Blue Jays History: Best trades for outfielders on the anniversary of Varsho deal

Dec 23. 2022 was the day Daulton Varsho joined the Toronto Blue Jays. It was a deal that had just as many fans as it did detractors when it was originally announced as the Blue Jays were coming off a playoff appearance that ended in utter disappointment, a Wild Card series sweep at home at the hands of the Seattle Mariners.

The Blue Jays had already dealt fan favorite Teoscar Hernandez to the Mariners for relief pitcher Erik Swanson and then shipped off another fan favorite, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and top prospect Gabriel Moreno, to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Varsho.

The full jury is still out on this one as all three players have helped their respective teams reach the World Series in the years following the trade, but there's no doubt it's had an impact on the franchise. On the anniversary of the deal, here are several other big, impactful trades in Blue Jays history that involved bringing outfielders to Toronto.

Blue Jays History: Best trades for outfielders on the anniversary of Varsho deal

Teoscar Hernandez

At the 2017 trade deadline, with the Blue Jays acknowledging they would miss the playoffs for the first time in three years, Toronto dealt pitcher Francisco Liriano to the contending Houston Astros in exchange for Nori Aoki and Hernandez. Liriano threw just 14 regular season innings for the Astros and was worth -0.2 bWAR in the regular season, although he did get seven outs in the playoffs en route to the Astros claiming their first World Series championship.

In exchange, the Blue Jays received a pair of outfielders and while Aoki didn't last long with the Blue Jays, Hernandez developed into one of the best power hitters in the game while with Toronto. Over six years, Hernandez was worth 10.6 bWAR, produced a wRC+ of 121, hit 129 home runs and slashed .263/.320/.503. He also helped the Blue Jays reach the postseason twice, in 2020 and 2022.

José Bautista

It was one of the most throw away trades toward the end of another season in which the Blue Jays would not make the playoffs. On Aug. 21 2008, Assistant GM Alex Anthopoulos orchestrated a deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates to bring in INF/OF José Bautista for a player to be named later, that turned in to catcher Robinson Diaz. While his first 11 months in the organization were mostly forgettable, by the next August, Bautista looked like he had unlocked something.

From Aug. 21, 2009 onward, Bautista hit 10 home runs in 40 games and slashed .246/.345/.521 with an OPS of .867, a harbinger of things to come. He would go on to set the Blue Jays record for home runs in a season with 54 in 2010, while leading the league in home runs in back-to-back seasons. Bautista finished top four in MVP voting twice, made six All-Star games, won three Silver Slugger awards and was instrumental in Toronto returning to the postseason for the first time since 1993, in 2015 and '16.

José Cruz Jr.

At the 1997 trade deadline, the Blue Jays were five games under .500 and 17 games out of first place. They decided to sell high on a pair of relievers, Mike Timlin and Paul Spoljaric in exchange for a 23-year-old former first round pick.

Cruz had his first taste of MLB action in '97 with the Marners and hit 12 home runs in 49 games while batting .268/.315/.541. After the trade he hit 14 home runs in 55 games with the Blue Jays and went on to have six successful seasons north of the border. His best year came in 2001 when he had a 30/30 season with a career high 34 home runs, 32 stolen bases, 38 doubles and an OPS of .857.

Devon White

The Blue Jays began their roster revamp that led to the World Series years with a trade for one of the best center fielders in the game. On Dec. 2 1990, GM Pat Gillick pulled the trigger on a deal that sent OF Junior Félix, INF Luis Sojo, and C Ken Rivers to the California Angels in exchange for OF Devon White, RHP Willie Fraser, RHP Marcus Moore.

"Devo" as he became known, patrolled center at Skydome for the Blue Jays over the next five years and produced a 22.3 bWAR with 72 home runs, a .270/.327/.432 slash line with a .760 OPS and 126 stolen bases. He averaged 146 hits a season and it felt like his offense was just an added bonus to the spectacular defense he contributed to the team.

White won a Gold Glove in every year he played with Toronto, giving him five such awards, which is tied with Roberto Alomar for a club record. He became the catalyst at the top of the Blue Jays lineup during their championship years in 1992 and '93.

Joe Carter

Three days after the Devo trade, Gillick executed what became the biggest trade in Blue Jays history, since it directly led to Toronto's two World Series titles. OF Joe Carter and 2B Roberto Alomar were heading north while 1B Fred McGriff and SS Tony Fernandez were heading to San Diego. At the time it looked like a huge gamble as McGriff and Fernandez were both fan favorites and big time producers for a club that always felt like it was so close to to a championship.

But Gillick had it with "being close" and by bringing in Carter and Alomar they went from "being close" to winning it all. Carter, spent seven seasons, mostly as an outfielder with the Blue Jays, and was
an All-Star in five years in Toronto and won two Silver Sluggers. Carter was worth 8.5 bWAR while racking up 1051 hits, 203 home runs, slashed .257/.308/.473 with an OPS of .781. He also caught the final out of the '92 World Series (at first base) and then hit the home run that ended the '93 World Series.