Blue Jays: Revisiting trades that almost happened but didn’t

The Toronto Blue Jays have made trades that either make or break the team.

The Toronto Blue Jays have seen many faces come and go throughout the years. When you examine some of the trades, a few deals actually worked out well. The Blue Jays landed All-Stars Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Donaldson, and David Price, all at different times. However, trading away promising players like Jeff Kent and Michael Young proved to be head-scratchers.

With that being said, baseball fans like to play the game of “what if” if their team actually pulled off a deal. This applies to the Blue Jays, who almost landed themselves two perennial infielders and a few CY Young Award winners. While we won’t see any action or trades happening soon, here’s an ode to the trades that almost happened, but never did.

Tim Lincecum for Alex Rios

In 2007, outfielder Alex Rios seemed poised to become a star in Toronto. But, the San Francisco Giants were also interested in the two-time All-Star. Things heated up between both clubs as rumours swirled that the Blue Jays were trading Rios for pitcher Tim Lincecum.

Of course, the deal never went through. Lincecum would go on to become a two-time CY Young Award winner, becoming a crucial piece to the Giants championship runs in the early 2010s. As for Rios, he didn’t develop into the star he was back in 2007. Eventually, the Blue Jays would let him walk for nothing to the Chicago White Sox. Rios would have the last laugh, playing a pivotal role in the Kansas City Royals 2015 championship run.