Blue Jays Will Have Difficult Decision To Make With Veteran Pitcher in Coming Weeks
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The Toronto Blue Jays are right on the cusp of the playoff picture in the American League.
Despite being under the .500 mark with a 26-27 record, the Blue Jays are only two games behind the Houston Astros for the last Wild Card spot. A few teams have separated themselves as the cream of the crop in the AL, but the playoff race is going to be a hotly-contested one.
That's why Toronto is a team that many people are going to be keeping such a close eye on in the coming weeks.
When looking at their roster, they have the talent to contend for the postseason, but have yet to put everything together fully at once.
Inconsistency has plagued the Blue Jays in every facet of the game.
Once their offense gets going, the pitching falters. If the pitching is one point, the offense goes ice-cold. When both of those things are clicking, the defense falls apart.
If they are within reach of the playoffs, a front office under pressure to play in October will push to acquire upgrades, especially in the power department.
Could Blue Jays Trade Veteran Starting Pitcher Ahead of Deadline?
But several players on the squad could be of interest to other teams around the league if Toronto ends up being sellers at the deadline.
One of the players whom the Blue Jays will have to decide what to do with is starting pitcher Chris Bassitt.
“That could lead to an interesting decision in a couple of months: Bassitt is 36 and in the final year of his deal with the Blue Jays, who continue to linger around .500 in a relatively flat American League,” wrote Tim Britton of The Athletic (subscription required).
Set to hit free agency after the season, the team could acquire some solid assets in return for the veteran right-handed pitcher, who is in the midst of a legitimate bounce back campaign.
Contending teams are always looking for pitching depth, and he is on pace to set several career-highs in 2025.
Through 11 starts, Bassitt has a 3.38 ERA in 61.1 innings with 62 strikeouts. His 9.2 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 would both be single-season best numbers.
He has been Toronto’s ace to this point, which will make it difficult to trade him should they have any hopes of making a playoff push.
But if he continues performing at that level, Bassitt would have a lot of value on the trade market, which is short on starting pitching options at the moment.
