Blue Jays have traded reliever Trevor Richards on deadline day: report

The Toronto Blue Jays have made their first move on MLB trade deadline day, sending reliever Trevor Richards to the Minnesota Twins.

Twins acquiring Trevor Richards from Blue Jays source tells @ShiDavidi & me

— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) July 30, 2024

Per Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson, the Jays will receive Jay Harry, a High-A infielder, in return. The 22-year-old his hitting .214 with eight home runs and 39 RBIs through 295 at bats this season.

Richards, 31, was acquired by the Blue Jays along with Bowden Francis in a trade that saw Rowdy Tellez head to the Milwaukee Brewers during the 2021 season. While not an elite-level reliever, he will help provide some depth to the Twins’ bullpen. In 52.1 innings for the Jays this season, he put together a 4.64 ERA with 49 strikeouts while issuing 24 walks.

This is the first move of the deadline for the Twins, who currently sit in an AL wild-card position thanks to a 58-47 record. As for the Jays, this is one of several trades they have made over the past few days.

Due to a disappointing 50-57 record, Blue Jays management chose to sell ahead of the deadline, moving out many players including Yimi Garcia, Nate Pearson, Danny Jansen, Justin Turner, and Yusei Kikuchi. They may not be done just yet, either, as Chad Green and Isiah Kiner-Falefa are viewed as prime trade candidates, while Kevin Kiermaier could find himself a new home as well.

While fans have seem displeased at several moves the Blue Jays’ front office has made in recent days, the Kikuchi deal garnered a very positive reaction. The 33-year-old was dealt to the Houston Astros in exchange for three exciting prospects in Jake Bloss, Joey Loperfido, and Will Wagner.

A return that significant is unlikely to be matched today, but Ross Atkins and his staff will be looking to add another prospect or two to their pipeline before the 6 pm ET deadline has passed.

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