Blue Jays could explore Rays for further bullpen help

The Blue Jays may want to look into the stable of arms in Tampa Bay, where young GM Matthew Silverman could be a willing trade partner

There are just five days to go before August 1st non-waiver trade deadline, and the Blue Jays are among the potential contenders scouring the pool of available arms. Even with yesterday’s addition of Joaquin Benoit from the Mariners, that won’t change,

This trade deadline has a thin crop of pitchers on the block for a variety of reasons. Since the addition of the extra Wild Card playoff spot, there are simply more teams that believe they can contend at this time of the year. Of the teams that seem to have accepted their fate as playoff observers, there aren’t a lot of available pitchers to be had, at least of the variety that would provide an upgrade for the Blue Jays this season.

With that in mind, the Jays and many other teams have had to think more creatively to find potential upgrades, and for Ross Atkins and Mark Shapiro, that has included dialogue with AL East rivals, something that hasn’t openly happened in several seasons. There have been reports linking the Jays to the Yankees with potential interest in Carlos Beltran and C.C. Sabathia, although nothing substantial has taken place.

The Blue Jays may want to look into the stable of arms in Tampa Bay, where young GM Matthew Silverman could be a willing trade partner. The Rays have fallen out of the race at (38-61), and are likely fielding calls from nearly every contending MLB front office in the league. They have starting options like Matt Moore, Jake Odorizzi, Chris Archer (unlikely to go unless they’re blown away), and more, and there has been widespread interest reported.

More from Toronto Blue Jays News

• Matt Chapman has been exactly what the Blue Jays needed
• Blue Jays: The goalposts are moving in the right direction
• Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays advance to the Championship Series
• Blue Jays: Comparisons for Alek Manoah’s Second Season
• Blue Jays: Adam Cimber, the unlikely decision King

The Rays also have several enviable pieces in the bullpen and I believe the Blue Jays should focus their attention there. In particular, Brad Boxberger could be an under-the-radar option with a relatively low-cost/high-upside potential. The emergence of Alex Colome as a viable closer makes it highly likely the Rays would consider a trade of Boxberger, and the Blue Jays could be a good fit.

Boxberger entered the season as the incumbent closer, and with good reason. He finished the 2015 campaign with 41 saves in 63 innings pitched, and an ERA of 3.71. He managed to strike out 10.6/ 9 IP and was an All-Star for the first time. Since the end of last season, he’s only managed to appear in one game for the Rays before an oblique injury returned him to the sidelines. He had surgery on a core muscle in March, so his stock has potentially taken a hit as an injury concern.

Still only 28 years old, Boxberger could be a great buy-low option if the Rays are interested in moving on from the late-inning reliever. His price tag should be lower now than at the beginning of the season, but there are still reasons to value his addition to any roster. The former 1st round pick is targeting a return for the end of July/beginning of August, and assuming he can stay healthy for the remainder of the season, could be a significant upgrade and a very fresh arm to add to the stable.

Ideally the Jays would hope for a strong contribution during the stretch run this season, and would hope Boxberger would be healthy enough to provide that. He does have additional upside beyond this season as well though, as he’s under team control until 2020, and currently makes near the league minimum. If the Rays would consider moving Colome (which seems like a less likely scenario), he’s under team control until 2021, and would be a significant upgrade for the Jays ‘pen as well.

Next: What the Blue Jays are getting in Joaquin Benoit

At least opening the conversation with Silverman and company seems like a no-brainer for the first year front office in Toronto. There’s no denying the Blue Jays could use an upgrade from the 10th ranked bullpen ERA in the AL, and longer they wait to act the smaller the pool of available options will become.

The Rays are one of the few teams with options for the rotation or the bullpen, and Boxberger could be the most under-the-radar addition of the lot. It may be a little easier to swallow trading a bullpen asset to a division rival instead of a starter, too, so here’s hoping the Jays’ brass is turning over every potential rock before August 1st.