Toronto Blue Jays add two more players in last-minute trade-deadline deal
The Toronto Blue Jays were able to make one final move to improve their roster on trade deadline day.
After picking up Shane Bieber in their first trade of the day from the Cleveland Guardians, and adding some catching depth in a deal with the San Diego Padres later on, the Jays announced one final move with the Minnesota Twins that will see Toronto acquire first baseman Ty France along with relief pitcher Louis Varland. In exchange, the Twins will receive outfielder Alan Roden and pitching prospect Kendry Rojas.
The big get here is France, who was an All Star in 2022 and is having a relatively solid season at the dish in 2025. Through 387 plate appearances, he’s slashing .251 with six home runs and 44 RBI. He joined the Twins last offseason on a one-year, $1 million contract.
Varland, meanwhile, is in his first true MLB season, having spent a number of others bouncing between the Majors and minor league levels. The 27-year-old right hander is having a very impressive season out of the bullpen, compiling a 2.02 ERA along with 47 strikeouts in 49 innings pitched.
Meanwhile, the Jays are parting with Roden, who was hitting .204 with a home run and eight RBI through 43 games on the season. He had recently been optioned back to Triple-A after Will Wagner, who was also traded by the Jays today, was reinstated from the restricted list.
Rojas, just 22, was listed as the No. 6 prospect in the Blue Jays system. He was recently promoted by the Jays to Triple-A Buffalo, and before that promotion had a 3.86 ERA with 30 strikeouts through just 18.2 innings.
While the Jays were able to add some catching depth in Brandon Valenzuela earlier in the day, their biggest move came hours prior, where they picked up starting pitcher Shane Bieber from the Cleveland Guardians. Whether these moves are enough to help the first-placed Jays remains to be seen, but it will be a fun few months ahead for Toronto and all of Canada to tune into some baseball.