For the Toronto Blue Jays to return to a state of competitiveness in 2025, the front office, to put it simply, has to knock this year’s trade deadline — that’s now just one week away — out of the park.

Constructing a winning roster between now and the start of next season won’t be easy. This season has taught us that much thus far. Several holes will need to be filled over the off-season, although management could surely benefit from conducting a bit of that business ahead of time.

At next week’s trade deadline, for example.

Acquiring the most talent should be Toronto’s top priority as the franchise looks to sell off its pending free agents for future assets. But, given the urgency to compete next season, they should be actively seeking MLB-ready talent — or close to it — as well.

Those players are typically far more challenging to procure and usually require more than just a rental or two in return. However, that’s all this organization is seemingly interested in parting with, presenting a difficult task for general manager Ross Atkins and his staff, who will be counting on the lack of an impact trade market to bend in their favour.

So, let’s see which potential trade partners might align with the Blue Jays’ interests.

Potential Target(s): RHP Slade Cecconi, RHP Cristian Mena, OF Jorge Barrosa, C Adrian Del Castillo

On the outside of the crowded NL wild-card race, Arizona’s trade deadline plans could shift a few different ways over the next week, with the most likely scenario placing them as “soft buyers.” But if they dip their toe into the rental market, any combination of Danny Jansen, Yimi García, or Yusei Kikuchi should improve their odds of returning to the World Series for a second straight year.

And the D-Backs would have a couple of intriguing arms they could part with, namely Cecconi, a 25-year-old righty who’s already logged close to 100 innings of big-league experience over the last two seasons.

Potential Target(s): RHP Chayce McDermott, LHP Cade Povich, RHP Justin Armbruester, OF Kyle Stowers, OF Jud Fabian

With a top-tier farm system, the Orioles can do whatever they please leading up to the July 30 trade deadline. To make a deep run, though, general manager Mike Elias desperately needs to shore up his club’s pitching depth, both in the starting rotation and bullpen. Luckily, the Blue Jays could assist in each of those areas.

The obvious skepticism about trading within the same division applies here. At the same time, any concern from Toronto’s perspective should probably be thrown out the window if there’s an opportunity to dramatically improve a pipeline with any of the names listed above — or with any that aren’t.

Potential Target(s): INF Juan Brito, OF George Valera, OF Johnathan Rodriguez, LHP Joey Cantillo, C Bryan Lavastida

The Guardians are an interesting case.

At 59-40, nearly 20 games above .500 and leading the AL Central by a healthy margin, they’ll definitely be looking to buy ahead of next Tuesday’s trade deadline. But they don’t necessarily have to move any of their top prospects, especially for rentals, with a pair of big league-calibre arms working through things at triple-A — Triston McKenzie and Logan Allen.

In saying that, the Blue Jays may express more interest in adding a controllable outfielder like Valera or Rodriguez. Or potentially explore adding depth behind the plate in Lavastida, who’ll be out of options in 2025.

Potential Target(s): OF Zach Cole, INF Will Wagner, RHP A.J. Blubaugh, LHP Colton Gordon

Above all else, Houston needs pitching, pitching and more pitching, with most of its original starting rotation on the IL.

Though the farm system isn’t what it once was, understandably so, the organization possesses a highly-touted left-handed-hitting outfielder in Cole and two non-40-man roster starters in Blubaugh and Gordon (Rule 5-eligible this winter) — all of whom would likely draw considerable interest from Toronto.

Potential Target(s): RHP Ben Casparius, LHP Ronan Kopp, SS Trey Sweeney, INF/OF Austin Gauthier

Alright, let’s address the elephant in the room here first. Yes, Bo Bichette would be a perfect fit with the Dodgers. However, the All-Star shortstop’s on-field performance and health — or lack thereof — makes it incredibly unlikely a trade happens this summer, as doing so would be selling him at his absolute lowest.

