Ross Atkins says what all Blue Jays fans want to hear after Jesus Sanchez trade

The Toronto Blue Jays simply had to respond after losing Anthony Santander to a shoulder surgery that will knock him out for most of the 2026 season. The outfield group — featuring Daulton Varsho in center field and Addison Barger in right — needed more thump, especially if Nathan Lukes and Myles Straw weren't viewed as full-time starters by the front office or coaching staff.

Luckily, GM Ross Atkins answered the call, trading Joey Loperfido for Jesús Sánchez in a one-for-one deal with the Houston Astros. Sánchez, 28, is known for his ability to crush right-handed pitching and adds yet another lefty hitter to the outfield mix.

Atkins doesn't believe he's going to stop there, though. While speaking to reporters at spring camp, the Blue Jays' general manager said that he won't stop pursuing upgrades if the right options present themselves.

Ross Atkins should use Blue Jays' outfield logjam to upgrade other parts of the roster

With Sánchez in tow, the Blue Jays now have something of a logjam in the outfield to sort through. They could easily make a trade to ease up the playing time restrictions while upgrading elsewhere on the roster.

Another infielder is probably the top priority, especially one who is capable of playing multiple positions. Davis Schneider is currently the only backup infielder projected to make the Opening Day roster, but the only position he's spent meaningful time at in the major leagues is second base. A utility man with a history of playing shortstop would be a helpful piece of the puzzle. Leo Jiménez is the only player on the 40-man roster who fits that description at the moment.

Alternatively, the team could try and parlay it's outfield depth into another reliever. The team replaced Seranthony Dominguez with Tyler Rogers and recently got an encouraging update on Yimi Garcia, but there's a lack of depth when it comes to leverage arms. Acquiring another late-inning reliever, particularly one who throws left-handed, would be a shrewd move. The only southpaws among the major-league relief corps are Brendon Little and Eric Lauer (who may have to take a few starts now that Shane Bieber is hurt).

It's also possible that another outfielder-for-outfielder swap could be on the table. All of Varsho, Barger, Sánchez, and Lukes are left-handed hitters; only Myles Straw — known more for his glove than his bat — bats from the right side. Assuming George Springer is limited to DH-only duties at this point, another outfielder who can tee off on lefties could prove to be a perfect platoon partner for Sánchez.

No matter how they do it, the Blue Jays will probably need to make at least one more move to clear up some redundancies wrought by the Sánchez trade. Considering where they were just a few days ago when they Santander news broke, that's an enviable position to be in.