Blue Jays: Trying to tactfully sum up the first half of the 2018 season

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I didn’t know what else to call this, but it’s largely centred around one player, and the incident that has lead to multiple issues for the Blue Jays.

As I’m sure you’re aware, Roberto Osuna was arrested back on May 8th, and has since been suspended for 75 games by Major League Baseball. He’s back on a rehab assignment already, and is eligible to return to the team on August the 4th.

However, just because he’s eligible to return (at the moment), doesn’t mean it’s that simple. The situation is far more complex than that.

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The Mexican born pitcher is still in the middle of dealing the alleged charges, and things don’t look all that great from most reports. That doesn’t mean anything as far as a legal resolution, but there is potential that he could face some serious repercussions, and maybe even work visa issues. That’s in a worse case scenario legally, but it’s entirely possible things could go that way.

The Blue Jays may or may not want to keep him around, despite the positive statements in his favour made by the organization so far. There’s every possibility that they’ll look to shop him later this summer (unfortunately after the non-waiver deadline), or more likely this offseason. They’ll likely need him to return to the team in order to regain more of his trade value, but that return isn’t a simple thing either.

If and when he returns to the mound in a Blue Jays uniform, both Osuna and the organization are going to have a tremendous amount of work to do to win back the fan base, at least when it comes to the young closer. There will be plenty of fans that will be upset with the organization as well, and it’ll definitely be something the front office has to be acutely aware of, while trying to figure out what’s best for the player, and the franchise.

Next: Pillar injures his shoulder, out 4-6 weeks

Beyond the Osuna situation, this is a pretty simplistic review of the long story that has been the disappointing 2018 for the Blue Jays. Hopefully the club will be able to change the narrative in the second half, and also make a few high value trades prior to the end of the month. Remember that the front office managed to get Teoscar Hernandez last year in a trade that only cost them the rest of the season of Francisco Liriano, so the next few weeks could be crucial.