3 Blue Jays players who won't survive the trade deadline

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Make no mistake about it, the Toronto Blue Jays are going to make a hard push towards a playoff run in the second-half of the 2023 season. At 53-41, the club currently sits in third place in the AL East but is just 4.5 GB of the Orioles and 5.5 GB of the first-place Rays. This thing could actually be doable.

Thanks to a recent 3-7 stretch from the Rays, the club that once seemed unbeatable is suddenly starting to look like they're coming back down to earth, and fast. However, recent rumors suggest that they are going to be aggressive at the deadline, perhaps even in the form a Shohei Ohtani-sized pursuit.

To make this thing happen, the Blue Jays are undoubtedly going to need to bring aboard a new face or two to help things along. The offense has been solid; currently ranking 13th in the majors in runs scored, fifth in batting average, seventh in wRC+ and fifth in hits. The pitching staff has been far from perfect, but they currently rank third in the majors in K/9, sixth in ERA and 10th in FIP. Not top of the line, but it'll do.

There are certainly a few small spots here and there that the Jays could upgrade at this year's trade deadline. Bringing aboard a power hitter as a backup position player/occasional designated hitter is one with perhaps one more pitcher (likely a starter) being the other. With the uncertainty of Alek Manoah and his immediate future paired with the unknown that is Hyun Jin Ryu, a starting pitcher along the lines of Marcus Stroman, Lucas Giolito or Jordan Montgomery may be the move.

With any outside additions, obviously players would need to be removed from the Blue Jays' active roster. Let's dive into some candidates that could be sent packing in the event that a trade is made.

3 Blue Jays players who won't survive the trade deadline

RHP Mitch White

This has always felt like an obvious choice, but yet Mitch White still remains on the roster.

After landing in Toronto via trade with the Dodgers at last year's deadline, White showed some occasional promise but never got a chance to branch off of that in the early goings of the 2023 campaign, as he sat on the shelf for the first few months of the year. On the road back to the big leagues, he struggled mightily in his rehab outings and has since proven to be an arm that is still unreliable.

The 28-year-old had pieced together a few solid outings in a row, throwing 6.1 innings of one-run ball with six strikeouts across five appearances from June 13 to June 30. On July 7 against the Tigers, he came in and threw 1.2 innings and seemed to be turning a corner before Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks.

In his July 16 outing against Arizona, White walked three batters and allowed three runs to score while failing to pitch in a full inning on the mound. This is in line with what we saw of him throughout the majority of last season and it's hard to see him remaining with the big league club for much longer. While there's been some positive signs here and there, a club with sights set on a playoff berth can't keep an arm like White’s around.

What complicates his situation even further is the fact that he is out of minor league options. White would need to be designated for assignment before the Blue Jays could even think about sending him to the minors. Perhaps he could be used as a filler piece in a potential trade around the deadline, as this experiment just doesn't seem to be working out.

RHP Adam Cimber

It feels wrong to beat up on a guy while he's down, but we should all cross our fingers that Adam Cimber has already thrown his last pitch in a Blue Jays uniform. The submariner is currently on the 15-day injured list for the second time this season; this time with an impingement in his right shoulder.

After being a dominant force in the middle of the Blue Jays' bullpen last year, the wheels have fallen off for Cimber in 2023. His 77 appearances in 2022 led the majors and he was a legitimate weapon that the club could use in any situation and rely on to keep the offense in the game.

In 22 appearances this year, Cimber has a 7.40 ERA, 7.49 FIP and 57 ERA+. He has been one of the more untrustworthy arms on the Jays' pitching staff and is really just a liability at this point. It's worth asking the question of whether his injuries have held him back this year, but even if that is the case, it's time to move on.

The 32-year-old is not set to hit free agency until the conclusion of next year, but the Blue Jays will have the ability to non-tender him this offseason, which feels like the best way to go as of right now.

INF Santiago Espinal

A month or so ago, Cavan Biggio was the obvious choice to round out the trio here. However, he has done just enough to stick around on the roster and honestly seems to be more valuable than Santiago Espinal at this point.

For Espinal, the 2023 campaign has been a bit of a fall from grace for him. The 2022 All-Star rode an impressive first-half performance last year to the Midsummer Classic and did plenty to force his name into the spotlight. However, he fell off in a big way in the second half and has continued to slump offensively this year. While he carries value in his versatile glove, it has felt much more like he's a benchwarmer than an actual asset to this club this season.

In 47 games this year, the 28-year-old has one home run with 12 RBI, a .228 average and an OPS+ of just 74. He's never going to be much of a power hitter, but the 113 OPS+ he had in 2021 and 100 he had last year did just enough to give Blue Jays fans hope that he'd be at least a league-average bat.

On defense, Espinal continues to be a serviceable player who can line up at second, third or short on any given day. However, with the emergence of a player like Davis Schneider or Orelvis Martinez down in the high minors, it's worth wondering whether the Jays could swap Espinal out for a hitter with some thump like one of those two.

Since Espinal's been such a scarcely used asset for the Blue Jays, he is one that could certainly be dangled in trade talks. He is not going to be a headliner in a deal for a pitcher, but what he brings to the table is sure to be of value to some clubs around the league, so don't be shocked if he goes the other way in a deal for a pitcher at the deadline.

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