With the Toronto Blue Jays looking to deal players before the July 30th trade deadline, one player is gaining some interest on the trade front according to FanSided’s Robert Murray.

The Blue Jays are reportedly listening to trade offers on utilityman Isiah Kiner-Falefa, a report that was also noted by Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith earlier this week. Kiner-Falefa has been on the IL since early July with a knee sprain and has been in Buffalo over the weekend on a rehab assignment as he gets back on track to the big leagues. As Nicholson-Smith noted, IKF can still be traded even if he is on the injured list.

The interest in the veteran is warranted given his numbers in the batter’s box this season. Known primarily as a glove-first player, Kiner-Falefa is posting a .292/.338/.420 slash line – all of which are currently trending towards being career highs for the Hawaiian product. His .758 OPS is 87 points higher than his career mark and the right-handed bat is just one home run away from tying his single-season career high of eight-round trippers.

Kiner-Falefa has also added eight doubles and 33 RBIs in the Jays lineup and has walked 13 times compared to 37 strikeouts, boasting a 13.3 whiff percentage (97th percentile) and a 13.2 K% (93rd percentile).

While IKF won’t light up the radar gun with his exit velocities or likely crack 20 home runs, the 29-year-old continues to put the ball in play at a high rate while being able to play multiple positions across the diamond at a high level.

Kiner-Falefa owns a +4 Outs Above Average across three different positions – second base, third base, and shortstop. Collectively, he has amassed a 12 bDRS between all three spots but owns a +5 mark at second and third with a .993 and a .989 fielding percentage respectively with just three errors to his name.

Signed through next season with a $7.5 million cap hit, Kiner-Falefa has been one of the top signings of Ross Atkins this past offseason and could be a valuable trade chip over the next two days as the Blue Jays continue to try and improve to contend in 2025.

Kiner-Falefa could be a factor next season with the Blue Jays and that may be convincing enough for the front office to keep him around. However, if the right offer comes to the table given the favourable seller market, trading the utility man when his value is arguably at his highest amidst career numbers at the plate might be the smarter move to make.