Blue Jays only looking to trade rentals, plan on contending in 2025: report
Don’t expect the Toronto Blue Jays to make any earth-shattering deals ahead of the July 30 MLB trade deadline.
The Blue Jays have had an ugly season, sitting with a record of 44-52 through 96 games. Given their struggles, many felt that management may look to blow the core up, with trade rumours surrounding both Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette. That said, while their long-term futures remain in question, they are more than likely to be back in Toronto for the 2025 season, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney.
“What’s being communicated from the Blue Jays is they are going to talk about trading all of the rentals on the team, the guys who are free agents at the end of the year,” Olney said in a recent appearance on First Up on TSN1050.
“Players like Chris Bassitt, who is under contract for next year, are not available because the message coming from the Blue Jays is they intend to win in 2025.”
Though that may take away from a big trade some fans believe needs to happen, the Jays could still be quite active over the next 13 days. They have several players in the final year of their contract, including starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, outfielder Kevin Kiermaier, infielder/DH Justin Turner, relievers Yimi Garcia and Trent Richards, and catcher Danny Jansen.
Whether the Blue Jays can actually be competitive in 2025 remains to be seen. While they appeared to have a bright future ahead of them just a few years ago, things have died down in a hurry since. There are still some solid pieces around, but it seems fewer and fewer believe that Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins — who have just one playoff win since 2016 — can be the two to get this team back on top.
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