The Toronto Blue Jays returned home to Rogers Centre after an 18-month stay in Buffalo, N.Y. Upon settling back in at their true home stadium, the Jays wasted no time in facilitating a blockbuster trade.
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According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Blue Jays have acquired starting pitcher Jose Berrios from the Minnesota Twins.
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In return for Berrios, Toronto is sending top prospects Austin Martin and Simeon Woods-Richardson to the Twins.
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After Max Scherzer was traded, Berrios instantly became the top pitcher on the trade market. While massive market teams like the Padres and Yankees had shown interest, Toronto snuck in and made a late push to get the hurler.
Berrios, 27, is 7-5 with a 3.48 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 32 walks, and 126 strikeouts this season. The two-time All-Star has posted an 83rd-percentile chase rate and 75th-percentile walk rate in 2021. His best pitch is his curveball, which he throws 31 percent of the time while using it to induce a 35.5 percent whiff rate and .219 batting average. He’s been a reliable hurler year and in and year out, so he’ll be a huge addition to the Jays’ rotation. The six-year MLB veteran is making $6.1 million in 2021 and will head for arbitration in 2022.
The Return
One of two players heading to Minnesota, Martin, a shortstop, was selected No. 5 overall by the Blue Jays in the 2020 MLB Draft. The Vanderbilt product was slashing .281/.424/.383 with 16 RBI, 37 walks, 53 strikeouts, and nine stolen bases over the course of 55 games at Double-A this season. He ranked second among Blue Jays prospects, according to MLB Pipeline.
Rounding out the package is Woods Richardson, a 20-year-old. Currently pitching in the Olympics for the United States, the right-hander posted a 5.76 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, and .246 OBA through 11 starts at Double-A this year. No stranger to deadline deals, Woods Richardson went from the Mets to the Blue Jays in a 2019 swap headlined by Marcus Stroman. He ranks fourth on Pipeline’s list of the top Jays prospects.
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