3 recent trade partners the Blue Jays could deal with again at the deadline

St. Louis Cardinals

The Blue Jays and the Cardinals came together in 2023 on three separate occasions. First the Blue Jays made a move to get reliever Génesis Cabrera on July 21. On July 30 the Blue Jays sent Sem Robberse and Adam Kloffenstein to St. Louis for reliever Jordan Hicks. Lastly, on August 1, Toronto got infielder Paul DeJong.

Those moves had varying degrees of success for Toronto who went on the make the playoffs while the Cardinals missed the postseason. This year the Cardinals (54-53) are in a similar position to the Guardians and could very soon be sellers.

Who would be the best fit on the Blue Jays: Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton, Steven Matz

Similar to 2023, the Blue Jays could look to St. Louis to help bolster their bullpen. At the higher end there is Helsley who is currently the closer for the Cardinals. The 30-year-old has 41 strikeouts in 36 innings pitched, giving up just 12 earned runs in his 36 games. He'll be a free agent at the end of this season.

Another righty in the 'pen is Maton who will also be a free agent at the end of the season. The 32-year-old Maton is having one of the best seasons of his career, pitching to a 2.35 ERA with 40 games under his belt and 48 strikeouts in 38.1 innings pitched. He's allowed just one home run all season.

Last, but not least, former Blue Jays' starter Matz is reinventing himself as a solid reliever at age 34. The lefty has thrown 53 innings this season with 44 of those coming out of the bullpen. In those situations, Matz has a 3.68 ERA with 35 strikeouts. He hit a rough spot in the middle of June where he gave up eight earned runs over a string of five games, but he has settled back in and has allowed just one earned run over his last six innings pitched since June 8.