The Toronto Blue Jays will be sellers ahead of the August 3 MLB Trade Deadline.
Toronto has some intriguing assets to trade, including pending free agents. Former Cy Young Award pitcher Shane Bieber could be someone the Blue Jays trade, as he’s a pending free agent and has started to pitch much better.
Ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline, analyst Mitch Bannon of The Athletic proposed a mock trade that sees the Blue Jays dealing Bieber to the Tampa Bay Rays.
Blue Jays acquire:
Rays acquire:
- Shane Bieber
The proposed deal is an intriguing one as Tampa Bay acquires Bieber to bolster the rotation. Toronto, meanwhile, gets an MLB utility player in Vilade and a AAA pitcher in Boyle who could come up after the deadline and eat some innings.
Vilade can play the outfield, first base, and second base, as the 27-year-old can be a bench player in the MLB for the Blue Jays. He’s hitting .257 with 7 home runs and 31 RBIs and is under team control through 2031, so he’d be an impact player for years to come in Toronto.
Boyle, meanwhile, is a 26-year-old pitcher who’s in Triple-A, but should get called up by Toronto as the Blue Jays will need innings. Boyle can compete for a starting rotation job or add some length out of the bullpen. He’s appeared in 4 MLB seasons, going 6-11 with a 5.00 ERA in 32 games, including 25 starts.
In return, the Blue Jays would trade Bieber, who’s a pending free agent. Bieber has been much better as of late, which will boost his trade stock. The right-hander is 2-1 with a 4.70 ERA in 6 starts, but has allowed just 3 runs in 17.2 innings over his last 3 starts.
Analyst Explains Blue Jays-Rays Trade
The proposed deal makes sense as Toronto gets two MLB-ready players for Bieber, who’s a pending free agent.
Bannon believes the deal makes sense for both sides as Tampa Bay needs to add another impact pitcher.
“The Jays could flip Bieber for two pieces who would join the 2026 squad and potentially aid in 2027 and beyond. Vilade, acquired for cash by the Rays in November, has found a niche in his age-27 season as a utility man who mashes lefties. He owns a .270 average and .806 OPS against southpaws this season, with the sort of platoon thump the Jays have lacked all year,” Bannon wrote.
“Boyle, currently in the minors, is a 6-foot-8 righty with a 97 mph fastball and a plus slider. He hasn’t been able to turn those advantages into consistent MLB success. Boyle is experiencing significant command issues in Triple A. But he has the tools to be a swingman or bullpen asset. It’s not a massive return. But Boyle and Vilade are the sort of players that would improve the Jays around the edges.”
The Blue Jays are hoping to be competitive in 2027, so adding MLB-caliber players is what Toronto should be after.
Bieber Dominant in Recent Outing
As Bieber struggled in his first couple of outings, he’s been dominant as of late.
Bieber needed just 86 pitches to go seven innings against Tampa Bay on Thursday in the Blue Jays 3-1 win.
“That was outstanding,” manager John Schneider said. “Limiting hard contact against a really good offensive team, especially the top of the order. And we played really good defense behind him.”
The outing likely boosts Bieber’s trade value.
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