Blue Jays: Eight Bold Predictions For The Second Half

As we find ourselves having just passed the midpoint of the 2019 MLB season, I can’t help but start to speculate on what the second half of the season may hold for the Blue Jays and it’s fanbase.

There will be trades, and the Blue Jays roster likely won’t look the same in two weeks time after the July 31st trade deadline. There could also be prospects brought up or acquired, or superstars discovered from within. This type of rebuild season is new for fans of the Toronto Blue Jays, but they are a young and upcoming team and that gives you the feeling that anything is possible.

There have been surprises already in 2019 like the departure of Kendrys Morales the night before the season started, and also the trades of Kevin Pillar and Russell Martin happening so easily. Then there was the extension of Randal Grichuk and the complete turn around for Lourdes Gurriel Jr after being demoted to Buffalo earlier in the season.  Those were all things that very few would have predicted would happen just a short few months ago.

So, in the spirit of having some fun and putting ourselves out there, I have asked my fellow Jays Journal staff members to help me come up with some bold predictions for the Toronto Blue Jays in the second half of the 2019 baseball season. We managed to come up with 8 of them, and we hope you enjoy our 8 bold predictions for the second half of the Blue Jays season.

Bold Prediction #1

Nate Pearson Makes MLB Debut In September And Dominates

The Blue Jays highly touted pitching prospect Nate Pearson will conclude the 2019 campaign north of the border with the big club after beginning the season in High-A ball. The 22-year old will force the Blue Jays hand with his performance down the stretch in Buffalo.

Pearson will make his debut in the final month once rosters are expanded and dominate big league hitters. The fireballer will assert himself as MLB ready, overpowering big league hitters while pitching his way into the starting rotation conversation for 2020.

Big Nate will instantly become a fan favourite making the Blue Jays faithful forget about the loss of Marcus Stroman who will be dealt at the deadline.

Clayton Richer- Site Expert/Editor- Jays Journal 

Bold Prediction #2

Devon Travis Returns And Finishes The Season Strong

Devon Travis – there’s a name that many people have not heard in a while. The Blue Jays’ second baseman has yet to make an appearance this season after undergoing knee surgery in March but he could be back with the big-league club at some point.

General Manager Ross Atkins recently told reporters that it seems like Travis may return to the Blue Jays this season.

Travis’ potential return would give the Blue Jays a logjam in the infield as Eric Sogard, Freddy Galvis, Cavan Biggio and potentially Bo Bichette would rank ahead of the often injured second baseman on the depth chart.

Should the Blue Jays ship one of Sogard, Galvis or even both out at the trade deadline, this would leave ample breathing room for Travis to get some regular playing time. Should that happen, it would not surprise me to see Travis come back with a vengeance.

This will likely be Travis’ final opportunity to show the club what he’s worth and he will need to end the season strong and healthy to have any chance of remaining with the club in the future. With his back up against the wall, bet on Travis putting together a strong performance should he return.

Daniel Valente- Jays Journal Contributor 

Bold Prediction #3

Blue Jays send a starter to the Yankees for the second straight year, as Stroman stays in the division. 

I’ve never been a fan of the idea of trading players within your own division, but that could be the smartest play for the Blue Jays for the second consecutive year.

After acquiring Brandon Drury and Billy McKinney from the Yankees for J.A. Happ last year, the Bronx Bombers are once again looking for help in their rotation and the Blue Jays should have one of the top options on the market. If they end up sending Marcus Stroman to the Yankees then they’ll need to get a much better return this time around.

The fit with the Yankees works well for a couple of reasons, even as a division rival. First, Stroman’s contract runs out at the end of next season, and while I’m incredibly high on the future of this young group, I don’t know that 2020 is going to be a realistic goal for knocking off the Yankees, with or without Stroman.

Secondly, the Yankees’ top prospects fit well with the needs for the Blue Jays right now. Out of their top ten prospects according to MLB.com, the Yankees’ list includes six pitchers and three outfielders. The only problem is they may not have a high enough ceiling, as Estevan Florial (OF) was the highest-ranked prospect at #74, and Jonathan Loaisiga started the year at #75 on the MLB list.

For that reason I wouldn’t rule out the Padres, and especially not the Atlanta Braves, as something tells me that Alex Anthopoulos is laying in the weeds waiting to see what kind of value his former starter will command.

Chris Henderson- Site Expert/Editor -Jays Journal 

Bold Prediction #4

Julian Merryweather will join the team in August, he will make some starts and then be moved to the bullpen where he will put up great numbers. 

