Blue Jays: Notes on other teams’ interest in Roberto Osuna

Following a shocking trade that sent the suspended closer to the Houston Astros, many are now asking if other teams were in the “hunt” for the services of Roberto Osuna.

Admittedly, you would not be alone if you were shaken by the fact that Roberto Osuna was traded to the Houston Astros just a day before the non-waiver trade deadline. Simply put, it was a quickly put together, radically impactful trade that sent waves through both fanbases involved.

As general manager Ross Atkins mentioned in a conference call with reporters Tuesday, the Astros were not the only team interested in his services. With it being a sticky situation overall, teams would not be blamed for laying off negotiations to acquire the enigmatic hurler.

More than 48 hours after the deal went through, the question now is – which teams were competitively trying to acquire Osuna? It’s impossible to know just which teams were in on Osuna, but it is possible to know which teams weren’t in on him. Below are some notes on other teams who were asked about Osuna:

Note: Evidently, the baseball aspects of this deal are practically unimportant given the circumstances of Osuna’s actions and legal status. With that being said, this article will not focus on the legal and personal ramifications, and will instead strictly report facts and reports from a baseball standpoint.

Los Angeles Dodgers – Not a Chance

As Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times writes on Twitter, the streaking Dodgers likely weren’t in on Osuna in any way. When asked about whether or not the team had any interest in Osuna given the fact that they balked at acquiring controversial pitcher Aroldis Chapman two years ago, Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi said: “You can draw your own conclusions.”

Boston Red Sox – Equally Uninterested

Another contender, the Boston Red Sox were also not involved in talks for Roberto Osuna. Ben Reiter of Sports Illustrated tweets that Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski said that the Sox “did not pursue that situation”, further noting that he “would not talk about another organization’s player.”

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Others – Internally Deterred

The above two teams are the only known clubs to have openly expressed their declination to pursue Osuna, however, as Buster Olney of ESPN writes on Twitter, some teams decided “internally” that they would not get in touch with the Blue Jays regarding a potential deal.

Overall Interest – Better After the Storm

While easily the least important layer of this entire situation, it’s likely that the market for Osuna would’ve been much broader and much richer in the offseason, says Keegan Matheson of Baseball Toronto in an appearance on the Scott MacArthur Show on TSN 1050.

Even though the interview took place before the trade went down, Matheson notes that the “interest would be higher in the offseason…[it’s] not a clean situation by any means”.

After taking the above into account, it still doesn’t matter. Osuna was a controversially dangerous individual to keep around the clubhouse, and for the safety and security of the victim and all of those involved, the Blue Jays undoubtedly did the right thing in trading him.

The Blue Jays will welcome closer Ken Giles to the clubhouse on Thursday as the team travels to Seattle, reports say.