The present Blue Jays entrance workplace, led by basic supervisor Ross Atkins, isn’t any stranger to controversial trades. From transport Teoscar Hernández out of city for a pair of pitchers or sending high prospect Gabriel Moreno for Daulton Varsho, this management group has taken its fair proportion of massive swings to construct a contender.
The dialog round Sandlin is easy. He was imagined to shore up the center of the group’s bullpen, however finally made simply 19 appearances in 2025, then was designated for task in November. The most unlucky a part of his temporary Blue Jays tenure is that he pitched effectively earlier than accidents derailed his season.
The choice to amass Giménez was an enormous danger primarily based on his offensive manufacturing and his contract. He recorded a .638 OPS in 2023, but the Blue Jays nonetheless pulled the trade off, understanding he’d be owed roughly $15 million per season by means of 2029. This transfer solely made sense in the event that they believed his hitting would rebound to associate with his already elite protection, however there have been no causes to imagine it will, and the early returns weren’t promising in 2025 regardless of the group’s success.
His .252 anticipated batting common suggests some constructive regression may are available in 2026. Still, all of his poor high quality of contact metrics don’t present a lot hope. He doesn’t barrel the ball or hit it onerous with any consistency. The best-case state of affairs for him is that he’s a singles hitter with an OPS under .700.
This context doesn’t make paying Giménez a ship load cash any higher, although. It may truly make it worse if the Blue Jays had been extra prepared to let Bichette stroll as a result of they knew that they had Giménez to exchange him. It’s onerous to not assume they’d have been extra aggressive of their pursuit of Bichette had they not made this trade.
Hindsight is finally 20/20. A wholesome Giménez could be an enormous piece for the Blue Jays in 2026 and past. However, it’s onerous to see Atkins and Shapiro buying and selling for him and Sandlin another time if given a do-over.
PRESENTED BY VIVID SEATS
