According to Jon Morosi, the Jays are one of the teams looking at the Kansas City Royals’ Andrew Benintendi.
This season, the left fielder is slashing .305/.370/.393 with three homers. He has a low K% of 13.8%, but will also take a walk as his BB% sits at 9.5%. He also has a 120 wRC+ and an fWAR of 1.4, well above replacement level.
The #BlueJays and #Royals are potential trade partners ahead of the Aug. 2 @MLB Trade Deadline. Toronto is among the teams with interest in Andrew Benintendi, and KC has appealing bullpen arms as well. @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) June 29, 2022
Defensively, he’s an average defender, as he has a 2 Defensive Runs Saved and 1 Outs Above Average. However, in 2021, he posted a DRS of 7 (the best since his first full two seasons) and an Outs Above Average of 0, his third best season by that metric.
Defensively, he’s a slight upgrade over Loudres Gurriel Jr, and if the Jays were to trade for Benintendi, I could see the two of them platoon.
In fact, I find the two players rather comparable, as Gurriel is slashing .283/.336/.408 with four homers and a wRC+ of 111.
The reason why he’ll be a hot commodity come August 2nd is because Benintendi is in the final year of his contract. The soon to be 28-year-old makes $8,500,000 this season, before hitting the open market after the 2022 season.
Trading for a player with an expiring contract is a double edge sword. On one hand, depending on the prospects they give up, this trade could really hurt in a few years. On the other hand, Benintendi is a significant upgrade over Ramiel Tapia, and is arguably better than Gurriel Jr.
Along with other additions, trading for Benintendi may be what solidifies the Jays as a contender.
Speaking of other additions, it’s been evident that the Jays need some bullpen help. Thankfully, Morosi notes that the Royals have some bullpen arms that could be of use. Chief among them is Scott Barlow, but you can read about him in Kansas’ addition of Meet the Sellers.
Other bullpen options include Dylan Coleman, Taylor Clarke, and Josh Staumont, all of which would c …
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Author: Brennan Delaney / Blue Jays Nation