BLUE JAYS DOG DAYS FINAL

MLB / Baseball

Written by Chase Howard

The Jays went to the baseball bag of tricks for when things are going south, deciding on an old classic - fire the manager. While it can be rare to see a team four games over .500 and in possession of a wild-card spot show their skipper the door, many saw this coming. The Jays were in a brutal 2-9 stretch, which includes a four-game sweep at the hands of the red-hot Seattle Mariners, who are now half a game back of the very wild-card spot the struggling Blue Jays are clinging to.

Now the problem is the pressure is on, and new manager John Schneider won't have much time to get this team to play as people are expecting. General manager Ross Atkins however is the one on the hot seat, as he built this team and just fired the manager; there is no one else's head to put on the chopping block if the season falters. This means that Atkins is likely prepared to make a major move if he feels it will get this team to true contender status.

Source (Background photos): Getty Images

Here are three moves the Jays should consider

1.

It's no secret that the Jays starting rotation is struggling, Hyun Jin Ryu is out for the foreseeable future. While Yusei Kikuchi, Nate Pearson, and Anthony Kay have all struggled with both performance and injuries. If I'm Ross Atkins, my number one priority is adding a reliable arm to pair with Alek Manoah, Kevin Gausman, and, Jose Berrios. Enter the Miami Marlins and their surprisingly deep rotation. Sandy Alcantara has been one of the best pictures in the National League this year. Trevor Rogers has been disappointing this year relative to his All-Star caliber 2021, but has shown great flashes and likely has a bright future. Pablo Lopez is one of the more underrated starters in the game. On top of these three, the Marlins depth chart contains high-upside youngsters like Jesus Luzardo, Elieser Hernandez (whom the Jays have expressed previous interest in), Max Meyer, and Sixto Sanchez. While the Marlins feature a stacked rotation, no one is saying the same about their catching ranks. Jacob Stalling sits at the top of their depth chart and they only have one catcher among their top 30 prospects, by way of Joe Rock who is not expected to make his big league debut until 2025. The Blue Jays can call catcher an area of strength, perhaps there's a fit here. I may be getting a little aggressive right off the bat but when you fire your manager, it's typically the next step to make a significant move.

2.

If you're going to go in, why not go big? Reds ace Luis Castillo (2.77 ERA - 1.07 WHIP – 3.03 FIP) is likely the best starter on the trade market, one that is likely to be competitive, but the Blue Jays can certainly compile a good offer. The Blue Jays have already been linked to Castillo in previous years, and it's easy to see why. Castillo has only improved his play of late as the August trade deadline draws near. Allowing one run or less in his last four outings, striking out 33 while only walking nine across 27 innings, leading to a July ERA of 1.29. Possibly as a result of Castillo recently working with the Reds coaching staff to tweak the grip on his four-seamer. On top of his play, the 29-year-old is fairly affordable. Luis is playing the season on a 7.35 million salary, approximately 2.9 of which remains to be paid out after the deadline. While he should be in line for a good raise next winter, even a salary in the 12 to 15 million range, which would be unlikely through arbitration, remains a bargain for a picture of his current quality.

3.

The rotation isn't the only place the Blue Jays are struggling though, as the bullpen has been asked to carry a heavy load so far this season. The Blue Jays have been tied to a handful of teams, most prominently the Kansas City Royals, who have a decent breadth of viable leverage arms in the back end of their bullpen. While the Royals may seem like an odd choice, as their Bullpen has struggled to worse run prevention numbers than the Jays, the unit is led by one of the more unheralded closers in the game right now. Scott Barlow has posted an ERA of 2.36 and a 0.98 WHIP over 32 appearances while racking up 43 strikeouts and is 16 for 18 in save chances. Barlow is exactly the sort of swing-and-miss arm the Jays desperately need in the back of the bullpen. On top of this, Barlow would be under team control for at least the next 2 seasons, which adds to his value, especially considering the Toronto front office’s penchant for controllable assets. With the recently grown Gulf between the second-place Jays and first-place Yankees being at 13 games, it's hard to believe that a modest bullpen add will be the driving force behind a possible second-half surge. However, this along with a move for a reliable starter would be integral to solidifying the Jays' pitching.