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MLB Trade Rumors 2019: Top 25 assets

By Joshua Sadlock

LOS ANGELES, CA - JUNE 20: San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner (40) throws a pitch during a MLB game between the San Francisco Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 20, 2019 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - JUNE 20: San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner (40) throws a pitch during a MLB game between the San Francisco Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 20, 2019 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – JUNE 18: Marcus Stroman #6 of the Toronto Blue Jays delivers a pitch in the fifth inning during a MLB game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Rogers Centre on June 18, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON – JUNE 18: Marcus Stroman #6 of the Toronto Blue Jays delivers a pitch in the fifth inning during a MLB game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Rogers Centre on June 18, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) /

9. Marcus Stroman

For all of the flak the Baltimore Orioles continue to take for being historically bad, the Toronto Blue Jays haven’t been much better and are also in danger of losing 100-plus games this season. There’s more reason for Jays fans than O’s fans to be excited about the near-term future thanks to Vlad Guerrero Jr, Cavan Biggio and Bo Bichette. That being said, Toronto’s farm system is very thin at the top now, especially in the starting-pitching department.

The Blue Jays are still looking at a multi-year rebuild regardless of the fact that they have more exciting young players already in the big leagues than the Orioles. Toronto needs to keep unloading the elite trade chips that they do have in an effort to build for the future. Their best chance to bring back a haul is to deal staff ace Marcus Stroman, who is in the midst of a bounce-back season.

Toronto’s hopes of pairing Stroman with Aaron Sanchez for a dominant one-two punch at the top of their rotation looks less and less likely to pan out because they can’t seem to get healthy at the same time. While Sanchez has continued to struggle this year, Stroman is having the best season of his career. He is 4-8 with a 3.18 ERA through 15 starts and is limiting home runs.

Stroman is still under team control for one more season, and the Jays need to use that to their advantage and trade him now instead of waiting until next season when he will be a pending free agent. The 28-year-old is at his best right now, and Toronto must capitalize.

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