Blue Jays miss out on All-Star trade target through a shocking mid season extension

Through this hectic time of year, the TorontoBlue Jays have been linked to so many players ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline. One of the players they had been frequently linked to was veteran right hander Seth Lugo of the Royals. Kansas City has jumped right back into the race thanks to the Blue Jays' strong efforts against the Tigers this weekend and that pushed them towards extending Lugo to a two year contract woth $46 million.

Out of nowhere, the Blue Jays' success took them out of the race for one of the top starting pitchers on the market. Lugo definitely has his own struggles, allowing a ton of hard contact, yet he somehow still gets it done, posting a 2.95 ERA with a 1.09 WHIP. The veteran could have slid in to the front of Toronto's rotation and would have been the missing piece, but also would have been just a rental. The Blue Jays currently have a few players on expiring contracts with Chris Bassitt and Max Scherzer, yet this feels like the year where they must go all in.

Blue Jays miss out on key trade deadline target Seth Lugo as he signs extension with Royals.

There are still plenty of routes for Toronto to explore with Lugo off the board. Mitch Keller, who is a dream target, leads baseball in quality starts, and has three years left on his contract after 2025, and may not cost the entire farm system to snag.

Edward Cabrera or Sandy Alcantara are two other strong candidates to target, yet the Marlins have climbed into a spot where they don't need to sell off. It doesn't seem likely that they buy, so Miami still could sell one of these two arms to Toronto.

There is the rental route too, with another Pirate in Andrew Heaney, Adrian Houser of the White Sox, or Charlie Morton from the rival Orioles. There are so many opportunities for this team these next few days and it is really surprising that nothing has happened.

Hopefully, Toronto does make a splash because a World Series feels very real for this team. Losing out on Lugo definitely stings a little, especially since Kansas City could be a scary team later this season. Jays GM Ross Atkins, time is running out, please do not miss out on a star.