Blue Jays moved at the deadline wasting no time catching fire on their new clubs

The Toronto Blue Jays have had a rough season, there's no doubt about it. The club is 51-61, 15.5 games out of first place in the American League East and 11.5 games out of a Wild Card spot. At this point, there's no hope for sniffing the postseason.

However, the club was able to successfully maneuver through this year's trade deadline, which set them up nicely for the future. Their goal was simple ahead of the July 30 deadline: move any and all rentals while holding onto controllable assets, unless their socks got knocked off by offers on controllable players.

The deadline has come and gone, with the Blue Jays moving every rental they had, as well as multiple controllable players. Multiple big league-ready players came back to Toronto (and into their farm system, which is of the utmost importance), but a whole lot of talent went out the door as well.

It could be a coincidence or it could be a product of the Blue Jays' coaching staff, but there are a handful of players the Jays moved on from that are taking to their new organizations nicely. Let's break down some of the top performers.

Ex-Blue Jays catching fire on their new clubs post-deadline

Yusei Kikuchi

Make no mistake about it, the Blue Jays fleeced the Astros in this deal and it's likely going to feel that way for a long, long time. However, it's hard to ignore the performance the left-hander had for Houston just a few days ago.

Kikuchi, 33, has made one start for the Astros post-trade, but it sure was a memorable one. He went just 5.2 innings, but he struck out 11 Tampa Bay Rays while walking three and allowing just two runs on three hits. He tied an Astros franchise record with eight consecutive strikeouts at one point and he retired 16 of the last 20 batters he faced. Kikuchi left to a standing ovation from the Astros' home crowd.

Danny Jansen

It was tough for Blue Jays fans to watch Jansen go after he spent the last seven years behind the plate for their club. It hurt even more for them to see him go to the division rival Boston Red Sox. Sure, he could end up spending just a few months with them and he could even re-sign in Toronto in the upcoming offseason, but it still was tough to watch him go.

Making things sting even more is the fact that he's started his tenure in Boston out on a 5-for-10 note, driving in a run while walking and striking out a few times. He's not going to maintain his 1.083 OPS pace, but he's still hit the ground running in his new uni.

Justin Turner

On the same night as Kikuchi's dominant outing for the Astros, Justin Turner got to work on his own mission to win the hearts of Mariners fans over. The 39-year-old hit a grand slam in the bottom of the second inning of Friday night's contest.

All told, the 16-year veteran is 5-for-18 (.278) with the Mariners so far, driving in six runs and scoring a pair of runs himself. Again, small sample size, but seeing him start off his Seattle tenure in grand fashion is yet another "of COURSE he did!" moment for Blue Jays fans.

The others

• Trevor Richards, traded to the Twins, has a pair of scoreless outings under his belt so far in Minneapolis. He's struck out three batters and has yet to walk a batter or allow a hit.

• Isiah Kiner-Falefa is 2-for-8 (.250) with a double and a triple for the Pirates. He's made two starts at second base, committing an error but earning nine assists in 11 chances so far.

• In Nate Pearson's first outing on the Cubs, he allowed a home run before hitting the very next batter in the head with a fastball. He rebounded in his next outing, throwing two shutout innings with a strikeout and one hit allowed.

• Yimi Garcia has a 3.86 ERA through his first five appearances on the Mariners alongside Turner. He's struck out four batters and walked three, surrendering two runs on two hits.

• Kevin Kiermaier's Dodgers career has gotten off to a slow start, as he is hitless through five at-bats, striking out three times, walking once and being 0-for-1 in stolen base attempts.