Although the Toronto Blue Jays struggled in a recent series with the Philadelphia Phillies, they got back on track playing the Arizona Diamondbacks and are still one of the hottest teams in Major League Baseball. Toronto is 40-35, and as the New York Yankees continue to struggle, the American League East continues to get tighter and tighter.
Just four games separate the four top teams in that division. This has led to much speculation about the Blue Jays’ plans headed into the All-Star break. Some thought they would definitely be sellers, and potentially make star shortstop Bo Bichette available, but now they may likely want to make some welcome additions.
Blue Jays Linked to Nationals Closer
The Toronto Blue Jays already have Jeff Hoffman as their closer, but they’re still looking to bolster the bullpen. Adding another reliable arm who can finish games would give the team valuable flexibility and depth.
Toronto has recently been linked with Washington Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan in what would be a massive trade. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand named Finnegan as a prime trade candidate, and the Blue Jays make perfect sense. Here is what Feinsand had to say about the chances Finnegan gets moved:
“Late-inning relievers are always in demand this time of year, so Finnegan – who has 18 saves and a 2.96 ERA in 26 appearances – should draw significant interest from a number of contenders. An All-Star in 2024, Finnegan ranks in the 65th percentile in ground-ball rate (45.6%) and his 96.1 mph average fastball ranks in the 80th percentile.”
The 33-year-old Kyle Finnegan has been a part of many trade rumors throughout his career, but with the Nationals not being a contender this season, it’s a great opportunity to move off him, while still keeping their core of young players and building a stronger farm.
Once the deadline rolls around, many teams will be calling for Finnegan. As Feinsand laid out, teams are always in need of late-inning, high-leverage arms in the back of the bullpen to either close games out or hold them as is. Finnegan is in his sixth season with the Nationals and was an All-Star last season. He could also be heading to Atlanta this All-Star break if he continues the production, which would only spice up the trade speculation and likely add more teams to the mix.
The Return Package for Nationals
Because Finnegan will become a free agent after this season, the Toronto Blue Jays would likely only need to give up a couple of prospects in return. With no guarantee that they’d re-sign him, the move would essentially be a rental trade. They could send over their 12th-ranked prospect Charles McAdoo and pitching prospect Khal Stephen.
Both players have high upside and would be able to develop nicely in the Washington Nationals organization, which has done a good job in developing players from their pipeline who contribute from their farm system.
Toronto is certainly a team to keep an eye on as July rolls around, and Finnegan is also a name that is certainly going to get some buzz.
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