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In Praise of Marginal Moves

These are exciting times for the Toronto Blue Jays and their fans. Not the same brand of excitement as last season, mind you, but it’s plenty wonderful to root for a team in the driver’s seat without the help of some miracle additions. This version of the Blue Jays didn’t need to go out and trade for an ace or an elite shortstop to give them that extra kick. That’s not to say that last season’s edition was incapable of winning before Price and Tulowitzki; it just felt a whole lot different once we jumped into ‘after’ and saw ‘before’ in the rearview mirror.

Those views are markedly different this year, what with the team dealing from a position of power for the first time in what feels like a very long while. The shifting goalposts of expectation have also altered how we perceive this team, as our own Jenn Smith discussed on the weekend. No longer in need of a home run acquisition, the Jays opened themselves up to a whole new brand of fan frustration; the kind rooted in a ‘we know how good you are’ attitude that comes with championship aspirations.

It’s the high stakes that make silly losses seem extra agonizing and turn up the volume on requests for an immediate, effective response when a team need arises. To the credit of management, those fixes have arrived in some unheralded moves.

What did the Blue Jays really need this year, anyway?

The most immediate need was the rotation; who would step up fresh off the departure of David Price? Marco Estrada continued to bust FIP and its friends while JA Happ fought through a sea of shrugs and light outrage after his signing to make a triumphant return to Toronto. And of course, Aaron Sanchez asserted himself as one of the finest young pitchers in the game.

The bullpen needed some setup help and management delivered in the form of Drew Storen, Gavin Floyd, Jesse Chavez and Franklin Morales. Hindsight is 20-20 on those moves, certainly, but it’s not like the problem was ignored.

That was before the season started. Truthfully there haven’t really been any new holes on the roster. Neither fires to put out nor crises to handle; at least not in the most significant sense of those words.

There are two days left to swing a trade that can bring a postseason contributor into the fold. Barring something spectacularly unexpected, it seems like the team is pretty much set for their October appearance. Mark Shapiro, Ross Atkins and company have done well to plug holes in the dam with a series of smaller, seemingly no-risk deals.

When Cecil and Floyd went down, it was time for reinforcements. The newcomers authored their fair share of late inning adventures; a simply untenable situation for a team with high hopes. The Jays needed some relief help when the first batch of acquisitions couldn’t hack it. They got Scott Feldman and Jason Grilli for pretty much nothing- no offense to the departed, then Joaquin Benoit was picked up for one-foot-out-the-door Drew Storen.

The hand-wringing brought on by the bullpen of May and June has slowly but surely stopped by the process of both addition and subtraction. I frequently forget that Chavez was on the team this season; that’s either some poor memory or a coping mechanism. He was shipped out for a pitcher with some hints of success and extra years of control in Mike Bolsinger. Liam Hendriks has settled down in Oakland, but there’s a distinct possibility that Bolsinger ends up being the best piece of that transaction chain.

They identified the outfield as a potential weak spot given the general frailty of Michael Saunders and Jose Bautista. Melvin Upton Jr. at just $5 million over two seasons? Sure, even if he’s the fourth outfielder. It looks even better given the rash of injuries that followed his arrival and the end of his strikeout binge.

They also didn’t necessarily need a better backup catcher, but it does feel good to get an offensive upgrade on Josh Thole. Dioner Navarro for a Double-A pitcher with decent numbers has a chance to look alright for Chicago way down the line, but is fine given the reality of Toronto’s looming offseason.

Finally, for all the talk (unfounded or otherwise) of the six-man rotation messing with Estrada, adding Francisco Liriano did take some of the heat off the Aaron Sanchez debate. The Liriano-Hutchison swap is the riskiest deal that went down, but it did net the Jays a shiny new catching prospect and ensured that their best pitcher would stay out of the bullpen.

Sign me up for all of those moves seven days a week and twice on Sundays. There isn’t much to be worked up about with any of the in-season moves that the ‘new’ front office has completed. For as much flak as they received in their opening months, they deserve tons of credit for putting some helpful, hopefully final, touches on this roster. These are hardly the trades that fans envision, yet they have the collective potential to shape franchise history in major ways. Feldman, Upton, Benoit et al might not move the needle at first, but they have undoubtedly improved the team’s outlook down the stretch.

Realistically, is there anything left to do that could seriously improve Toronto’s chances in the postseason? It’d be nice if Dalton Pompey excels in September and guarantees himself the designated runner spot in the playoffs, but there’s hardly a glaring hole here. Piece by piece, the Blue Jays have upgraded where they needed to.

There is no season-saving call up or cure-all blockbuster. None of that exists, yet there is an overwhelming sense of satisfaction. It was just a series of ‘no-lose’ deals which, if enough are strung together, are bound to produce a win. This is how the mid-season activity of a perennially good team is supposed to look. It feels odd but I’m sure I’ll get used to it. That’s the plan, at least.

Beyond the obvious hope for good health and the late arrival of the annual double digit win streak, what’s left to do?

All that’s really left is to kick back and enjoy the ride.

Lead Photo: Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY Sports

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