TORONTO – It’s something he really hasn’t worried much about in the past, but you can now count Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos among those in favour of pushing the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline back.
A prime reason for that is the addition of the second wild card gives more teams a chance to stay in post-season contention longer, and that by pushing the cut-off deeper, there is the potential for more separation and therefore more moves.
“This is the first year I really started to think about trade deadline and if it can be moved back,” he says. “I remember when (Alex) Rios was here and (Scott) Rolen was traded with a minute left or whatever it was (in 2009), and then Rios was gone two weeks after, the landscape for the club changed, it was the middle of August, the team didn’t play as well, and I do think with the extra wild card, ideally you would like to have a little more time. Some teams aren’t prepared to sell so early, because of that extra wild card you still have a chance, I don’t think teams are ready to throw in the towel or concede the season with two months left. Maybe if you got to six weeks left, or a month left, it would change things.”
Teams can still make moves in August but only for players that they have either claimed on revocable waivers or that have cleared waivers.
It’s a complicated and tricky process, with talented players rarely making it through unless they have a big salary attached to them.
“The landscape is starting to settle just because more and more players are being put through, I check it daily, see who clears, we might put claims in on guys, but the deeper you get into the month, the more you have an idea of who’s available,” said Anthopoulos, who would only say in past years the Blue Jays make a claim or two when asked if he’d put in any claims this year.
“Anybody who’s behind us in the standings is pretty much going to claim any player we might have interest in unless that player is making a ton of money and everyone is concerned about assuming the contract.”
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Anibal Sanchez. Max Scherzer. David Price. Felix Hernandez. Chris Young. Hisashi Iwakuma. That’s the next six days for the Blue Jays after a series loss to the Baltimore Orioles.
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Having Melky Cabrera in the lineup Friday night would be a big help against the Detroit Tigers. His status is uncertain after taking a Miguel Gonzalez fastball off the right elbow Thursday.
“I don’t think it’s bad, in the X-ray there was nothing there,” said manager John Gibbons. “He tried to hit some balls off a tee, he really couldn’t swing. Hopefully (he plays) in the next couple of days, maybe (Friday), we’ll see.”
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As Brett Lawrie returns to the disabled list, Adam Lind and Edwin Encarnacion make gains in their bids to return to active action.
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Some views from the Orioles after taking two of three from the Blue Jays:
Manager Buck Showalter: “We’ve just got to keep grinding and make the games we play matter.”
Starter Miguel Gonzalez: “It’s important. Every game right now is a chase for the playoffs. Overall we’re doing a good job. … Every game is important now.”
Caleb Joseph: “These are big games, they’re right behind us. When you’re playing head to head games, it can swing leads really quick. They’re a great team, they’re going to be right on our tails for pretty much the whole year. …
“We knew we had to come in and try to take care of business. Taking two of three is gratifying because they’re coming after us hard.”