Making the World Series wasn’t unexpected if you paid attention to the Blue Jays all season. During a West Coast road trip, the Jays fell to 16-20, but in late May the season started to feel special. That continued in June, and by July it was time to go for it, before the trade deadline.
The Blue Jays did just that before the July 31 deadline. A few days before the deadline, the Jays sent prospect Juaron Watts-Brown to the Baltimore Orioles for reliever Seranthony Domínguez. Early on trade deadline day, the Jays sent prospect Khal Stephen to the Cleveland Guardians for 2020 American League Cy Young winner Shane Bieber.
However, they weren’t done yet. During the afternoon, they traded their surplus infielders, moving Will Wagner to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Brandon Valenzuela. And shortly before the deadline closed, the Jays sent prospects Alan Roden and Kendry Rojas to the Minnesota Twins for Ty France and Louis Varland.
In this article, we look at which of the four trades had the most impact for the 2025 season.
The Domínguez trade
After the trade, he finished with a 3.00 ERA and 3.37 FIP in 21 innings pitched. The flamethrower hit 93 mph with a nasty splitter, which translated into a 29.1 K% rate, but he struggled at times throwing strikes and finished the regular season with a 14 BB%.
However, the regular season is not what the Blue Jays acquired Domínguez’s services for. In the postseason, he played in 12 games and finished the playoffs with a 3.18 ERA and 6.84 FIP in 11.1 innings pitched. Why the big difference? Well, Domínguez struggled with command, walking more batters (11) than striking out (10). Not great.
Domínguez is one of six free agents for the Blue Jays, and only time will tell if he returns to the Blue Jays for the 2026 season.
The Bieber trade
In 2020, Bieber posted a 1.63 ERA and 2.07 FIP in 77.1 innings pitched, striking out 41.1% of batters and walking 7.1% of batters. This was en route to winning the American League Cy Young, but there is a caveat as the 2020 season was the pandemic season.
After the trade, Bieber finished with a 3.57 ERA and 4.47 FIP in 40.1 innings pitched, striking out 23.3% of batters and walking 4.4% of batters. Bieber’s postseason has been a mixed bag. His first start didn’t go well, but he pitched well in the American League Championship Series, including a six-inning Game 3. In his only World Series start, Bieber pitched five and a third innings with one run allowed.
The Valenzuela trade
In 479 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A, the 25-year-old catcher hit .224/.309/.383, but his career-high 15 home runs while walking 10.9% of the time. If Alejandro Kirk or Tyler Heineman go down with an injury in 2026, Valenzuela will certainly be the first catcher called up.
The trade between Varland and France
Varland was the notable acquisition. After the trade, he finished the season with a 4.94 ERA and 3.56 FIP in 23.2 innings pitched with the Blue Jays. He had a strong September to return to the circle of trust, and Varland pitched in 15 of the Blue Jays’ 18 postseason games, breaking the record for most games pitched.
The 27-year-old will make the league minimum in 2026 and is under team control until after the 2030 season. The Jays will have to decide whether he pitches out of the bullpen or out of the rotation, but whatever they chose, it was a great trade.
Which transaction had the most impact
That said, which trade had the most impact over the remainder of the regular season and postseason run? Realistically, it’s between the Bieber trade and the Varland trade.
Varland was a key reliever in the postseason, getting some huge putouts for the Blue Jays as he broke a record. Bieber pitched in several must-win games and threw the final pitch for the Blue Jays in 2025.
Ultimately, the most impactful trade for the Blue Jays was probably the Varland trade, with the Bieber trade not far behind.
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