10 relief pitchers the Blue Jays should target at the trade deadline

With the trade deadline quickly approaching less than a month away and the Toronto Blue Jays gearing themselves up for the playoff run, they will be looking to upgrade in multiple areas to help the team in their playoff aspirations, with relief pitching being among one of their primary focus of interest.

Here, we take a look at 10 potential MLB relievers that could help the Jays in the stretch run via the trade route. As you recall, this is Category Two from our Jays’ trade wish list.

Michael Fulmer, Chicago Cubs

Michael Fulmer has actually been a rumoured target for the Jays in their previous trade deadline last year in 2022, so why not try again for 2023? A proven savvy veteran with over seven years of MLB experience, Fulmer transitioned over from being a full-time starter to become an effective reliever back in 2021 with the Detroit Tigers, and has excelled in that role ever since.

Since 2021, Fulmer sports a 10-17 record and 18 saves, with a 3.50 ERA, 119 ERA+, 1.31 WHIP, and 174 strikeouts over 172.1 innings pitched. He also possesses the ability to go multiple innings if needed from his buildup as a former starter. For 2023, his numbers may seem a bit rough by eye, with an ERA hanging close to 4.5, but much of that came in the early parts of the year when he was struggling out of the gate.

If we take a closer look at his past 16 games, he actually has been absolutely dominant, pitching to a 0.98 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, giving up only two earned runs with eight walks and 16 strikeouts in 18.1 innings. With his return to true form, the Jays should definitely take a shot at their prime target once again this year, since there’s no harm in trying for a second time, which would show that they are really keen on him and want him badly.

Josh Hader, San Diego Padres

There’s no doubt that anyone that could acquire the services of Josh Hader would instantly put themselves in strong contention for the postseason. After all, Hader is one of the, if not, the best relievers in the league in recent years. For 2023, he has been his usual invincible self again, pitching to an astounding 1.11 ERA, 370 ERA+, 1.02 WHIP, with 20 saves and only 4 earned runs given up, along with 19 walks and 48 strikeouts over 32.1 innings pitched.

For the Jays, the added bonus is that he is also a lefty, which the Jays sorely lack with Tim Mayza being their lone left-handed pitcher out of the bullpen. So the question for Hader isn’t going to be whether the Jays have any interest in him and if he could help the team, but more on how much would it cost them to obtain the premium closer, and as a result, would they have any valuable trade assets left to address their other needs.

Liam Hendriks, Chicago White Sox

Liam Hendriks has been a feel good story of the year so far, as he has finally made his way back to the big leagues after a battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma cancer earlier in the year.  What better way there is to make him feel even better than to bring him back to the Jays for a third time to give him a shot at the postseason once again with the team, like their run back in 2015. At the time, Hendriks was a solid, middling, dependable reliever for the Jays, but since then, he has evolved to become one of the premium closers in the game.

After making his season debut at the end of May for the White Sox, he had gotten into five games of action before some bad luck struck, as he returned to the IL with right elbow inflammation and has been on the sidelines ever since. For the season, Hendriks is 2-0 with a 5.40 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, with one save, and three strikeouts in five innings of work. Whether the Jays plan to pursue their former teammate will strictly depend on his health update in the coming weeks.

Jordan Hicks, St. Louis Cardinals

Jordan Hicks represents one of the rare Cardinals’ bullpen arms that have somehow managed to have some success this year, despite the entire team’s struggles in their disappointing 2023 season. With regular closer Ryan Helsley on the IL, Hicks has taken over the role and has flourished in it ever since. For the season, Hicks has posted a respectable 4.04 ERA, 1.49 WHIP, notching six saves while giving up 16 earned runs, 23 walks and a whopping 54 strikeouts over just 35.2 innings.

Hicks strikeout ability would certainly come in handy for the Jays, who don’t really feature many relievers with a high punchout rate other than Trevor Richards and Jordan Romano currently. In addition, the cost for Hicks will definitely be more economical for the Jays compared to someone like Hader mentioned above, and could be the best fallback plan if the Jays intend to do more than one upgrade for the team.

