Two of Last Year’s Trade Pickups Are Paying Huge Dividends for the 2026 Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays are seeing massive success from two of their trade acquisitions at last season's deadline. Louis Varland was acquired from the Minnesota Twins along with Ty France in exchange for Alan Roden and prospect Kendry Rojas. In a smaller-scale trade, the Blue Jays acquired Brandon Valenzuela from the San Diego Padres for Will Wagner. Although it's early in the season, Toronto looks like the clear winner of both deals, given how its acquisitions are performing.

Varland has been one of the best relievers, if not the best, in the American League throughout the first 10 weeks of the season. Through 34 2/3 innings (as of June 8), he has an out-of-this-world 0.28 ERA, a 34.1 percent strikeout rate, and a 1.29 FIP. All three statistics would be career-best numbers if this were the end of the season.

Due to his success, he has been called upon to replace Jeff Hoffman to close out games, and Varland has been exceptional. He's converted all 11 of his save opportunities. What's even more impressive is that the righty has pitched in 18 straight outings without allowing an earned run. His Baseball Savant profile is entirely red, with him ranking in the 90th percentile or higher across 10 statistics.

Varland doesn't become a free agent until the 2031 season, which makes him a valuable long-term asset, and he is quickly making a case as one of the Blue Jays' greatest trade deadline acquisitions in team history. Obviously, some regression will come; he can't be this perfect all season long. Or can he?

When Valenzuela was acquired last season, he was thought to be a defensive-minded catcher. In 2023, he had an .828 OPS after 156 High-A plate appearances. That was the last time he had an OPS above .715 at any professional level, and he's never had an ISO above .180 until this year. This season, he's slashing .252/.338/.471 with seven home runs, 17 runs, 16 runs driven in, a .809 OPS, and a .218 ISO.

When Alejandro Kirk went on the injured list in early April, Valenzuela was called up to back up Tyler Heineman. However, Heineman's struggles at the plate led the Blue Jays to split the backstop role between Heineman and Valenzuela. Lately, though, Valenzuela has gotten the majority of starts each week due to his offensive success.

With Kirk starting a rehab assignment, the Blue Jays will have to make a difficult choice about who to send down if all goes well. Do you keep Valenzuela, a rookie who is performing better offensively, or Heineman, a veteran who is just as strong defensively?

Both catchers rank in the top four among MLB catchers in Fielding Run Value. Valenzuela ranks third with a +7 value, and Heineman ranks fourth with a +6 value. The tough decision about who to keep on the 26-man roster stems from Heineman no longer having any options available. So, he would have to be designated for assignment, and with his strong defensive skills, he's nearly guaranteed to be selected off waivers.

It might be smart to keep Heineman on the 26-man roster, while Valenzuela gets regular at-bats in Triple-A rather than making a start or two each week in the big leagues. Keeping Heineman also strengthens the team's catching depth in case of an injury towards the end of the season.

Kirk isn't expected to need many at-bats during his rehab stint, so a return could come this weekend in a series against the division rival New York Yankees. I would expect Heineman to stay and back up Kirk, but luckily, I'm not the one who makes these tough decisions.

Stats updated prior to games on June 9.