An ideal Blue Jays reunion is already off the table thanks to Ross Atkins

In baseball, as in any sport, the art of managing a front office butts up against the constant and overwhelming pressure to placate a fanbase. It is very much a 'what have you done for me lately' sort of job, which can lead to discontentment within the fandom before the organization is actually dissatisfied with their product.

Ross Atkins has been the Toronto Blue Jays' GM for about nine years now, and the product simply is not up to the standards of a hungry fandom. Toronto has had its moments this past decade, but in order for Toronto to take the next step toward contention, many (justifiably) believe a new voice is required.

Toronto has never done enough to develop a sustainable pipeline of young talent. Their primary offseason additions the last few years have mostly flopped, leaving the Blue Jays in a sort of awkward middle ground between contention and outright tanking. The 2024 campaign was especially frustrating, as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. put together one of the best hitting seasons in recent memory, only for the team around him to implode in spectacular fashion.

There is no confidence left in Atkins' ability to run the Blue Jays front office. If Toronto can shock the world and sign Juan Soto this offseason, tunes will change, but that feels exceedingly unlikely. And, as we saw when the Blue Jays whiffed on Shohei Ohtani last winter, we cannot expect the front office to aggressively pursue alternative star-power. It is a boom-or-bust operation — sign the very best or go home empty-handed — with the odds heavily favoring the latter.

So, we can already strike one obvious trade candidate off the wishlist.

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Blue Jays probably won't target reunion with Marcus Stroman

Marcus Stroman spent the first five-odd years of his career in Toronto, including an All-Star berth in his sixth season before a trade to the Mets. Now Storman is with the other NYC club, the New York Yankees, but he was left off the postseason roster after a frigid regular season finale. Storman appeared in 30 games (29 starts) for the Yanks, posting a 4.31 ERA and 1.47 WHIP across 154.2 innings.

Toronto needs to beef up its pitching staff after trading Yusei Kikuchi. Kevin Guasman and Chris Bassitt are both at the tail-end of their prime, if not past it. The Blue Jays' offense should improve by default next season after such a strange, slump-fueled campaign, but without a serviceable rotation, none of that really matters. The Blue Jays won't win enough games in the cutthroat AL East without a productive staff.

It's fair to say that Stroman is due for a bounce-back season. He was an All-Star in 2023 and his 2024 campaign was not all bad. There were moments of vintage Stroman sprinkled in. Under contract for $18.3 million next season with a club option for 2026, Stroman is a prime buy-low candidate for a contender looking to shore up its rotation. Unfortunately, Atkins already tainted that relationship with a trade, and he's probably not keen on spending the money necessary to bring Stroman back into the fold.

And that's a shame. The Blue Jays fandom deserves a more aggressive front office, not to mention the appeal from Stroman's perspective. He pitched some of his best innings in a Toronto uniform and could relish the opportunity to smash the reset button in a familiar place. Rather than banking on a Stroman rebound, however, odds are the Blue Jays will go after more "cost effective" options with much lower ceilings. So, in short, don't get your hopes up.