has not quite gone according to plan in 2022. Ryu unfortunately had to undergo Tommy John surgery abruptly ending his season early, while Jose Berrios is having the worst year of his career right after the Jays signed him to a seven-year, $131-million extension in the offseason. On top of that, Kikuchi has been anything but consistent for the team this year. Thankfully for Toronto, Gausman and Manoah are having terrific seasons respectively to keep things slightly in check when they take the hill every fifth day. All these things combined would make one believe that Ross Atkins and the Blue Jays organization were going to be busy at the deadline trying to improve the starting rotation, while also helping a depleted bullpen.
Deadline Acquisitions
The Jays ended up making three deadline moves that Atkins is “exceptionally excited” about that brought two-time all-star Whit Merrifield from Kansas City, pitchers Zach Pop and Anthony Bass from Miami, and Mitch White from the Dodgers north of the border.
Merrifield was a huge question mark after being acquired as he was unvaccinated meaning he technically couldn’t even play in Canada. Luckily for the team, he did end up getting the vaccine meaning he will be able to suit up for home games. That wasn’t the only risk made by bringing in Merrifield as he is currently having one of his worst years of his career. With that being said, he led the league in hits in both 2018 and 2019, still steals a lot of bases, and offers lineup flexibility with his ability to play all over the field so maybe a change of scenery can bring back some magic in his bat. Worst case scenario, he can plug right in at most positions if anyone is injured (George Springer was just listed to the 10-day IL) and he is a perfect guy to have coming off your bench in key situations whether to hit, play defense, or steal a base.
The most notable acquisition that should immediately pay dividends for a team struggling on the back-end is reliever Anthony Bass. Bass is no stranger to the Blue Jays as he pitched for the team in 2020 but he has refined his arsenal since then and is having a tremendous season thus far pitching to a career-best 1.40 ERA and has “swing-and-miss” stuff, something the Jays relievers don’t possess a lot of currently. “One of the things that's a bit different is his slider usage and the effectiveness of that pitch,” the Jays GM said. “But him pitching late in games for us and complementing Yimi García, Adam Cimber, and Timmy Mayza is exciting to think about.” Zach Pop was the other reliever they received in that trade with Miami that saw the Jays send their 4th best prospect in Jordan Groshans in return to the Marlins. Pop is a Canadian boy, growing up in Brampton, Ontario and is a sinker-heavy guy that tops out at 97 mph and can produce a lot of ground balls. It’s tough seeing the Jays give up a top prospect but these guys should be around in the back end of Toronto’s bullpen for the foreseeable future while not warranting a ton of payroll.
The last deadline deal the Jays pulled off was the acquisition of Mitch White from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Although it wasn’t a very flashy one, it will certainly help the team navigate through the struggles of Berrios and Kikuchi for the time being as White can plug in as a spot starter and/or a long-inning relief guy. White can best be compared to the Jays deadline deal last year for Ross Stripling, a guy that can plug in whenever and wherever necessary to eat innings. He has pitched to a 3.70 ERA thus far this season with the Dodgers and the Jays did not have to give much up in return for White.
The Juggernauts of the AL East
The Blue Jays sat back and watched as the AL East leading New York Yankees, who already look like they’re on a mission this season, make all the necessary moves to make their team better moving toward the postseason.
They added rotation help by acquiring Frankie Montas from the Oakland A’s, outfield help in all-star Andrew Benintendi from the Kansas City Royals, while also shoring up their bullpen. If it wasn’t secure already, the Yankees seem to have all but wrapped up the AL East which means the Jays are going to have to go into the postseason climbing uphill to battle for a title. Right on their heels in the wildcard race is the Seattle Mariners who acquired arguably the top arm available at the deadline in Luis Castillo from the Cincinnati Reds, so it’s not going to be easy to even secure a playoff berth at this point. That coupled with the always pesky Tampa Bay Rays and the surprising Baltimore Orioles, it’s going to be an exciting finish to the season to see who can secure those last playoff spots.
It wasn’t a deadline of epic proportions, as some Blue Jays fans might’ve expected, but the Blue Jays made modest upgrades that adds bullpen depth, lineup flexibility, and lineup diversity. The team has quietly gotten over their early season struggles and after firing manager Charlie Montoyo sit atop the wildcard standings with a record of 60-50. Although they missed out on the big names available at the deadline, they did still improve their team overall and still possess the foundation that made the team exciting coming into the season. This young, electric team has been showing more and more signs of life in the second half of the year but come playoff time it always comes down to pitching so only time will tell if Atkins did enough to compete in October with the likes of the Yankees and Astros.