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Pair of Toronto Blue Jays Players Make List of Top Trade Candidates
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- Pair of Toronto Blue Jays Players Make List of Top Trade Candidates
(Cary Edmondson/Imagn Images)
The Toronto Blue Jays will have a crucial, but abbreviated offseason in front of them.
The Blue Jays are coming off one of the most disappointing seasons in team history. Toronto began the year with legitimate World Series aspirations after winning its first American League pennant since 1993 in 2025. The team advanced all the way to Game 7 of World Series before falling in extra innings to the Los Angeles Dodgers .
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This season, a mountain of injuries and regressions resulted in the Blue Jays falling from first place in the American League East and pennant contenders to last place in the division. Another team from the AL East, the Tampa Bay Rays , won the pennant instead.
There will be pressure on Toronto to return to playoff contention in 2026 with most of its starting rotation expected to be back healthy, but it will have limited time to make any additions to the roster.
The Blue Jays, as well as the other 29 teams in MLB, will have just one month before the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the MLB and MLB Players Association expires Dec. 1 to make roster moves pertaining to the major league roster. After the CBA expires, a lockout is expected to be implemented.
There's been speculation whether Toronto will attempt to improve via free agency, which is considered one of the weaker classes in recent years, or if they'll look to the trade market to make meaningful improvements.
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If the Blue Jays do opt to deal, they have at least two players that could be very enticing to other clubs.
MLB Trade Rumors released its list of the top 40 trade candidates Thursday. Toronto didn't have any players among the top 40, but did have two players listed as candidates to watch: infielder Ernie Clement and outfielder Nathan Lukes .
Lukes is 32-years-old and still under pre-arbitration for next season, making him a cheap player on the roster. He has a good contact tool and posted a slash line of .277/.327/.387 with a .714 OPS in 125 games this season. He hit 15 doubles and 10 home runs with 41 RBIs.
Lukes' defense has been lauded in his tenure with the Blue Jays, but he's slightly below-average as a hitter (96 OPS+), which would mean an everyday starting role could be a detriment for the team. Toronto could opt to keep him on the roster as a fourth outfielder or a bench bat. He would also provide ideal depth for a team needing another body for its outfield.
Clement made history and set the MLB record for the most hits in a single postseason (30) for Toronto during its pennant-winning postseason last year, and followed that up with an All-Star campaign in 2026.
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Clement had an amazing start to the season but slowed down towards the end and slashed .259/.285/.364/ with a .649 OPS in 158 games. He hit 33 doubles, a triple and nine homers with 48 RBIs.
Clement is under team control through 2029 but will likely earn a significant amount in arbitration due to his individual honors, which could lead to the Blue Jays looking for an offensive improvement in the middle infield, or at least a cheaper alternative.
