TORONTO — With one out in the eighth inning, a pinch-hit single to left by Luis Urías gave the Toronto Blue Jays their first lead of the night.
Fifteen minutes later, Louis Varland had locked down a 3-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals and the Blue Jays had won consecutive games for the first time since the All-Star break, improving to 51-59 on the year.
Afterwards, manager John Schneider wasn’t inclined to speculate on what the Blue Jays would do at the trade deadline, but he did have plenty of praise for Urías, whose OPS went up to .778 Friday.
“He understands his role and understands what we're asking of him,” Schneider said. “He's been really good. He's taking advantage of some opportunities and he trusts his skillset.”
This late into the summer two wins don’t change the trajectory of the Blue Jays’ season, so they’re still expected to sell, but the day nonetheless featured some significant moments on and off the field.
The win nearly featured Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s first Rogers Centre homer of the season, but the first baseman had to settle for a double after a near-miss in the sixth inning.
"We thought he got it,” Schneider said. “I don't know what's going on with this atmosphere here with Vlad, but yeah, those are the type of swings you take on a pitch that's over the middle. Encouraging for sure. The big fella’s working”
One inning later, Guerrero Jr. had another chance at glory but he grounded into a double play against Peter Strzelecki, leaving the heroics to Urías.
Of course the Blue Jays were only able to win such a close game because of another strong start from Dylan Cease. In his first appearance since one-hitting the Red Sox last weekend, Cease pitched seven innings of one-run ball, allowing three hits while striking out seven.
“I feel like I'm putting the fastball where I want it to more consistently,” Cease said. “Obviously, I walked three today, so it could have been better, but I would say (fastball command) is the biggest thing.”
While Cease wasn’t quite as dominant as he’s been at times this month, he lowered his season ERA to 2.41 with another quality start.
“It shows how good he is,” Schneider said. “When he’s a little bit off, and he can still do what he did tonight and be pretty effective.”
Off the field, preparation for the trade deadline continued. History tells us most of the action will happen in the 24 hours preceding Monday's 6 p.m. ET deadline. The Blue Jays have made deals on deadline day every single year since Ross Atkins became GM, and they’ve completed multiple trades nine of 10 times.
Across baseball, everyone makes last-minute trades, with 36 deadline-day deals completed last year and dozens more to come Monday. So while talks are ongoing, we’re still in the anything-is-possible phase of deadline conversations, not the we-need-answers-now phase.
Under the current circumstances, the Blue Jays can still explore creative concepts like exchanging cumbersome contracts or acquiring controllable starting pitching as a pseudo buyer. When asked what’s next, Schneider can attempt to dispel the notion that the Blue Jays are sellers. Who knows, it might help his players keep their focus on the field.
As Cease explained, it can be distracting for players.
"So much of it is out of my control that I'm really kind of just focusing on my day-to-day things,” he said. “So, I don't really get worked up about it.”
But others describe the situation differently. The expectation among rival front offices is that the Blue Jays are going to sell. As in, trade away pending free agents like Kevin Gausman, Daulton Varsho and Shane Bieber to augment their team for the future. Gausman’s start Saturday will almost assuredly be his last.
Others could be moved too, like George Springer and Max Scherzer, who’d have to approve trades, or Myles Straw and Jeff Hoffman, who’d fit easily onto many contending teams. Maybe even Jesus Sanchez, who was activated in time to make a nice play in left field.
But the point is, the Blue Jays are ready to accept the reality that they’re a last-place team that can help itself more by planning for the future than by investing further in a 2026 season that has so far disappointed. There’s no point announcing that in the clubhouse, but their playoff odds are slim, so it’s the prudent thing to do.
With that expectation in mind, buyers like the San Diego Padres and New York Yankees had scouts on hand at Rogers Centre Friday. On paper, the Yankees are fits for the likes of Varsho and Hoffman while the Padres are said to be exploring the starting pitching market.
Hoffman might have substantial value, especially after striking out two of the three hitters he faced in a clean inning of work Friday, but Varland appears very likely to stay in Toronto. He’s either completely unavailable or only available for an astronomical return, depending on who you ask.
As the deadline approaches, talk will turn to action and roster moves will follow. Until then, the action on the field is only one part of the story for the Blue Jays.
“No matter what happens over the next couple days, I want the guys to play like they did today and have a little bit of urgency,” Schneider said.
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