Blue Jays 2026 trade deadline report card as Ross Atkins goes full on hybrid mode

The Toronto Blue Jays made several trades before the 2026 MLB trade deadline, shipping away several familiar faces as they look to retool for next season. Was it worth it? That will only truly be answered over the coming months and years as the players the Blue Jays received develop and perform with Toronto.

What we can say for sure is that it was a busy day for GM Ross Atkins and the front office as they truly went with a hybrid approach to this year's deadline. They weren't true sellers, they didn't tear down the house. They also weren't focused on getting lots of long-term projects either, as they recouped several players that could help them as early as next season.

Here’s a breakdown and score for every major move that got made. 

Complete grades for every trade made by Ross Atkins and the Blue Jays front office

Trade 1: Kevin Gausman to the Chicago Cubs for Brett Bateman and Ty Southisene

Trading Gausman was never going to be easy. He was arguably the best free-agent-signing in Blue Jays history, and was winning playoff games for them as recently as last fall.

MLB Pipeline now has Bateman and Southisene as top-20 prospects in the Blue Jays system, which checks out given how the Tigers’ unimpressive return for Tarik Skubal reset the market. Bateman could make an impact as soon as 2027, but shouldn’t be expected to be a future star.  This is an acceptable return for a veteran pitcher on an expiring contract. 

Grade: B-

Trade 2: Arjun Nimmala, Eddie Micheletti Jr., and Angel Rivero to the Angels for José Soriano

This might go down as the most surprising move of the entire trade deadline when everything is said and done. 

Soriano is exactly what the Blue Jays needed for 2027 and beyond: a controllable starting pitcher with upside. He has a rubber arm and truly elite stuff. Giving up Nimmala is a huge gamble, though, especially given the strides he’s made offensively this year. The Blue Jays are a much better team on paper heading into 2027 with Soriano in the fold. This trade is a win, even if the cost to acquire him was extremely steep.

Grade: A-

Trade 3: Adam Macko to the Texas Rangers for Josh Smith and Josh Stephan

This was another unexpected move, albeit less exciting than the one that got them Soriano—and much more difficult to understand.

Smith is a competent major league hitter who can play just about every position on the diamond. The strangeness of the move is that the Blue Jays already have several utility players on their roster. Macko, meanwhile, is a left-handed reliever in an organization that is sorely lacking them. This move isn’t one that immediately makes a ton of sense for the Blue Jays.

Grade: C

Trade 4: Daulton Varsho to the Houston Astros for Spencer Arrighetti

Varsho’s time with the Blue Jays appeared to have run its course with him slated for free agency at season’s end. Trading him was a no-brainer. 

Toronto’s latest trade with Houston looks like a good one on paper. Varsho hasn’t hit well in 2026 or played his usual spectacular defence, yet this still managed to get a controllable young pitcher with some upside. Arrighetti won AL Pitcher of the Month in May and has had his season-long stats inflated by a few blow-up outings. He’s a fun project. It doesn’t get much better than this for a rental with a sub-.700 OPS. 

Grade: A

Trade 5: Jeff Hoffman to the Minnesota Twins for Dasan Hill, John Klein, and Dameury Pena

Hoffman was perhaps the Blue Jays’ most interesting trade chip as someone with value under control beyond the 2026 season, and the front office chose to cash in.

Moving on from Hoffman while he’s pitching well was a no-brainer given his track record in Toronto—World Series Game 7 is still fresh on everyone’s minds. Hill, the Twins' 7th-best prospect at the time of the trade per MLB Pipeline, is an exciting young pitcher currently in High-A. Klein is 24, in Triple-A, and could debut down the stretch. Pena is a lottery ticket. A change of scenery was in everyone’s best interests given the other controllable options the Blue Jays have in their bullpen. It's hard not to be happy with this outcome. 

Grade: B+

The Blue Jays were truly in the murky middle heading into the deadline, but they came out of it with a much clearer picture of what their intentions are heading into 2027 and beyond.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow