Atkins Speaks on Blue Jays' Trade Deadline Approach

Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins broke down the team's trade deadline needs and the state of the transaction market.

Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

With less than two weeks before the 2023 MLB trade deadline, the Blue Jays' needs aren't entirely obvious. 

But, sifting through GM Ross Atkins' comments to the media on Wednesday, we can begin to piece together what a Toronto deadline may look like:

Will the Jays Trade For Another Starting Pitcher?

With Alek Manoah back in the big leagues and Hyun Jin Ryu soon behind him, starting pitching may not seem like an obvious Blue Jays deadline need. But, Atkins still suggested a rotation addition could come in August.

"We're certainly optimistic that we're going to have [Ryu and Manoah] as options," Atkins said. "But we also have to plan for in the event that we don't, if someone has a setback, performance or injury."

Atkins also dropped a "you can never have enough pitching," and later specifically mentioned starting depth as an area the Jays will look at this deadline. The Jays may not add a traditional starter, but a swingman type like Michael Lorenzen or Drew Smyly could come over to provide needed insurance (and haul innings from the bullpen in the meantime).

How Can Toronto Add Offense?

The Jays don't have many glaring position player holes on the 26-man roster, but they do have some areas for an upgrade. One of those potential upgrades is a bat that can hit left-handed pitching.

As a team, the Jays are slashing just .262/.329/.379 against southpaws this season and the regular vs LHP designated hitter (Alejandro Kirk) is hitting .196 against the soft side of the platoon. Adding a vs LHP masher, regardless of position, could help plug the hole.

"Right now, as things stand today, there might be a slight lean towards a really accomplish right-handed bat," Atkins said. "But, it's not a significant one, because there's a lot of different ways we could improve our team."

Luckily for Toronto, a platoon hitter with no position preference shouldn't be a very expensive deadline addition. We've broken down a few cheap players who mash lefties the Jays could trade for, including Carlos Santana and Jurickson Profar.

Bullpen Addition Almost Guaranteed 

The Jays have the fifth-best bullpen ERA in baseball and five active relievers with ERAs below 4.0. But, don't be shocked if they add another arm back there — even with the impending return of Chad Green.

"Every team in contention is trying to add a reliever," Atkins said. "I think we're in a relatively strong position, but we need to work to improve upon it as well."

The Jays' main priority in a bullpen addition would be "who's going to allow us to get the most outs," Atkins said. But, the GM did admit the team does have a lack of depth when it comes to left-handed pitching, with just Tim Mayza tossing southpaw back there. The Jays do have Trevor Richards (with reverse splits) and the potential for a bullpen Yusei Kikuchi down the stretch, but adding someone like Brent Suter or Aaron Loup on August 1st could be the perfect final addition to a strong 2023 'pen.