Blue Jays fans have no choice but to applaud the Red Sox for their offseason approach

The Toronto Blue Jays are in an unenviable spot during the most merry time of the year. While the rest of baseball is busy spreading cheer, the Blue Jays are having a difficult time gaining positive momentum. Eventually, they will need to learn how to prevent this from happening again in the future. They should look no further than their closest geographic neighbors in the AL East for answers.

The Boston Red Sox are one of the most successful franchises in the American League East since the early 2000s. They have won four championship rings during this time, including a curse-busting 2004 championship. Imagine being a fan of a team whose championship curse was extended one more year by Aaron Boone's famous home run and then following that up by overcoming a 3-0 deficit to the same Yankees in the 2004 ALCS en route to that elusive championship? How about winning a championship in the same season when a horrific event rocked your city? Truly stomach-churning stuff!

Today's Boston Red Sox have alternated between good and bad, seemingly either placing at the top or bottom as ownership received criticism for not fully investing in the team. Last season's 81-81 finish was emblematic of a team that left so much more to be desired. They have oodles of young talent on the roster and plenty knocking on the door. The farm system is solid but when will the spending come along?

Surprisingly, the first big move for the Sox involved trading four prospects for pitcher Garrett Crochet. The move showed a level of creativity and genius that the Blue Jays need to start utilizing. Boston swallowed hard to surrender top prospects catcher Kyle Teel, outfielder Braden Montgomery, infielder Chase Meidroth and pitcher Wilkelman Gonzalez. It may have been worth it for a guy who pitched to a 3.58 ERA (115 ERA+) over 146 innings with healthy strikeout, walk, and ground ball numbers.

Crochet comes with an incredibly light price tag owing in part to injuries he suffered earlier in his career. In a market where throwers are obliterating financial expectations, the Sox get themselves an incredibly high-upside talent. Prospects are only prospects until they become the real thing. For a talent like Crochet, an organization has to be prepared to make those moves. The Blue Jays may be struggling to get anyone to take their money but they can still make trades.

In the last few years, the Crochet addition probably would have spelled the end of further activity on the pitching front. Not this time. Instead, the Red Sox are making good on Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow's earlier comments about raising the talent level of the rotation. They reeled in another intriguing starting pitcher that makes a ton of sense for all sides.

Walker Buehler made plenty of sense for Boston and a host of other clubs, including the Blue Jays. You have to think that Breslow, a former pitcher himself, sees something in the 30-year-old that he hopes to unlock. Buehler's pro career can be divided into two sections. His numbers before the injury were downright phenomenal in posting a 2.82 ERA (3.15 FIP), 0.99 WHIP and 9.89 K/9 in 94 games started from 2018-2021. Buehler then pitched 12 games in 2022 before sitting out the entirety of the 2023 season. This season he posted a 5.38 ERA and an elevated 1.55 WHIP in 75.1 innings. Buehler still makes sense as a guy who can rebound when fully healthy.

Buehler's career numbers in the postseason aren't too shabby for a club that should have its sights set on claiming a playoff spot next season. Boston is still on the prowl for a right-handed bat and they may become a thorn in Toronto's side on a Teoscar Hernandez or Anthony Santander pursuit. In the meantime, Toronto is consigned to watch and wish they were in the same position as their division rival.