Blue Jays’ Daulton Varsho era ends with more complicated feelings

The trade that brought Daulton Varsho to Toronto remains among the most controversial in recent Blue Jays history. 

On December 23rd, 2022, general manager Ross Atkins acquired Varsho from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for top catching prospect Gabriel Moreno and popular outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in a move that drew the ire of pundits and fans alike. 

The Diamondbacks made the World Series the following season with both Moreno and Gurriel emerging as key players. The Blue Jays, meanwhile, endured an embarrassing collapse in the American League Wild Card round. Yet two years later, Toronto found itself in a Fall Classic of its own with Varsho playing the best baseball of his career. 

Now Varsho is a Houston Astro after a recent trade that brought back pitcher Spencer Arrighetti. Moreno and Gurriel are still Diamondbacks. So who actually won this trade? 

Should the Blue Jays regret trading for Varsho? 

The thesis behind acquiring Varsho was clear at the time: dealing from a position of strength (catcher) to improve the team’s outfield defence while also injecting some power into the lineup. 

The first part of that value proposition was never an issue as Varsho provided excellent defence in spades as a Blue Jay. He was a human highlight reel who frequently made impossible catches look easy. 

Providing value as a hitter was where Varsho struggled. He was below average at the plate in 2023 and 2024 before breaking out—in a small sample size—last year. He reverted to his career baseline this season as his OPS+ dipped below 100 with meager power production. 

Moreno, meanwhile, is enjoying a career year after several injury-riddled campaigns. He’s been excellent on both sides of the ball for the scrappy Diamondbacks. Gurriel Jr. has hardly played in 2026 while dealing with several injuries of his own.  

There’s no doubt the Diamondbacks got the most talented player in the trade in Moreno. However, had the Blue Jays won the 2025 World Series—during which Varsho failed to deliver in several key spots—they wouldn’t care whatsoever. 

Varsho’s legacy in Toronto will thus be a complicated one. If Isiah Kiner-Falefa had taken a bigger lead off third base in the bottom of the ninth inning of World Series Game 7, Varsho would be remembered as the hero who finished the job. All he had to do was get a ball in the air or poke something through the drawn-in infield. But he didn’t. 

Unfortunately, that was how it often felt with Varsho: tantalizingly close to being the player the Blue Jays hoped he would be, but never quite able to be the guy. He couldn’t put it all together at the same time despite some great highlights and moments. 

So, while hindsight is 20/20, it’s fair to say the Blue Jays probably wouldn’t do this trade again if they had the chance at a do-over. Or maybe they would. It’s always been complicated with Daulton Varsho. 

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