Julian Merryweather, the right-hander acquired in exchange for Josh Donaldson last August, is quite an intriguing arm who the Blue Jays general manager, Ross Atkins, has high hopes on, saying, “We see him as a near-term prospect we can feel can impact our major-league team in a significant way”.

There are reasons to believe Atkins just said this to inject some hope in the mindset of the fans after trading away one of the best players the Blue Jays have had in their history. However, there are also reasons to believe Merryweather, a 27-year-old from Berkeley, California, can contribute at the big league level.

Merryweather missed all of 2018 after having Tommy John surgery and made his 2019 debut with the Bluefield Blue Jays of the rookie-level Gulf Coast League back in June throwing two innings. He also threw four innings with the Dunedin Blue Jays on June 29th. A return might be looming for Merryweather as he’ll start climbing up the minor league levels to get his arm back in form. He’ll spend some time in Triple-A Buffalo, but the prediction is that he will join the big league team at some point in August.

He will make a couple of starts or so and then be part of the bullpen where he will put up good numbers to finish the 2019 season as an important piece of the bullpen. His fastball that can reach 97 mph and his curveball and slider could really play well down in the bullpen. Realistically, that’s probably where Ross Atkins envisions him impacting the major-league team in a significant way, as he said back in 2018. With Ken Giles and Daniel Hudson possibly getting traded in the coming weeks, do not rule out Merryweather gets a shot as a closer in September.

Victor Riancho- Jays Journal Contributor

Bold Prediction #5

Blue Jays Don’t Trade Ken Giles

As is likely the case with Marcus Stroman, the Blue Jays probably aren’t going to trade closer Ken Giles unless they receive an acceptable, perhaps even remarkable, return. Though Giles, perpetually composed and reserved, hasn’t made as much noise as other relievers around the league, he’s easily been one of the most effective and dominant.

Still, it’s not hard to see the Blue Jays keeping him around, despite the oddity of a rebuilding team having a closer. While they might keep him not by choice, but rather by necessity and lack of choice, you’d be hard-pressed to find a Blue Jays fan who wouldn’t be thrilled to see Giles play another season in a Blue Jays uniform. In all likelihood, the Blue Jays will trade Ken Giles, but there are still some scenarios imaginable in which he is retained by the front office.

Hayden Godfrey- Jays Journal Contributor

Bold Prediction #6

The Blue Jays will announce major renovations to Rogers Centre

It’s been a long time coming for Rogers Centre to get a facelift. My guess is that we will see that project take shape with announcements near the end of the season. With what will likely be another season of non-competitive baseball for the Blue Jays in 2020, the timing is right to take care of much-needed updating for the 30-year-old stadium.

Recent developments in Oxford properties 3.5 billion proposals for Rail Deck Park puts the timeline of renovations in line with what could be a grand restoration of the area surrounding  Rogers Centre. Real grass may be a reach to be achieved, but an update to one of MLB’s oldest stadiums would be a welcome sight for Blue Jays fans.

-Mark Armstrong- Jays Journal Contributor

Bold Prediction #7

Vlad Guerrero Jr. finishes the season with 30 HR

It may not have been as bold a prediction when Guerrero first got called up but he sits at 8 home runs right now and with just 71 games post All-Star break, he will need to club 22 more.

Only seven players in the MLB were able to hit 22 home runs through 71 games this year including fellow rookie Peter Alonso.

Vlad Guerrero Jr reminded the baseball world at the Home Run Derby how much power he possesses and with the baseballs flying out of stadiums in record numbers, who’s to say Vlad can’t find his approach again at the plate and hit 30 bombs?

-Cameron Black-Araujo- Jays Journal Contributor   

Bold Prediction #8

Bo Bichette will have more home runs in his first half of MLB action than Vladdy had in his

It was a tough first half of the season. But in all honesty, the second half is going to be more fun. My bold prediction for the second half is that Bo Bichette will come up, and finish the second half with more home runs than Vlad Guerrero Jr got in the first half. This is a bold prediction, however I see Bichette more than ready for the big leagues, and has had more time to marinate in the minors than the others. Also playing into Bichette’s favour is the fact he likely has a chip on his shoulder, being the last one of the trio to be called up. There it is, Bichette will have more home runs in his first half of MLB action, than Vladdy had in his.

Benjamin Steiner- Jays Journal Contributor