Toronto ships pitchers Sanchez, Biagini to Houston

Ross Atkins believes new acquisition Derek Fisher will be a complementary piece for the rebuilding Blue Jays, but time will tell whether the outfielder will be worth the high price Toronto paid for his services.

The Blue Jays capped a busy four days leading up to Wednesday’s trade deadline by trading right-handed starter Aaron Sanchez, right-handed reliever Joe Biagini and minorleague outfielder Cal Stevenson to the Houston Astros for Fisher, a 26-year-old who has has spent most of his professional career in the minor leagues.

While the 2014 37th-overall pick has shown few flashes of his potential during his stints in the majors — he has a .201 batting average over 312 career plate appearances with the Astros — Atkins said Fisher is someone the Jays have been targeting for some time.

“He couldn’t fit better with our young core right now,” the Blue Jays general manager said on a conference call. “Everything about his track record suggests he is a great fit for us.”

Sanchez and Biagini were the fifth and sixth Blue Jays to be traded for prospects or younger players by the rebuilding Blue Jays (43-67), who cleared the decks as they set out to shape a new team image around emerging stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio.

Toronto also dealt infielder Eric Sogard, right-handed starter Marcus Stroman and right-handed relievers David Phelps and Daniel Hudson over the past four days.

None of those trades landed Toronto a blue-chip prospect for its rebuild, but Atkins said he expects a “game-changing talent” to come out of the Jays’ minorleague depth.

The 29-year-old Biagini, picked up by Toronto in the 2015 Rule 5 draft, is 3-1 with a 3.78 ERA this season.

Biagini was the second reliever traded by the Jays on Wednesday. Earlier, Toronto sent Hudson to the Washington Nationals for right-hander Kyle Johnston.

The 32-year-old Hudson has a record of 6-3 with a 3.00 ERA and two saves in 45 games for the Blue Jays this season. Toronto signed Hudson as a free agent on March 25.

Johnston, 23, has a 9-9 record with a 4.03 ERA in 20 starts for advanced-A Potomac of the Carolina League this season, striking out 100 batters in 105 innings pitched.