We’re at that time of the season, the All-Star break is over, it’s the middle of the summer, and the trade deadline is only a few days away. Rumours and speculations on who could, and will be traded are flying high, and fans are buzzing about what moves their team will make. This year’s deadline could be unlike one we have ever seen due to the possibility that two of the best players in the game in Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani could be dealt. Both players are game changers and could turn any playoff team into a World Series favourite. The Jays are in the thick of the wildcard race, and with World Series aspirations, it is fair to expect them to once again be aggressive at the deadline and possibly look at acquiring either one of these All-Stars.
After turning down a $440 million contract extension, the Nationals have reportedly said they are now taking trade offers for Soto. The 23-year-old superstar is arguable the best hitter in baseball and won’t be a free agent until after the 2024 season; so, this means that any team that trades for him now, will have him for three pennant races. Soto would be an extraordinary addition to any team, and the Jays are likely kicking the tires to see what it could take to acquire the young phenom. The cost to trade for Soto is going to be extremely high – and rightfully so – but the Jays could have the players to pull it off. The questions are, what will it take, and will the Jays actually do it? It has been reported that the asking price for Soto is four to five top young players made up of a combination of prospects and major leaguers with low service time. A steep price for sure, but justifiably so given the calibre of player that Soto is.
For the Jays, a potential deal could be centered around Bo Bichette and would include multiple top prospects including Gabriel Moreno. Should the deal be centred around Bo, the Jays are going to have to ask themselves if they are comfortable with trading away a player that has been important to the team’s current success, and a player that was looked at as one of the future cornerstones. It also depends on what other prospects would be included and if the Jays want to trade so many of them away for one – albeit generational – player. The Jays showed last year that they are willing to trade top prospects, but could the asking price for Soto be too high even for them?
Shohei Ohtani is probably the most interesting and exciting athlete on the planet. He is both a pitcher and a hitter, and does both at an elite level. Despite a strong start the season, the Angels have once again fallen out of the playoff race and will likely be sellers at the deadline. Ohtani will be a free agent after next season, so the Angels may be inclined to trade him now, given that his value will never be higher. Similar to Soto, the talent that it would take to acquire Ohtani would be substantial, but there is literally no other player like him, so he could be worth it. However, unlike with Soto, the Angels have said they have no desire to trade him, and that they would rather extend him, but given where they are and what their payroll is like, they have to seriously consider if that is possible, and is even the right move. The Twins said last season that they had no plans to trade José Berríos, and look what happened, he was traded to Toronto. I’m not saying that the Jays are going to trade for Ohtani, but that given the right offer, a team will trade their star player.
It is difficult to predict what a trade proposal for Ohtani would even look like. There has literally never been a player like him traded at the deadline, so there are no comparable trades to go off of. It will certainly require multiple top prospects, but it also depends on what the Angels are looking for. Do they want current major league players and prospects? Do they only want young prospects with high potential that can help them in a couple of years? It’s very hard to say, and there have been no reports of what their asking price would be.
Should the Jays acquire Ohtani, it would most likely cost them numerous top prospects. The Jays have some highly touted prospects like Gabriel Moreno, Orelvis Martinez, and Jordan Groshans in their system, and any trade for Ohtani would almost certainly involve at least two of them. If the Angels were looking at the big-league roster as well, guys like Bichette or Kirk would possibly be names that come up.
The Jays have done a nice job of replenishing what was once a depleted farm system, and now it will be interesting to see how they use it. Of course, you don’t want to mortgage the future for one or two players, but at the same time, when those players are generational talents, it may just be worth it. We shall see if the Jays decide to put all their eggs in one basket and trade numerous talented players for either Soto or Ohtani, or if they deem the prices too high and look to acquire other players with smaller acquisition costs. There are multiple ways that the Jays’ front office can make the team better, and I am confident that they will. One way or another, these next few days should be exciting for the Jays and their fans, and come August 2nd, it will be interesting to see what new faces are on the team, and if any current ones are not.