Jays need a starter better than Hutchison

GM said recent moves probably won’t be his last

After dealing for Melvin Upton, Jr. from the Padres on Tuesday, Blue Jays’ GM Ross Atkins said he was not done dealing and that it would be most likely for pitching from that point until the Monday deadline. By the end of the night, the Jays reached out and acquired right-handed reliever Joaquin Benoit from the Mariners for the uber-disappointing Drew Storen, already designated for assignment.

Atkins is not done. He insists he has spoken to the other 29 major-league teams multiple times in the past month and will continue to do so, with several balls in the air and trades for pitching help still a possibility. It’s with that in mind, with Atkins suggesting he has open lines of communications with all GMs, that one should take the JoseBautista-to-the-Nationals rumour with a grain of salt.

All GMs have a responsibility to ask about other teams’ talented players, asking the usual, “What would it take?” In the case of Bautista, unless the return to the Jays is something that can help them win this season, then ask away. But as long as Bautista finishes 2016 with the Jays and they make him a qualifying offer as a free agent, somewhere in the area of $18 million, the worst that Toronto will end up with is an extra selection in the June ’17 draft, likely among the Top 50 overall.

So what do the Jays need at the deadline to compete to the end? Even after the acquisition of Benoit and the solid eighth-inning work of Jason Grilli, the Jays’ bullpen is not yet among the elite in baseball.

So they need relievers? Perhaps, but they do have more depth than at any point this season.

With the club sending Bo Schultz and Ryan Tepera back to Buffalo on the weekend to join experienced left-hander Aaron Loup, they have more stability and far more certainty surrounding roles at the major-league level. Roberto Osuna is the closer, with Grilli in the eighth.

Brett Cecil, Franklin Morales, Benoit and Joe Biagini are available from six through eight and with Jesse Chavez as the long man, the major-league quantity is there, especially with the Jays continuing to insist that Aaron Sanchez will at some point have to go to the pen, because of an accumulation of innings.

That leaves Atkins logically zeroing in on a starter. How good would said starter have to be for the Jays to consider trading for him?

Back in the ’70s, there was an infielder named Mario Mendoza who had a nineyear career with the Pirates, Mariners and Rangers.

Mendoza batted below .200 five times and finished with a pathetic career average of .215.

Those days, players would while away mornings sitting around the hotel lobby before a night game sipping a coffee, reading the local newspaper. All papers back in the day ran the full major-league statistics and they would make fun of teammates by pointing out, “Hey you’re below the Mendoza line.”

The Jays pitching equivalent today would be the Hutchison line. Any new starter must have a chance to be at least better than Drew Hutchison, currently with the Triple-A Bisons.

Following is a partial list of starting pitchers currently on the trading block that should be of interest to the Jays above the Hutchison line.

1. Andrew Cashner (Padres): He faced the Jays on Tuesday and

showed that he can succeed against an AL East power. The 29-year-old right-hander is earning $7.15 million and is a free agent at the end of the season. He is 4-7, with a 4.16 ERA in 16 starts this year.

2. Jeremy Hellickson (Phillies): He pitched in the AL East for five years and won rookie of the year award in 2011. The 29-year-old right-hander is earning $7 million and is a free agent at the end of the season. He is 7-7, with a 3.65 ERA in 21 starts.

3. Jorge de la Rosa: He has pitched in mile-high Denver for the Rockies for nine seasons, and could use a break to sea-level. The 35-year-old left-hander is earning $12.5 million and is a free-agent at the end of the year. He is 6-7, with a 5.70 ERA in 17 games, 14 starts.

4. Jonathan Niese: After eight seasons with the Mets, he ended up with the Pirates and has been disappointing. He was recently demot- ed to the bullpen and ready to be dealt. The 29-year-old left-hander is earning $9 million in 2016, but has club options for 2017-18. He is 8-6, with a 4.91 ERA.

There are other starters out there likely above the line, but more difficult to pry away from their current clubs, names like Jake Odorizzi and Matt Moore (Rays), Ervin Santana (Twins), Julio Teheran (Braves) and Matt Shoemaker (Angels).

The bottom line is if the Jays change their mind and Sanchez is given a longer leash as a starter (with the club rolling the dice against fears of future injury), then Atkins may still try to bolster the 25-man roster, but with another bullpen arm.

One thing that the young GM has made clear is that, until further notice, any moves in the next few days will be in the best interest of winning in 2016.