Blue Jays may miss Jeff Hoffman down the stretch, but trading him was still necessary

The Toronto Blue Jays looked effectively out of the American League playoff race when they traded reliever Jeff Hoffman to the Minnesota Twins on August 3rd. 

Fast-forward less than two weeks, Toronto is right back in the postseason mix, entering Friday just two games back of the Detroit Tigers for the final Wild Card spot after rattling off five straight series wins against solid teams.

Unfortunately, Hoffman’s absence from the roster was felt during Thursday’s loss to the Boston Red Sox. Manager John Schneider gave journeyman Chase Lee the eighth inning with many of his top arms seemingly unavailable. Lee promptly worked himself into a jam, gave up a grand slam, and effectively killed any chance of a come-from-behind win. 

That eighth inning was the exact situation in which Hoffman had been thriving in since being removed from the closer’s role. That game might have gone differently had he still been on the team—but that doesn’t mean the Blue Jays should regret trading him. 

Trading Hoffman was the right move regardless of what happens

Hoffman will be remembered in Toronto for blowing Game 7 of the World Series last fall, regardless of how unfair John Schneider may think that is.

It would perhaps be different if that was Hoffman’s only misstep as a Blue Jay—but it certainly wasn’t. He blew countless saves in 2025 and did the same this season before losing the ninth-inning job altogether. He lost the trust of the fanbase and, while they would never admit it, probably some of his teammates, too. Can you blame them? 

So, while Hoffman undeniably has some of the most electric stuff in all of baseball, it was time for the Blue Jays to move on. A change of scenery was best for both parties, and Toronto suddenly getting back into the playoff race doesn’t change that. 

It also doesn’t change the fact that Hoffman is a much better pitcher than Lee and several other members of the current Blue Jays bullpen. They would be a better team, on paper, with him as an option over Lee, Lazaro Estrada, or newly acquired veteran Paul Sewald. He clears them all in terms of raw talent and pitchability by a wide margin.

It’s just not that simple with Hoffman. It never was and likely never will be. For how awesome he could look for weeks at a time, it always felt as if another implosion was lurking around the corner. That level of uncertainty eventually becomes a burden. How you perform at your worst can be just as important as how you perform at your best. 

For what it's worth, he hasn't exactly been nails for the Twins so far, either.

This is all to say that the Blue Jays shouldn’t regret trading Hoffman, even if it ends up costing them down the stretch in 2026. They had to rip the bandage off. Doing so often hurts in the short-term, but winds up being the right choice later. Moving on from Hoffman was a necessary step towards helping the organization move past its World Series heartbreak—don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. 

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