Now, getting back on track, Los Angeles has been riddled with starting pitching injuries this season and could badly use someone like Kikuchi. But they probably have bigger fish in mind *ahem* Garrett Crochet. Still, perhaps they look to an old friend in García — and maybe Trevor Richards, too — to shore up the back end of their bullpen.

In that case, the Blue Jays could look to make a pitching-for-pitching swap, with their focus potentially set on a right-handed starter like Casparius (Rule 5-eligible this winter) and a left-handed power reliever such as Kopp, a 6-foot-7 flamethrower with the potential of developing into a high-leverage arm.

Potential Target(s): RHP Carlos Rodriguez, RHP Logan Henderson, RHP Harold Chirino

From a buyer standpoint, the Brewers appear to be an excellent fit for many, if not all, of the Blue Jays’ rental pieces, based on their position player, starting pitching, and reliever needs. Crafting a desirable return centred around a player that’s close to the majors is where things become challenging, though.

Milwaukee is a tad thin on MLB-ready talent in 2024, beyond the likely untouchables of catcher Jeferson Quero and Jacob Misiorowski — the franchise’s top two prospects. Even so, if there’s a deal to be made, right-handed starters like Rodriguez or Henderson (Rule 5-eligible this winter) would be quality additions to Toronto’s pitching depth.

Potential Target(s): RHP David Festa, RHP Andrew Morris, RHP Zebby Matthews, 2B/OF Luke Keaschall

The Twins are another club that’ll likely be in the mix for Kikuchi’s services, considering they’re currently operating with only four starters and would benefit from adding an impact hurler behind Pablo López and Joe Ryan. If there’s one prospect the Blue Jays brass should target, it’s Festa.

The 24-year-old righty, Minnesota’s top pitching prospect, struggled in his first taste as a big-league pitcher earlier this season, surrendering 12 runs on 16 hits — including four home runs — in two starts. But, with two additional optionable years after 2024 and less than a year of service time, he could become a much larger piece of the puzzle in Toronto.

Potential Target(s): INF Eguy Rosario, INF/OF Graham Pauley, OF Tirso Ornelas, LHP Jackson Wolf, RHP Alek Jacob, Ryan Bergert

As is usually the case, the Padres will be buyers this season, giving GM A.J. Preller the freedom to do what he does best: make aggressive trades. Adding an impact starter will surely be among his top priorities, and the organization’s top-notch farm system should give him the means to do so — making the Blue Jays a prime trade partner, especially if they miss out on Crochet.

Potential Target(s): OF Jonatan Clase, INF Ryan Bliss, RHP Carlos Vargas

There’s a case to be made that no other playoff contender needs to improve its lineup more than the Mariners, whose elite starting rotation and well-crafted bullpen have carried the freight for far too long this season — something the Blue Jays can relate to.

Inserting Jansen into Seattle’s underperforming offence would be a solid start, and it’d also shift Mitch Garver back to a full-time DH role rather than serving as the backup catcher out of necessity. In return, perhaps a package could centre around Clase, a 22-year-old switch-hitting speedster who’s registered a 97th-percentile sprint speed in 19 major league games this season.

Potential Target(s): RHP Gordon Graceffo, RHP Ian Bedell, RHP Michael McGreevy, INF Thomas Saggese, C Jimmy Crooks

Like Toronto, most experts grade St. Louis’ farm system in the bottom third of the sport, an obstacle that could prove troublesome as the front office looks to fortify its pitching depth behind ace Sonny Gray. They could, however, help themselves by appealing to sellers through quantity over quality.

Three prospects worth mentioning in this scenario are Bedell, McGreevy and Saggese — all of whom will be Rule 5-eligible this winter, likely increasing their odds of being available via trade. The Blue Jays could also aim to address their catching depth with someone like Crooks, a left-handed-hitting backstop who’s slashed .305/.409/.455 in 62 games at double-A and has had many praise his improved game-calling skills this season.