Blue Jays report: Seunghwan Oh traded to the Colorado Rockies

The Blue Jays have reportedly parted ways with one of their top relievers, sending Seunghwan Oh to the National League in exchange for two young prospects.

According to Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi, the Blue Jays have traded right-handed reliever Seunghwan Oh to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for prospects Chad Spanberger and Sean Bouchard. Jon Morosi of MLB Network was the first to reveal the Rockies as Oh’s destination. 

*Update- As of Thursday morning it was announced that the Blue Jays have received Spanberger, Forrest Wall, and a player to be named later.

Steve Phillips of TSN reported earlier this afternoon that Oh was close to being dealt, with Robert Murray of the Athletic confirming that it was a “done deal”. Prior to this deal, the Rockies had not been connected to the Jays in any trade talks but had been reported to have interest in multiple short-term relief arms to help their pursuit of a division title. 

Oh, 36, has been dominant this season, pitching to an impressive 2.68 ERA in 47.0 innings of work, striking out 55 and walking just 10, while saving two games and boasting a record of 4-3. Serving primarily as a setup option, the man they call “the Final Boss” has also saved the occasional game for the Blue Jays.

Coming back in the deal are prospects Chad Spanberger, who is currently ranked as Colorado’s number 24 prospect and Sean Bouchard, who is not ranked in the organization’s top 30.

Spanberger, a first baseman with power, has excelled this year with the Low-A Asheville Tourists, slashing an impressive .316/.364/.580 with 22 home runs and 16 stolen bases in just 91 games. A sixth-round draft pick of the Rockies last year, he’s expected to be a power hitter with decent defensive skills to match.

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Bouchard, another first baseman, has performed well with the Tourists in his own right, slashing .263/.335/.433 in 319 at-bats, mashing eight homers and stealing 12 bases while striking out 86 times and walking 33 times. An occasional outfielder, the 22-year-old native of San Diego was drafted by the Rockies in 2017.

It’s unsurprising that the Blue Jays have chosen to trade Oh. With the non-waiver trade deadline approaching and Oh’s reasonable 2019 option set to be triggered at some point during the second half of the season, he had been routinely brought up in trade talks.

Overall, the deal seems beneficial for the Blue Jays and has surely opened the floodgates for potential deals involving their other relievers, including fellow righties Tyler Clippard and John Axford, who are both on expiring deals and could offer a low-cost upgrade.

It’s much too early to make a definitive judgment, but it appears as though the Jays have turned a veteran reliever into two prospects who could, at some point, make an impact in the organization.