There’s no more hope left to cling to for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Their playoff odds continued to shrink and optimism continued on a downward spiral as the team struggled to secure a series win after the All-Star break. And with the trade deadline approaching quickly, the team has sealed its fate as one of the sellers.

Being a seller at this trade deadline provides the Blue Jays with a unique opportunity because there’s always a lack of sellers with the expanded playoff format. If executed correctly, Toronto can get solid trade returns in a market where scarcity dominates. The challenge is that the Blue Jays can’t go on a full fire-sale mode at the deadline as they hope to compete again as early as next season.

This trade deadline will require a fine balancing act on the Blue Jays’ part, and here’s what a successful deadline for the team would look like.

The most obvious move for the Blue Jays is to trade away players on expiring contracts. Shane Bieber, Yimi García, Kevin Gausman, Max Scherzer, George Springer, and Daulton Varsho will all be free agents by this winter and could appeal to some teams as good rentals for their contention window.

Some players may have more interest than others. Bieber, Gausman and Varsho are all compelling for a few teams, whereas it may be harder to convince a contender to acquire García, who hasn’t pitched in a year, Scherzer, who has spent a large chunk of the season on the injured list, and Springer, who has regressed.

They may not be able to trade all those players on expiring contracts, but even trading a few can buff up their farm system, much like it did in 2024.

Historically, the Blue Jays haven’t developed sustainable starting pitching depth well. That hasn’t changed this season, and the team stands to lose most of its core pitching pieces by the end of this year.

There are intriguing pitchers in the Blue Jays’ farm system, such as Nolan Perry, Gage Stanifer, and Johnny King, but they won’t be ready to help out the major-league roster immediately. This trade deadline is the perfect time for the Blue Jays to acquire major-league-ready prospects who can actually support the starting rotation. They may not be able to get Jacob Misiorowski-calibre pitchers, but they can certainly pick up under-the-radar-type prospects who have a high floor.

Dylan Cease is the anchor and Trey Yesavage is the future. They need more pitchers who can offer a buffer and steadiness to succeed in the next few years.

The Blue Jays’ outfield is in a fascinating situation. They have enough major league players – Nathan Lukes, Yohendrick Piñango, Anthony Santander, Jesús Sánchez, Davis Schneider, and Myles Straw – who can play the position, but they don’t have many strong outfielders who have a sharp defensive and offensive skill set at the moment.

RJ Schreck and Jay Harry in the minors could offer some intriguing options, but the team still needs more outfielders who can inject more stability into the big-league roster. This is even truer in the defensive department because Piñango, Santander and Sánchez are all defensive liabilities.

At the same time, the Blue Jays can’t keep acquiring outfielders closer to Myles Straw’s profile, which is why they need to target more outfield prospects to see who contributes to the team most meaningfully, ideally some who bat right-handed.

On the surface, the Blue Jays are sellers, but they have to view themselves as buyers who are stocking up for the future. That translates to looking for players who can be building blocks around the existing star players. In this case, the Blue Jays would have to look out for future outfielders who can be called up at any time to make an impact.

Not overlooking the outfield depth at this deadline is going to be equally as important as collecting pitching depth.