Jon Morosi came out with an incredibly obvious scoop on Tuesday morning, reporting that “multiple rival executives” around baseball are expecting the Blue Jays to trade one of their three catchers this off-season.
The #BlueJays are expected to trade a catcher this offseason, according to multiple rival execs I’ve spoken with at the GM Meetings. The Jays have an abundance of talent at the position: Danny Jansen, Alejandro Kirk and Gabriel Moreno. @MLBNetwork @MLB
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 8, 2022
Everyone who pays attention to the Blue Jays knows that one of Alejandro Kirk, Danny Jansen, or Gabriel Moreno is likely to get moved this winter, as the team has an abundance of talent at a premium position that could be used to help them fill areas of need elsewhere.
The question isn’t so much “will the Blue Jays trade a catcher???” The question is “which one of the three catchers will wind up being moved?” and “who will the trade partner be?”
There’s been plenty of speculation that the St. Louis Cardinals would make sense as a trade partner, as they now have a gaping hole behind the plate following the retirement of long-time catcher Yadier Molina. The Cardinals have a couple of outfielders, Lars Nootbaar and Dylan Carlson, who would be nice fits in Toronto.
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Another trade partner that makes sense is the Miami Marlins, a team badly in need of position players all over the diamond. According to Jon Heyman, the Marlins have made starting pitcher Pablo Lopez available in trade talks this off-season after nearly trading him in a deal with the New York Yankees ahead of this summer’s trade deadline…
Biggest name hear available in trade so far is Marlins pitcher Pablo Lopez. Fish need hitters! Came close to dealing him to Yankees at deadline in a Gleyber Torres deal.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 8, 2022
Lopez posted a 3.75 ERA over 32 starts in 2022 and he now owns a 3.94 ERA over 94 career starts in the big leagues. He’s arbitration-eligible this winter and is under control for two more seasons, which would explain why the low-budget Marlins are looking to pull the trigger on a deal.
Toronto and Miami have hooked up on a pair of trades over the past couple of years. Back in 2021, the Blue Jays acquired Adam Cimber from the Marlins to help shore up a struggling bullpen. Ahead of 2022’s trade deadline, the Blue Jays sent Jordan Groshans to the Marlins for Anthony Bass and Zach Pop, adding more depth to the ‘pen.
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Given the surpluses and the needs of both teams along with their recent history of making deals, the Blue Jays and Marlins linking up for a trade involving a catcher and a starting pitcher would make a lot of sense.
