The Toronto Blue Jays have been having a disappointing season. Toronto is selling at the trade deadline as Danny Jansen, Yimi Garcia, and Nate Pearson have all been traded away. However, the Blue Jays aren’t going into a rebuild. Instead, they will try for a rebound year next season with the same core including Vlad Jr. and Bo Bichette. General Manager Ross Atkins and the front office are making a mistake by not going into a rebuild.
This Season Has Been A Disappointment
Embed from Getty ImagesThis season has been a disaster for the Blue Jays. They’ve been near the bottom of the AL East for most of the season. Toronto also hasn’t had a record above .500 since April 24th. Despite having stars like Vlad Jr. and Bo Bichette in their lineup, the Blue Jays are only averaging 4.03 runs per game. The only teams scoring fewer runs per game in the American League are the Rays, Angels, Mariners, and White Sox. As a team, the Blue Jays are one of the least productive teams offensively as well judging by their OPS of just .690.
In 2023, Toronto had one of the best pitching staffs in the league. However, despite returning most of the same group, the Blue Jays pitching staff has badly fallen off. As a staff, Toronto has an ERA of 4.51. The only teams giving up more earned runs are the Angels and White Sox. Jordan Romano is having the worst years of his career. Chris Bassitt and Kevin Gausman haven’t looked like themselves either. Meanwhile, Jose Berrios and Yusei Kikuchi have cooled off since their hot starts at the beginning of the season.
The Core Has Been Underwhelming
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Blue Jays core has largely underwhelmed. Since this core all came to the big leagues, the Jays have never won an AL East title and gone 0-6 in the postseason. The only player out of that group to perform reasonably well in the postseason was Bo Bichette. One player, Cavan Biggio, who was once considered a promising piece, was designated for assignment in June. Another player, Alek Manoah, went from finishing third in the AL Cy Young Award voting to being one of the worst starters in the league.
Toronto Is Just Prolonging A Rebuild
This trade deadline, the Toronto Blue Jays are a seller. They’ve already dealt away Danny Jansen, Yimi Garcia, and Nate Pearson. By the time the trade deadline expires on Tuesday, more familiar names will be traded away. However, the team is declining to make Bo Bichette, Kevin Gausman, Vlad Jr., or Chris Bassitt available. Ross Atkins plans to instead sell off some pieces and try and be competitive next season. Given how Toronto’s core has performed the last five seasons, they are making a stupid decision.
The Blue Jays farm system is currently ranked 24th in all baseball. They have two players ranked inside MLB’s top-100 prospect list as well. The team is at the point where they should consider restocking it to make an impending rebuild not as long. Players like Vlad Jr. could easily fetch a sizable haul. However, due to Atkins’s blind faith in this current core to bounce back next season, he potentially prolonged a rebuild.
Ross Atkins Will Never Learn
Embed from Getty ImagesA few years ago, many people thought Toronto would be the next dominant team in baseball. However, it hasn’t worked out that way. Whenever a team’s core doesn’t get it done in the postseason, changes must be made. The Blue Jays current core has reached their peak as a team. Ross Atkins appears to be making almost the same stupid decision again. This team never won a division title or a playoff game and he’s stupid to assume they’ll suddenly become a great team. It’s poor decisions like this are the reason why the franchise hasn’t won a championship since 1993. I guess you really can’t win a championship in Canada.
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Featured image: Getty Images
