Blue Jays Could Make Important Rotation Upgrade With Trade for This Star

The Toronto Blue Jays have been on a heater.

It powered them to first place in the AL East entering play on Saturday, and it took them out of the possiblity of becoming a seller ahead of the trade deadline.

Now, based on their standing in the American League, they should be team that is looking to upgrade their roster before July 31.

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The most obvious area that needs a boost is their starting rotation.

Chris Bassitt, Kevin Gausman and Jose Berrios have all been solid this year with fWAR values above 1.0 and ERAs below 4.50. But outside of that trio -- which has also been inconsistent at times -- there isn't much for the Blue Jays to rely on.

Eric Lauer has been a revelation for the team this season, especially after being moved into the rotation. And the return of Max Scherzer offers some upside. But it's clear they could use another front-end starter.

Someone they should consider trading for is Luis Severino.

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The veteran right-hander had a resurgent year with the New York Mets in 2024 after he recovered from his elbow and shoulder injuries, posting a 3.91 ERA across 31 starts that earned him a lucrative deal with the Athletics this past offseason.

But according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, that marriage could be coming to an end, with the insider reporting they "are now open to trading him."

That largely stems from his continued criticism of pitching in the minor league home ballpark of the Athletics as they await their move to Las Vegas, and it's gotten to the point where Nightengale stated, "it may come as a surprise if he's still with the organization come August."

Severino should be of major interest for the Blue Jays.

While his cumulative ERA of 5.09 is not eye-catching by any means, that number should be taken with a grain of salt considering he has a 6.79 ERA across his 10 starts at home compared to a 3.04 ERA across his eight starts on the road.

If Severino is much closer to the road version than he is when he's pitching at home, then adding him to Toronto's rotation would be a major plus.

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Underlying metrics suggest that could be the case.

While Severino is striking out batters at the lowest rate of his career and giving up hard contact at the second-highest, his xERA is at 4.63 and his Stuff+ figure is still above the league average.

Adding the veteran right-hander wouldn't just help for this season, either.

He's under contract for 2026 with a player option in 2027, so that offers the Blue Jays some protection in their rotation since Bassitt and Scherzer are scheduled to hit free agency after the year.

Toronto should strongly consider going after Severino ahead of the deadline.

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