Toronto Blue Jays: Three trade fits for Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
By Jason Evans
If the Toronto Blue Jays decided to trade Lourdes Gurriel Jr. where could he go? Here are three trade fits for the young hitter.
With the GM Meetings kicking off this week, we are officially in hot stove season. The free agent and trade rumors are going to start to flow. One of the more surprising names to potentially be available for trade is that of Toronto Blue Jays super-utility player Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Here’s an interesting one: Heard from multiple people lately #BlueJays could be open to moving Lourdes Gurriel Jr. this winter, especially if it brings the right rotation arm back.
— Scott Mitchell (@ScottyMitchTSN) November 11, 2019
Signed through 2023 and heading into his age-26 season, the contract is nice and so is the bat.
I have to say, I didn’t expect to see Gurriel’s name pop up in trade rumors but here we are. The Toronto Blue Jays are flush with young bats all over the diamond, however, they could use more help in the pitching department. They already acquired Chase Anderson earlier in the month, but they shouldn’t be stopping there to improve a young rotation.
In 84 games, Gurriel put up a .277 average with a .869 OPS. He was blistering hot in the first half, hitting .303 with a .981 OPS. Injuries played a role in the second half, and Gurriel slumped to a .235 average over his final 31 games. The Toronto Blue Jays and the team potentially acquiring him have to determine which version they are getting.
Teams are going to look for cost-controlled bats, and Gurriel certainly qualifies as that. Add that positional flexibility and he’s going to be very attractive to many teams. What teams can give the Toronto Blue Jays what they want back? Let’s take a look at three possible trade partners for the Toronto Blue Jays and what kind of deal they could get back