Blue Jays: Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini traded to Houston

Right at the last minute of today’s MLB trade deadline, a shocking deal was struck between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Houston Astros.  Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini have been traded for Derek Fisher.

It seems like a steep drop in value for what was once a “pitcher of the future” for the Blue Jays in Aaron Sanchez.  When you add into the fact that Joe Biagini was tossed in on this deal, it just goes to show how far Sanchez value had fallen. Adding Cal Stevenson as a third piece makes it a real head-scratcher.

Derek Fisher is batting .226 over 53 at-bats for the Astros in 2019 and has spent more time at AAA this season with 224 at-bats for the Round Rock Express.  He is hitting better there posting a .286 batting average with 14 home runs and a healthy .401 on-base percentage.

It’s unclear at this moment what the Houston Astros intend to do with Aaron Sanchez, but with the strength of their rotation, one must think he will be delegated to the bullpen. That was something that the Blue Jays tried to avoid doing with Sanchez, but for a team chasing a World Series title, Aaron’s depth inside the bullpen could prove too valuable for the Astros to pass up.

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As for Biagini, it’s off to another playoff run. The fan-favourite bullpen righty will likely get his second chance at pitching in the playoffs for the Astros. He has been surprisingly good for the Blue Jays in 2019 with a 3.86 ERA and will get a chance to play for the games top prize while adding more depth for Houston.

For the Toronto Blue Jays, their outfield competition just got a new member to take the spot of Lourdes Gurriel Jr if he needs any length of time off from the knee injury he sustained today diving for a ball. He along with Teoscar Hernandez, and Randall Grichuk have been seeing the bulk of reps in the outfield for the Blue Jays, so adding Derek Fisher to the picture will surely cause them some loss of playing time and clouds the picture a bit.

In a season where management seems determined to trade away as many assets as possible for a chance to gain prospects, this trade still comes as a shock to some, especially when you consider how far Aaron Sanchez stock has fallen.