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Toronto Blue Jays surfacing as big winners in the Daulton Varsho trade

Colton Pankiw
Colton Pankiw
|
Aug 6 2025, 4:20 pm
Toronto Blue Jays surfacing as big winners in the Daulton Varsho trade
Isaiah J. Downing/Imagn Images

You won’t find too many Toronto Blue Jays fans questioning the decision to trade for Daulton Varsho these days. In fact, you would be hard pressed to find any.

Varsho was acquired by the Blue Jays following the 2022 season in exchange for Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and then catching prospect Gabriel Moreno. Gurriel Jr. was a fan favourite at the time, while Moreno was the best prospect in the Jays’ system at the time, and a top 1o prospect in the entire MLB.

Opinions were mixed on the deal at the time, but quickly changed to the point where seemingly everybody felt the Jays got fleeced. After all, Gurriel Jr. was an All-Star the very next season, while Moreno won a Gold Glove and had a big showing in the playoffs.

Though opinions changed slightly in the 2024 season, it’s this year where Blue Jays fans are starting to become truly grateful and appreciative of the move that brought Varsho in.

Despite being limited to just 28 games this season, Varsho has hit an absurd 11 home runs. Nearly half of his 24 hits on the season have gone yard, helping him to a ridiculous 30 RBIs thus far. He’s currently hitting the most home runs at the best rate in all of baseball.

Varsho has shown power in the past, having hit the 20-home run marker twice so far in his career. At no point, however, has he been anywhere close to as productive as he has been in recent weeks. The 29-year-old’s power was on full display in a win over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night, where he hit two home runs, including a 467-foot bomb in the sixth inning.

While Varsho will never be a player who hits for a high average, his power, especially as of late, paired with his consistently elite defence in centre field, makes him a considerable part of this Jays lineup. He’s already up to four defensive runs saved despite playing in so few games this season.

Meanwhile, neither Gurriel Jr. nor Moreno has done much of anything for the Arizona Diamondbacks this season. The former has a 0.0 WAR, while the latter is just 0.5. At this point, it’s looking like if anything, the Blue Jays won the trade, which is a stark contrast to what most fans had thought just a few years ago.

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