Seth Lugo, San Diego Padres

The name Seth Lugo certainly doesn’t jump off the page in terms of attractive potential trade targets, but Lugo has quietly put together a solid season so far in 2023 with the Padres. More importantly, he has shown to have the versatility to work effectively both as a reliever and a starter for the past five years. For 2023, he has pitched to a 3.39 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, giving up 24 earned runs including six home runs, 13 walks and 59 strikeouts in 63.2 innings of work.

He may have been used mainly as a starter this year with the Padres, but with his great work strictly in the bullpen as he had demonstrated the past couple of years, he should be fine in taking on either role if acquired by the Jays. This could be advantageous to the Jays because they could potentially slot Lugo into whatever role that they need help with the most, similar to the swingman role that Ross Stripling played so effectively in the past for the team.

For the following three pitchers, they may be more of a longshot because they are part of teams that are currently in the playoff chase, but if their teams should falter and fall further away from contention in the coming weeks, they could potentially be available for the Jays to pounce on.

José Alvarado, Philadelphia Phillies

With their recent hot streak since the beginning of June, the Phillies have put themselves right back into the playoff picture. Among the key players that have helped the Phillies in their ascension up the standings, José Alvarado has certainly come up huge for the ballclub. So far this year, Alvarado has posted a brilliant 1.38 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, with six saves and six holds, along with 39 strikeouts over 26 innings. One should also recall he was instrumental in the Phillies run to the World Series just last year as well.

With such a reliable pitcher coming up big in the biggest moments, that is exactly what the Jays need to bolster their bullpen. In addition, Alvarado is a lefty, so along with his shutdown ability, he would work perfectly to balance the Jays’ bullpen and also serve as a secondary closer if needed at the same time. For once, they certainly can’t miss with this one; they just have to play the waiting game for now.

Craig Kimbrel, Philadelphia Phillies

Aside from Alvarado, his current teammate Craig Kimbrel has been having a solid season himself too with the Phillies so far in 2023. After a few poor outings to start the season, which made Phillies’ fans worried that Kimbrel was a bad offseason signing, he has definitely turned his game around in recent weeks, helping the Phillies go on their recent torrid run. For the season, Kimbrel has a solid 5-1 winning record with 14 saves, to go along with a 3.41 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, giving up only 14 earned runs, 14 walks and 57 strikeouts in 37 innings pitched.

As it appears that Kimbrel has gained back some of his mojo from his pre-2019 days, the fact that he is now 35 and seemed to have regressed a bit from his prime years, he may or may not be worth the gamble, pending on which other relievers are available at the deadline. However, his recent surge may have proven otherwise that he has still got some game left. Simply put, if both Alvarado and Kimbrel become available, the Jays should not hesitate and try to jump on one of them quickly, or even try to go big and get them packaged together in a blockbuster.

Matt Moore, Los Angeles Angels

Finally, one of the prime offseason targets that we even proposed that the Jays should pursue during the 2022-23 offseason, Matt Moore would be an ideal fit for the Jays’ bullpen. For someone who used to be a premium starter in the big leagues, he has certainly reinvented himself as a truly effective, solid and dependable reliever for the past couple of years, so good that perhaps he is even better than his prior accomplishments as a starter.

For 2023, Moore has put up a strong 3-1 record, with a 1.44 ERA, 310 ERA+, 0.80 WHIP, giving up only four earned runs all year, with seven walks and 21 strikeouts over 25 innings pitched. However, he has been out with a right oblique strain since the end of May, but is projected to return after the All-Star break. The other problem is, the Angels are currently also in the thick of the playoff chase with the Jays for the wildcard positions in the American League. However, with Mike Trout's recent wrist injury, it could be enough to potentially put the Angels' playoff hopes in jeopardy. If not, then the series between the Jays and the Angels at the end of July will be that much more critical. If the Jays can put the Angels to bed with a sweep at that time, it maybe just enough to make the Angels sellers at the deadline, making the highly-prized Moore there for the taking.

Nevertheless, the Jays will probably need to add at least one, and perhaps two strong bullpen arms between now and the deadline to give their bullpen the strength and stability needed to be a strong contending team down the stretch. In particular, they should try their best to have one of the arms be a lefty, and another one be a shutdown, strikeout-flamethrower just to give their overall relief corps the right balance and mix to be successful in whatever game situation they end up facing.